The short answer
General dental searches usually cost $3-$10 per click in the US, emergency dentist searches $5-$20, and high-value treatments like implants and Invisalign $10-$40. Most single-location practices spend $2,000-$8,000 a month. The practices that do best run separate campaigns for high-value treatments, because one implant patient can be worth more than a year of hygiene appointments.
Cost per click by dental treatment
Typical US ranges for local, high-intent searches. Cities with lots of practices and big DSO groups sit at the top end.
| Search | Typical CPC | Patient value |
|---|---|---|
| General dentist / dentist near me | $3-$10 | Lower per visit, high lifetime value |
| Emergency dentist | $5-$20 | Urgent; often books same day |
| Teeth whitening | $3-$10 | Low ticket, can lead to more work |
| Invisalign / clear aligners | $8-$25 | Several thousand dollars per case |
| Dental implants | $10-$40 | Several thousand per implant, much more for full arch |
| Cosmetic dentistry / veneers | $8-$25 | High ticket, longer decision |
| Pediatric dentist | $3-$10 | Family lifetime value |
UK private dentistry is generally cheaper per click. NHS-related searches are best excluded unless you have NHS capacity to fill.
Think in patient value, not cost per click
A $7 click for "dentist near me" feels cheap next to a $30 click for "dental implants cost". But a new general patient might be worth $300 in the first year and a few thousand over their lifetime, while one implant case can be worth $4,000-$25,000 on its own.
That's why we split dental accounts by treatment. It lets you bid hard for the searches that pay for the whole campaign, and keep general patient acquisition steady and efficient. It also means each treatment gets its own ad copy and landing page, which usually lifts conversion rate a lot.
Worked example: an implant campaign
A practice spending $4,000 a month just on implant searches at about $22 a click, sending traffic to a dedicated implants page with pricing guidance and finance options.
| Step | Example |
|---|---|
| Monthly ad spend | $4,000 |
| Average cost per click | $22.00 |
| Clicks | 182 |
| Conversion rate to consultation requests | 8.0% |
| Consultation requests | 15 |
| Cost per consultation request | $275 |
| Close rate to treatment starts | 30% |
| Treatment starts | 4.4 |
| Cost per treatment start | $917 |
| Average implant treatment value | $4,500 |
| Revenue | $19,636 |
| Return on ad spend | 4.9x |
Each consultation request costs about $275, and each patient who goes ahead about $917. That's around 4.9x return on ad spend before any lifetime value. Consultation-to-treatment rate is the lever here: good follow-up and finance options move it far more than bid changes.
Where dental ad budgets get wasted
Job and course searches
"Dental nurse jobs", "dental hygienist course" and "dentist salary" all match dental keywords. Negatives stop them.
Too wide a radius
Most patients won't travel more than a short drive for routine care. Implant patients will travel further, so set radius per treatment.
No price guidance
"Implants cost" searchers want a number. Pages without any pricing or finance info lose them to the practice that shows it.
Forms nobody follows up
A consultation request left for two days is often a lost patient. Fast follow-up is worth more than any bid change.
How to lower your cost per new patient
- 1
Separate campaigns by treatment
Implants, Invisalign, emergency and general each get their own budget, bids and landing page.
- 2
Track bookings, not just clicks
Online booking, calls and forms tracked as conversions, with bookings from your practice software imported where possible.
- 3
Use call-only hours wisely
Emergency searches spike evenings and weekends. Make sure someone (or a service) answers, or reduce bids when you can't.
- 4
Show proof
Before-and-after photos (within the rules), reviews and clear pricing lift conversion rate on treatment pages.