The quote you are given is usually the floor, not the ceiling. Here is what sits inside the price, and why the same procedure costs different amounts in different cities.
A cat dental cleaning is quoted as a package: the consultation, pre-anaesthetic bloodwork, the anaesthetic and monitoring, dental X-rays, the scale and polish, and take-home pain relief. That quote is the floor, not the ceiling, because extractions are charged on top and nobody can count them until the cat is asleep and the X-rays are up. In our index the typical range differs by roughly a third between the most and least expensive city in the same country.
A cat dental is the bill owners are least prepared for, because the words sound routine and the invoice is not. It is not a clean and polish. It is a general anaesthetic on a small animal, and the price reflects everything that has to happen around the teeth themselves.
Every reputable clinic charges for roughly the same six things: the consultation that decides the dental is needed, pre-anaesthetic bloodwork, the anaesthetic and the nurse monitoring it, dental radiographs, the scale and polish, and pain relief to go home with. A quote that looks unusually cheap is usually missing one of those, and the one most often missing is the radiographs.
Local currency, before tax. Figures are the typical range in our index on 2026-09-06, not a quote from any one clinic.
| Country | Typical range | Currency | Highest city | Lowest city |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🇨🇦 Canada | $650–$1,300 | CAD | Vancouver $1,120 | Regina $850 |
| 🇺🇸 United States | $550–$1,105 | USD | San Francisco $1,160 | San Antonio $730 |
| 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | £375–£755 | GBP | London £765 | Belfast £480 |
| 🇦🇺 Australia | A$620–A$1,235 | AUD | Sydney A$1,110 | Hobart A$850 |
| 🇮🇪 Ireland | €405–€805 | EUR | Dublin €755 | Waterford €545 |
| 🇳🇿 New Zealand | NZ$535–NZ$1,065 | NZD | Auckland NZ$895 | Invercargill NZ$720 |
Same procedure, same country, eight Canadian cities. Rent, wages and how many clinics compete locally do most of the work.
Nobody can count the extractions until the cat is asleep and the X-rays are on the screen. Feline resorptive lesions hide below the gumline, and they are common. The honest version of the conversation is that your clinic is quoting the cleaning, and each extraction is added on top. Ask for the per-extraction price up front, and ask what happens if they find six instead of one.
Two clinics an hour apart can differ by a third for identical work. Rent and wages drive most of it, which is why the big-city prices in our index sit above the regional ones. Equipment matters too: a practice with dental radiography and a dedicated anaesthesia nurse costs more and is worth more. What should not vary is whether they X-ray at all.
Four questions get you a real number. Does the quote include dental radiographs? What is the charge per extraction? Is the pre-anaesthetic bloodwork in the price or extra? And what is the realistic total if my cat needs several teeth out? A clinic that answers all four plainly is one you can trust with the anaesthetic.
Cats hide dental pain almost perfectly. Owners routinely report no symptoms right up until the teeth come out, and then describe a different animal a fortnight later. Waiting does not avoid the cost; it converts a cleaning into extractions, which is the more expensive version of the same appointment.
We publish the dental range for every city we cover, in local currency, alongside the other 23 procedures. Look yours up before you ring the clinic, so you know whether the quote you are given is normal for where you live.
We build a national typical range from published clinic price lists, veterinary association fee surveys and real bills owners submit to us, then apply a city multiplier for local rent, wages and clinic density. Non-Canadian markets scale the same base by national price level. Figures are estimates in local currency before tax, never quotes. Once three verified bills exist for a city and procedure, the real bills replace the estimate.
Full method and correction policy: our methodology page. Spotted a price that is wrong? Send us the invoice and we will fix it.
Cats will not hold still for scaling below the gumline, and that is where the disease is. Anaesthetic-free dentistry cleans the visible crown only, which looks better and treats nothing.
For cats, yes. Resorptive lesions and root disease are invisible above the gumline, and a large share of teeth that need removing look normal to the eye. A dental without radiographs is a guess.
It varies enormously by individual. Some cats go years, others need one every 12 to 18 months. Your vet checks at the annual exam, and that check is the cheapest part of the whole process.
Routine cleaning is usually excluded as preventative care. Extractions and treatment for diagnosed dental disease are often covered by accident-and-illness policies, though many insurers require a dental exam within the last year. Check the wording before you assume.
The quote prices the cleaning. Extractions are charged separately and are only counted once the cat is anaesthetised and radiographed. Ask for the per-extraction price and a realistic worst case before you book.
Look up your own city on our vet-cost index. Prices are shown in local currency before tax, and the gap between the highest and lowest city we cover is wide enough that a national average is close to useless.
Not automatically, but ask what is excluded. The three things most often left out of a cheap quote are dental radiographs, pre-anaesthetic bloodwork, and take-home pain relief.
Risk rises with age and illness, which is exactly why bloodwork and a pre-anaesthetic exam are charged for. Untreated dental disease in an old cat is usually the larger risk of the two.
Many clinics offer payment plans or accept third-party medical credit. Ask before the appointment rather than on the day, because approval takes time.
Fees usually move once a year when a clinic updates its price list. Our index rebuilds nightly, so the range you see is the current one.
90% reimbursement, no payout limits, pays the vet directly at many Canadian clinics.
Get a quote →Covers exam fees, dental disease and behavioural therapy; flexible deductibles.
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Get a quote →Disclosure: some links are referral links. They never change your price. We list insurers we would consider ourselves, not whoever pays most.
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