SF Bay Area Guide

Wisdom Teeth Removal Cost in San Francisco, 2026

All four wisdom teeth with mixed impaction and IV sedation in SF private practice runs $2,375 to $4,490 all-in in 2026. UCSF and University of the Pacific Dugoni dental school clinics deliver the same case for $900 to $1,700. Denti-Cal covers adult extractions when medically necessary. SF sits roughly 32 percent above the national median per ADA HPI 2026, among the highest US metro premiums.

SF Private Practice Pricing

Case	National Range	SF (1.32x)
Single erupted (D7140)	$75 to $200	$100 to $265
Single soft tissue impaction	$225 to $400	$295 to $530
Single full bony impaction	$400 to $600	$530 to $790
Two wisdom teeth, mixed	$700 to $1,400	$925 to $1,850
All four mixed impaction, IV sedation	$1,800 to $3,400	$2,375 to $4,490
All four full bony, IV sedation	$2,400 to $4,175	$3,170 to $5,510

SF multiplier of 1.32x from ADA HPI Pacific regional bands and FAIR Health Consumer SF ZIP-code adjustment. Pacific Heights, Marina, Russian Hill, and Financial District practices sit at the upper end. Outer Sunset, Excelsior, Visitacion Valley, and SoMa practices typically quote at or below the regional median. Peninsula practices (Daly City, San Mateo, Palo Alto) vary widely.

SF Dental Schools and Public Hospital

San Francisco has two accredited dental schools within the city and a major public hospital with oral surgery capacity. The dental school pathway is one of the few cost-effective options in a metro with otherwise high private practice pricing.

UCSF School of Dentistry

Parnassus Heights

University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry oral and maxillofacial surgery clinic. Affiliated with UCSF Medical Center for hospital-based cases. Research-oriented program. Wait list 8 to 12 weeks. All-four mixed impaction case typically $1,000 to $1,700.

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U of the Pacific Dugoni

SoMa, Howard Street

University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry. High-volume public clinic, the largest dental school by patient throughput in Northern California. Three-year compressed program produces high resident volume. Wait list 4 to 8 weeks. All-four case typically $900 to $1,500.

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ZSFG Hospital

Potrero Hill

Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital operates oral and maxillofacial surgery for Medi-Cal and uninsured. Sliding-scale fees. Strong for complex bony impaction cases requiring hospital resources. Wait list 10 to 16 weeks for non-urgent cases.

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SF Department of Public Health dental clinics operate at multiple neighbourhood locations on sliding-scale fees. The Castro Mission Dental Clinic, Maxine Hall Health Center, and Southeast Health Center provide routine dental care and refer surgical extraction cases to dental schools or ZSFG.

FQHCs with dental capacity in SF include Mission Neighborhood Health Center (Mission District), Glide Health Services (Tenderloin), North East Medical Services (Chinatown, Sunset), and St Anthony Foundation (Tenderloin). Use the HRSA FQHC locator to find the nearest dental-equipped centre.

SF Insurance and Tech Industry Plans

SF dental insurance is dominated by Delta Dental of California (the largest dental insurer in the state), MetLife, Aetna Dental, Cigna Dental, Blue Shield of California Dental, Anthem Blue Cross Dental, and Kaiser Permanente Dental. Annual maximums on employer-sponsored plans typically run $1,500 to $3,000.

SF is unusual in the United States for the prevalence of enhanced tech industry dental plans. Google, Apple, Meta, Salesforce, Stripe, Airbnb, Uber, Lyft, and many other large tech employers offer dental benefits with annual maximums materially above the commercial market average. Some plans (Google, Apple) offer annual maximums of $5,000 or no annual maximum at all on the dental benefit. Patients on these plans typically have full or near-full coverage of a substantial wisdom teeth case. Plan members should verify with the specific dental benefits administrator (typically Delta Dental or MetLife) before scheduling to confirm the network status of the chosen oral surgery practice.

Medi-Cal Dental (Denti-Cal) covers medically necessary wisdom teeth extraction for adult enrollees in SF. The dental schools (UCSF, Dugoni) and ZSFG Hospital are the most reliable Medi-Cal acceptors for surgical extraction; the commercial private practice Denti-Cal network is small.

For uninsured SF patients, the without-insurance page documents dental savings plans and cash discount tactics that apply nationally. SF-specific tactic: Dugoni School (with its higher patient throughput than UCSF) combined with a dental savings plan is typically the lowest realistic cost path for routine cases. For Peninsula and South Bay residents, the Stanford Medicine outpatient oral surgery service offers another pathway, though Stanford typically prices closer to private market than to dental school.

San Francisco: FAQ

How much does wisdom teeth removal cost in San Francisco in 2026?

In San Francisco in 2026, all four wisdom teeth with mixed impaction and IV sedation runs $2,375 to $4,490 in private practice. UCSF School of Dentistry and University of the Pacific Dugoni School of Dentistry deliver the same case for $900 to $1,700. Denti-Cal (California Medicaid) covers extraction for adult enrollees when medically necessary.

Which San Francisco dental schools do wisdom teeth removal?

Two accredited dental schools in San Francisco: UCSF School of Dentistry at Parnassus Heights (oral and maxillofacial surgery residency, public clinic), and University of the Pacific Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry in SoMa (oral surgery clinic, large patient throughput). Both require evaluation appointments. Wait lists for surgical extraction typically run 6 to 10 weeks at UCSF, 4 to 8 weeks at Dugoni.

Does Denti-Cal cover wisdom teeth removal in SF?

Yes. California Medicaid (Medi-Cal Dental, branded Denti-Cal) covers medically necessary extractions for adult and child enrollees including impacted third molars. Coverage was restored in 2018. UCSF and Dugoni dental schools accept Denti-Cal, as does SF General Hospital oral surgery. The commercial Denti-Cal provider network is smaller than the dental schools.

Why is San Francisco wisdom teeth removal substantially above the national average?

SF oral surgery pricing sits roughly 32 percent above national median per ADA HPI 2026 Pacific regional bands. Pacific Heights, Marina, Russian Hill, and Financial District practices sit at the upper end. Outer Sunset, Excelsior, and SoMa practices typically quote at or below the Pacific regional median. SF has among the highest commercial rents and labour costs of any US metro.

What insurance is common in SF for dental coverage?

Delta Dental of California, MetLife, Aetna Dental, Cigna Dental, Blue Shield of California Dental, Anthem Blue Cross Dental, and Kaiser Permanente Dental are the dominant SF carriers. Annual maximums on employer-sponsored plans typically cap at $1,500 to $3,000. Tech industry employer plans (Google, Apple, Meta, Salesforce, Stripe, Airbnb) often offer enhanced dental with annual maximums in the $3,000 to $5,000 range or with no annual maximum.

Where can I find affordable oral surgery in SF?

UCSF and Dugoni dental schools are the primary low-cost pathways. SF General Hospital (Zuckerberg San Francisco General) operates oral and maxillofacial surgery accepting Medi-Cal and uninsured. SF Department of Public Health dental clinics and FQHCs (Mission Neighborhood Health Center, Glide Health Services, North East Medical Services) offer sliding-scale services. For commercially insured patients, practices in the Outer Sunset, Visitacion Valley, and South SF typically quote 25 to 35 percent below central SF practices.

Other major metros: New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston, Miami, Boston, Atlanta.

Sources: ADA Survey of Dental Fees 2026; Medi-Cal Dental Program; Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital; HRSA FQHC Locator.

Not medical advice. Dental school clinic availability should be confirmed directly with the institution.