How Much Do Clear Aligners Cost?

Clear aligners cost $699 to $1,395 from at-home brands for daytime treatment of both arches. Treatment in a dentist’s or orthodontist’s office averages about $5,100. The office figure comes from a national cost study that reports a range of roughly $1,800 to $8,100¹. The at-home prices come from the brands’ own websites, checked on October 1, 2026.

If a dentist confirms that remote treatment suits your teeth, SmileSet is our pick in the at-home group at $1,395 (list $1,895, depending on when you buy). The impression kit is included, a licensed dentist reviews your case and treatment plan, and you get a 30-day refund window². Cheaper brands exist, and we cover them below with the trade-offs.

At-Home Clear Aligner Prices Compared

At-home brands advertise $699 to $1,395 for daytime aligners for both arches. Every price below is the sale price shown on each brand’s website, with the list price in parentheses. Single-arch, nighttime and in-person plans sit in their own column because they are different packages. Treat the table as a snapshot and get a written quote before you buy.

We checked every price on October 1, 2026, the day SmileSet raised its price from $1,295 to $1,395. Sale prices change often, so confirm the current price before you pay.

The SmileSet price is the advertised price on its product page, shown as a “Save $500” promotion against a $1,895 list price². Its FAQ lists $1,895 in one answer and $1,495 in another, so ask SmileSet to confirm your total in writing¹³. Nighttime aligners cost the same $1,395. NewMouth usually suggests daytime wear, so read the nighttime aligner guide before choosing that option.

Is SmileSet worth it? It can be, if a dentist confirms you have mild-to-moderate crowding or spacing that suits remote treatment. The price sits above the cheapest mail-order brands. It includes the kit, two virtual consults and a 30-day fit guarantee^2,13. The Protection Plan adds touch-ups if you meet its conditions³. The SmileSet review covers the refund terms, the complaints, and who should skip it.

What Changes the Price of Clear Aligners

Care model moves the price more than anything else. The American Association of Orthodontists (AAO) says orthodontic cost depends on treatment type, complexity, and duration⁴. Here is how each factor shows up on the price tag:

Clear aligner treatment cost depends on:

• Who supervises you: Office treatment averages about $5,100 because a clinician sees you in person and adjusts as you go¹. At-home brands advertise $699 to $1,395 because check-ins happen by photo and app.
• Case complexity: At-home brands accept mild-to-moderate cases only. Bite problems, rotations, and impacted teeth push you into office care, which costs more⁵.
• Number of arches: Treating one arch is cheaper. Smileie’s lowest price is for a single arch, so compare it with dual-arch prices carefully.
• Nighttime plans: ALIGNERCO, Smileie and NewSmile all charge more for night-only plans than for all-day plans. SmileSet charges the same $1,395 for both.
• Refinements: Extra trays at the end of treatment cost money unless the plan includes them. SmileSet’s Protection Plan includes touch-ups during treatment and one within 30 days of finishing, if you meet its conditions³.
• Retainers: You wear retainers for life after any aligner treatment. Budget $149 to $199 per set with SmileSet, or check whether your office fee includes them.

Check Your Clear Aligner Candidacy

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At-Home Clear Aligner Brands and Costs

At-home brands ship an impression kit, have a licensed dentist or orthodontist approve a plan, and monitor you remotely. The American Dental Association warns that direct-to-consumer models can skip parts of diagnosis and planning⁵, so ask who will examine you and review your records before you buy. SmileSet, the top pick, is covered above. Here are the other brands worth knowing.

ALIGNERCO

ALIGNERCO advertises $725 (list $1,095) for its all-day plan, and that is a sale price that could change¹⁴. You can also buy the impression kit alone for $29.99 before committing. ALIGNERCO says a US-licensed orthodontist reviews each plan.

ALIGNERCO quotes four to six months for all-day treatment. Its NightOnly plan costs $925 (list $1,295), with 10 hours of wear a day and a six-to-eight-month timeline¹⁴. The ALIGNERCO review covers the fit and support experience.

Smileie

Smileie prices by arch and by tier, so the cheapest number is not the whole story. Its daytime at-home plan costs $699 for both arches (list $849) or $549 for one arch¹⁵. The same plans cost $200 more with an in-person scan. Smileie Pro costs $1,499 and adds an in-person exam, scans, and X-rays.

You can buy the impression kit first for $49.99 and decide after you see the plan. Smileie quotes four to six months of treatment, with each tray worn 7 to 14 days. Read the Smileie review before picking a tier.

NewSmile

NewSmile’s Fast Track all-day aligners cost $1,095 (list $1,795). Its Night Aligners cost $1,195 (list $1,895)¹⁶. The impression kit is already included in Fast Track, so don’t add the separate $29 kit price to the package total. The trays are trimmed along the gum line rather than over it, which NewSmile says makes them less visible and less irritating.

NewSmile offers a live video call to walk you through your impressions. After you approve the plan, treatment is mostly hands-off. The NewSmile review has the details.

Candid

Candid has moved to a fully dentist-led model called CandidPro. You start and finish with a CandidPro dentist or orthodontist in person. Your provider sets the fee, so Candid publishes no consumer price and has no online checkout. Expect it to land closer to office pricing than to mail-order pricing.

Candid accepts a wider range of cases than mail-order brands, including some moderate bite problems. Candid treatment runs four to 12 months. One of our writers finished Candid treatment, and the review shows the before and after.

In-Office Clear Aligner Brands and Costs

Office aligner treatment averages $5,108 in the United States¹. The reported range is about $1,800 to $8,100, depending on region, case complexity, and tray count. That figure comes from the 2023 Synchrony Average Procedural Cost Study, which ASQ360° Market Research conducted for CareCredit, with cost tables dated October 2023. The ADA discontinued its national dental fee survey in 2023, so there is no current ADA benchmark to cite⁶.

