Cost of Braces

My son will be needing braces soon. Just regular braces, no palate expander or anything else needed. We have no dental insurance so I'm curious as to what others have recently paid. I'm particularly interested in Dr. Orenstein or Dr. Mellas. Thanks!

Natalie82 Natalie82
Dec '15

Look into getting insurance, Delta has recently has some very cheap plans (Compared to looking at them a year or two ago), with unlimited coverage and set prices.

alpha1beta alpha1beta
Dec '15

My wife is doing invisilign, cost us $5000, my insurance paid $1500, the rest is out of pocket

Darrin Darrin
Dec '15

My daughter went to Dr. Orenstein. He was fabulous. He does payment plans and up front explains it all to you. My insurance covered around $2000 and I believe the grand total was 6000. But it also included retainer when she was done

htownlifer htownlifer
Dec '15

We used Orenstein too. He was very good. I believe it was $5,000 back in 2001.

mansfield mama mansfield mama
Dec '15

Orenstein all the way. I don't like Mellas. Search for comments about her.

Orenstein is patient, thorough, and has a very well managed payment plan. We have insurance so it was ~$4000 and we owed half. We have one of the better Aetna plans.

emaxxman emaxxman
Dec '15

Another vote for Orenstein, very reasonable payment plan - my insurance covered about 2000, total was about 6000 (with the replacement retainer!!!)

pmnsk pmnsk
Dec '15

Looking for some more prices on braces. My dental plan does not cover Orthodontics and our grand total with Palate expander $5600 from Rand Dental. Any other experiences/costs out there?

LisaB LisaB
Feb '17

Payment plan with Orenstein - I was partially covered, total about 6000

pmnsk pmnsk
Feb '17

Orenstein all the way!!

Used him for 5 sets of braces!

We had no dental coverage but it was still manageable with the payment plan.

Really???
Feb '17

We have had great experiences with Dr. Mellas. I want to say braces were somewhere around $5000 - $5500 (??) She gives a family discount for other family members who use her, and a discount if you pay in full.

We visited 3 orthodontists before we chose Dr. Mellas. Two were in agreement with the treatment plan, and one was way off. Of the two in agreement, she was less expensive, so we went with her. We've been very happy.

Spence Spence
Feb '17

Any new info since 2017 on local cost for braces? Who would you recommend?

LV Girl 4 life LV Girl 4 life
Feb '19

Where is Dr. Orenstein located?

Hackresident Hackresident
Feb '19

Easily $5000-$6000. Most dental plans cover about $1500 max if you're lucky. If you have to option to carry two dental plans, assuming husband and wife each take a plan you can save a little more, but you'd need to see where they breakeven was for paying for two plans.

Dr. Barrish in Randolph is a perfectionist and couldn't be happier.


Dr Orenstein is in Hastings Square

tmb123 tmb123
Feb '19

There is a place in Easton PA, they do it for $3995.
https://www.exeterorthodontics.com/

BrownEyesGuy BrownEyesGuy
Feb '19

just avoid invisalign - apparently they have caused significant bone loss in some who tried them

4catmom 4catmom
Feb '19

In general, anyone with moderate to severe gingival recession would certainly be compromised with braces, implants, bridges and crowns. Without enough bone, the foundation, mechanical failure is much more likely. Just a heads up to those who are considering these procedures.

I recommend Dr. Haze in Budd Lake and Dr. O. Sorry, I don’t know their prices.

4catmom, my friend is considering Invisalign, can you pm me the info?

Positive Positive
Feb '19

I have heard mixed reviews for Dr. Murphy. Is he cheaper to put up with his lack of patience?

the momma the momma
Feb '19

Umm..I worked for him. If you’d like more info you can pm me.

Positive Positive
Feb '19

I used Dr. Murphy for my braces as an adult. His office was in Succasunna and while his work was great, his bedside manner not so much imo. I will never forget and am a little ashamed about witnessing him degrading an assistant. He was asking her what tooth is this one or something like that and she gave the wrong answer. It was so obvious that she was scared and nervous, which is probably why she got it wrong. So he says to her, what planet are you on? She was shaking and trying not to cry. I think about her sometimes and I’m ashamed because I didn’t speak up for her. I was scared that I would be dismissed as a patient or that he would take it out on me in some way. That was about sixteen years ago.


Dr. Murphy was my orthodontist. My experience with him solidified my choice when choosing an Orthodontist for my son....we went to Doctors Freda and Suriano and are extremely happy with the care, service and chair-side manner that has been received. Most of the time, you get what you pay for. Freda & Suriano were well worth it.

JennyBean JennyBean
Feb '19

My daughter just got braces put on in November. We had a consult with Dr.Nueman in Randolph and he was expensive $3500 and that’s with my insurance. Retainers were extra and her treatment period would have been 2.5 years. Oh,and a palate expander was needed.
I then went to Diamond Dental and Dr.Amy Sullivan recommended no palate expander, 1.5-2 years treatment time and retainers were included.... total out of pocket cost for this Mama ....: $1000!!!! This office took the time to research my dental benefits and told me what others did not.... that I only pay the deductible which is $1000 and the rest is covered!!! They are also allowing me to pay the office directly in installments
Winning !! :)

H-town Mama H-town Mama
Feb '19

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