Best Dental Insurance for Braces (2025)
Humana has the best dental insurance for braces, with an average cost of $18 per month.
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Many Humana plans don't make you wait before coverage kicks in, which means you can get coverage immediately.
Many plans require that you wait for six months to a year before your plan will pay for braces. Plus, Humana has a strong customer service reputation.
Blue Cross Blue Shield is also a good choice if you want to choose from a large network of dentists. Consider UnitedHealthcare if you want cheap, high-quality bundled health and dental coverage.
ValuePenguin editors used factors such as average cost, customer satisfaction, coverage and waiting periods to find the best dental insurance for braces.
Read the full methodology.
Best for most people: Humana
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Editor's rating
- Cost: $18/mo
Humana offers the best combination of cheap rates, coverage and good customer service.
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Cheap rates
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Low deductibles
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Good lifetime maximum benefit limits
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Plans available with no waiting periods
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Not the cheapest option available
Humana is the best option for full coverage dental insurance with no waiting period.
Humana offers many plans with high spending caps, called lifetime maximum benefit limits. For example, Humana offers plans that pay 50% of the costs to get braces up to $2,500, such as the Dental High PPO and Dental Indemnity with PPO. That's at the top end of what you can expect from an orthodontics insurance plan.
These plans cover braces for adults and children. It's important to check that your dental plan covers adults because many policies will only pay for children's braces.
The company charges an average of $18 per month, which makes it one of the most affordable options among large dental insurance companies. Humana orthodontics plans also have a low average deductible of $53. That's roughly one-third the industry average.
Keep in mind that some insurance plans require that you pay a separate deductible for your orthodontics treatments. However, both the Dental High PPO and Dental Indemnity with PPO plans have a $0 deductible.
Humana offers a broad range of coverage options including PPO dental plans and supplemental braces insurance.
Blue Cross Blue Shield: Best for network of dentists
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Editor's rating
- Cost: $23/mo
Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) lets you choose from a large number of dentists, and it has a wide range of plan choices.
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Large network of dentists
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Wide variety of plans available
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Many plans cover adults and children
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Average rates
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Some plans have poor benefits
Blue Cross Blue Shield gives you more options when it comes to choosing your orthodontist. That's because it has one of the largest networks of dentists nationwide, at half a million.
Blue Cross Blue Shield also offers 681 dental plans with orthodontics insurance nationwide. This makes BCBS a good choice if you want the flexibility to choose from a variety of coverage options.
The Blue Cross Blue Shield FEP Dental High Plan is a good choice for adults because of its strong orthodontics benefits. The plan covers half of your costs up to a lifetime maximum of $3,500.
Blue Cross Blue Shield plans cost an average of $23 per month, which is slightly more than the industry average. However, you can lower your monthly rate by bundling your health and dental insurance through BCBS.
Best for bundled coverage: UnitedHealthcare
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Editor's rating
- Cost: $23/mo
UnitedHealthcare is the best choice if you want to get orthodontics, dental and health coverage from a single company.
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Quality coverage
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Low deductibles
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Large network of doctors and dentists
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Average dental insurance rates
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Middle-of-the-road customer service for dental plans
UnitedHealthcare (UHC) offers high-quality health insurance and a wide range of dental plans that include orthodontics coverage.
Many UHC dental plans also have good benefits. For example, the company's High Dental Plan will pay for 50% of your dental costs up to $2,000. These plans have no waiting period, and you can get coverage for yourself or your family. These plans also have generous benefits for children, at $4,000 for a lifetime maximum.
In addition, UnitedHealthcare offers high-quality health insurance plans, which makes it a good choice for bundled coverage. The company has a high rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars for member experience, according to HealthCare.gov. UnitedHealthcare also gets fewer complaints than an average company its size.
That makes UnitedHealthcare a good choice if you want to bundle your dental and health coverage through a single company.
How does orthodontic insurance work?
Dental insurance for braces, called orthodontic insurance, pays for part of the cost of your braces up to a limit, called a lifetime maximum. Many plans also require you to wait a certain amount of time before coverage starts, called a waiting period.
Remember that some plans don't cover certain types of braces. For example, it's more common for insurance to cover metal braces than clear braces like Invisalign. Check your policy before you buy to make sure that you're getting the coverage you want.
Many plans only cover braces for children. Read your policy carefully when shopping for adult braces insurance.
With some plans, you'll pay a deductible before your insurance starts. Typically, you'll pay $100 or less for your deductible, but some plans charge more. After you've paid your deductible, you're typically responsible for a fixed percentage of your orthodontics bill, called coinsurance, until you reach your lifetime maximum.
For example, here's a typical scenario for someone who has orthodontics insurance getting braces that cost $6,000.
- Deductible: $100
- Coinsurance: 50%
- Lifetime maximum: $2,500
- Total cost to you: $3,500
- Total cost of braces: $6,000
In this example, you would pay the first $100 of your bill. Then you and your insurance company would split the cost of braces up to your lifetime maximum of $2,500. You would pay the remaining $900 out of pocket.
That means you would pay a total of $3,500, and your insurance would pay $2,500.
Remember, your insurance won't pay for the braces all at once. Your policy will typically pay for 50% up front. You'll get the remaining payments in monthly, quarterly or annual installments. For example, in the above scenario, you might get $1,250 to begin. Assuming your policy makes quarterly payments, you would then get four payments of $313 every three months.
Orthodontic insurance vs. full coverage dental insurance for braces
Insurance for braces doesn't come standard with all dental insurance plans.
When shopping for dental insurance, it's a good idea to see if orthodontic insurance is included in your plan. If you choose a policy that doesn't cover braces, you can buy extra or supplemental coverage that will pay for braces.
Otherwise, consider a full dental insurance policy that will pay for braces. Keep in mind that dental plans with better coverage tend to have higher monthly costs.
How to find the best dental insurance that covers braces
Consider coverage, waiting periods, total costs and customer service when shopping for the best dental plan that covers braces.
Choosing a plan with a higher limit means you'll pay less when you get your braces. But, it's also important to consider your monthly rate. Because most lifetime limits range from $1,000 to $3,000, even a relatively small difference in your rate can make a policy with a higher limit a poor choice.
When shopping for orthodontics insurance, check to see if your health insurance company offers a bundling discount.
It's important to consider a company's customer satisfaction reputation when searching for the best dental insurance for braces. Companies with a record of poor service may respond more slowly to claims, which means it'll take longer to get your orthodontics bills paid.
Companies like Humana and Aetna Dental offer good service according to a recent J.D. Power survey. UnitedHealthcare also scored about average for overall customer satisfaction.
Frequently asked questions
What's the best dental insurance that covers braces?
Humana has the best dental insurance for major dental work including braces. The company offers many dental coverage plans with high payout limits and reasonable waiting periods. Plus, Humana has a good reputation for customer satisfaction.
Does any dental insurance cover braces?
Not all dental insurance plans cover braces. Look for a full coverage dental policy, or consider adding orthodontics insurance to your plan, called an orthodontics rider.
How much is a dental plan?
Dental plans cost $22 per month, on average. Keep in mind that dental plans with good coverage for braces will often cost more.
Methodology and sources
Cost and plan data came from HealthCare.gov public use files (PUFs). Customer satisfaction information was taken from the 2023 J.D. Power U.S. Dental Plan Satisfaction Study.
Editorial note: The content of this article is based on the author's opinions and recommendations alone. It has not been previewed, commissioned or otherwise endorsed by any of our network partners.