Office treatment costs more because a clinician examines you, takes scans, and adjusts the plan in person. It also handles the cases at-home brands turn away. The FDA describes the aligner phase as 6 to 18 months, with each tray worn one to two weeks for about 22 hours a day⁷.

1. Invisalign

Invisalign uses a patented material called SmartTrack and is sold only through trained providers. Each provider sets the fee, so Invisalign publishes no price list. Its own cost page shows three hypothetical cases with doctor’s fees of $5,490-$7,000 before insurance¹². That is the upper half of the office range¹.

Invisalign treats overbites, underbites, open bites, and gapped or crooked teeth. Most AAO orthodontists offer free or low-cost first consultations, so the exam should not add much⁴. Ask each office what its fee includes: retainers, refinements, and X-rays are the usual extras.

2. ClearCorrect

ClearCorrect publishes no consumer price at all; its site is written for dentists. The cost varies by office and by how many trays you need. Refinement trays at the end of treatment add to the total unless your quote includes them. Treatment length is set by your provider and follows the same 6-to-18-month window the FDA describes⁷.

Traditional braces are priced the same way. The AAO publishes no fixed braces price and says the total depends on treatment type, complexity, and duration⁴. Get two quotes and compare what each one includes.

Does Insurance Cover Clear Aligners?

Many dental plans cover part of orthodontic treatment, but the details decide what you get back. The AAO recommends asking your plan for the percentage covered, the lifetime orthodontic maximum, any age limits, and whether your provider is in network⁴. Lifetime maximums of $1,000 to $2,500 are common, so a $5,000 case still leaves most of the bill to you⁸.

At-home aligners are harder to predict, because a plan that covers braces may still exclude mail-order, direct-to-consumer, or virtual orthodontic programs. SmileSet does not bill insurance but gives you a claim form with procedure codes to submit yourself². Call your plan before you order and ask about “teledentistry” or “remote orthodontics” by name.

Paying With an HSA or FSA

A health savings account (HSA) or flexible spending account (FSA) lets you pay with pre-tax money, and orthodontic treatment qualifies under IRS rules⁹. Reimbursement still depends on your plan’s own rules and on keeping your receipts¹⁰. SmileSet accepts HSA and FSA cards at checkout because its store uses medical merchant code 8021². Other brands accept them too, so ask before you pay with a regular card.

What a Monthly Payment Really Costs

A low monthly number tells you nothing about the total until you know the APR. Federal rules define APR as the cost of credit expressed as a yearly rate, and it is the number to compare across lenders¹¹. A 0% plan with no fees over 12 months costs you the sticker price. The same balance at 30% APR over 36 months costs hundreds more.

A monthly figure on a product page is an advertisement, not a loan quote. The real rate depends on your credit and the term you pick. Here is what each brand advertised on October 1, 2026:

Before you sign with any brand, write down the APR, the number of payments, and the total you will pay, then compare that total with the cash price.

Which Brand Offers the Best Value?

If a dentist confirms remote treatment suits your teeth, SmileSet is our pick at $1,395 (list $1,895, depending on when you buy). The price includes the impression kit, a dentist-reviewed plan, two virtual consults, a 30-day fit guarantee, and conditional touch-ups under the Protection Plan^2,3. At the advertised treatment price, adding $199 for upper and lower retainers brings the total to $1,594 before any other costs. Get a written quote that spells out the treatment price, extra aligners, dental work, taxes and fees.

Candid is the pick if you want to see a dentist in person at the start and finish. Its provider-set price lands closer to office treatment, and it takes on cases mail-order brands decline. Invisalign or ClearCorrect through a local orthodontist is the answer for bite problems.

Why You Can Trust NewMouth’s Recommendations

Our Methodology

The NewMouth editorial team compares at-home and in-office clear aligner brands on the same criteria. The evaluation and recommendations are based on:

1. Quality of treatment, including expert involvement throughout treatment
2. Feedback from real customers
3. Doctor recommendations
4. Cost, financing options, and guarantees/warranties
5. Treatment duration
6. Additional services offered
7. Ease of use

Prices and policies come from each brand’s own website, with the date we checked.

Our Qualifications

NewMouth is a dental information resource covering orthodontics, at-home teeth straightening, primary dental care, and procedure costs. A team of medical writers, researchers, licensed dental professionals, and medical reviewers oversees every article on the site.

One writer completed a full course of Candid treatment and documented the before and after. Two in-house editors fact-check each article and an in-house dentist reviews it for accuracy.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is $3,000 a good price for clear aligners?

It depends on your case and what the quote includes. For office treatment, $3,000 is below the national average of $5,108 and inside the reported range of about $1,800 to $8,100¹. For an at-home plan, it is above every daytime price in our table, which runs from $699 to $1,395 for both arches. Have a dentist or orthodontist assess your teeth first, then ask for an itemized quote that lists records, refinements, retainers and follow-up visits.

Are clear aligners worth the money?

That depends on what an exam finds. If a dentist confirms mild-to-moderate crowding or spacing and agrees remote care suits you, the at-home plans in our table cost $699 to $1,395. Bite problems need office care. The cheapest fix is the one that works the first time, so match the care model to your case.

Do cheaper aligners work as well?

The plastic is similar across brands. What you pay for is supervision, refinements, and what happens when something goes wrong⁵. Read the refund and refinement terms before you buy on price alone.

Summary

Clear aligners cost $699 to $1,395 from at-home brands and about $5,100 on average in an office. SmileSet is our pick for mild-to-moderate cases a dentist has confirmed, at $1,395 (list $1,895, depending on when you buy). Check your insurance, use your HSA or FSA, and compare total financing cost before you commit.