Dental insurance carriers compared: what Delta Dental, MetLife

People search for the best dental insurance company, and no honest page can name one, because the right plan depends on your dentist, your expected care and your state. What can be compared is what each carrier says on its own pages. Delta Dental is a national association of independent companies. MetLife sells a PPO, a dental HMO in five states and a plan for people without group coverage. Cigna names five plan designs. Aetna, Humana and Cigna describe the HMO and PPO trade in nearly the same words. UnitedHealthcare, Anthem, Guardian and Ameritas sell individual plans, while Principal and Aetna work through employers. Carriers also file the same procedure differently, and root canals show it. Use the comparison to decide what to ask your own plan, not to pick a winner, since what you pay depends on your plan document and not on the carrier's name.

Before you book: verify dental insurance carriers compared

1
Search each directory for your dentist and specialists
2
Compare annual maximums, deductibles and waiting periods
3
Check how each plan files the procedures you may need
4
Ask for the schedule of benefits in writing
5
Model one real treatment plan on each with the benefit estimator

Who sells what

How each carrier describes its plan types

Factor	Detail
Delta Dental	Five plan types under one brand: PPO, Premier, PPO Plus Premier, DeltaCare USA and Patient Direct, administered by independent companies in each territory.
MetLife	A dental PPO, a dental HMO or managed care plan in California, Florida, New Jersey, New York and Texas, and TakeAlong Dental for people without a group plan.
Cigna	Five designs: DPPO, DHMO, dental indemnity, DEPO and DPOS. Designs vary by state.
Aetna	A DMO and a PPO, offered through employers. Its page says costs depend on the plan your employer chooses.
Humana	A Dental Value DHMO and several PPO plans, sold to individuals and through employers, not in every state.
UnitedHealthcare	Individual dental PPO plans underwritten by Golden Rule Insurance Company, plus dental savings memberships.
Anthem	Stand-alone individual and family PPO plans, plus optional dental for Medicare Advantage members. Availability varies by state.
Guardian	A dental PPO and, in select states, a dental HMO. Individuals can buy online or on the federal marketplace.
Principal	Dental insurance chosen through an employer, with dependents to age 26.
Ameritas	PPO and other designs described on its site, plus individual dental plans at three levels.
Kaiser Permanente	No single dental plan. Dental is included in some medical plans, is optional in others and in the regions described is provided by Delta Dental.

Each line restates what the carrier's own page says. Availability and plan names change, so confirm them on the carrier's current page.

Network claims

What carriers say about network size

Factor	Detail
MetLife	Says its group PPO has over 470,000 in-network providers nationwide.
Principal	Says its network includes more than 136,000 dentists nationwide.
Guardian	Says its network exceeds 130,000 providers nationwide.
Humana	Says its DHMO network has more than 135,000 dentists and specialists, based on its own data.
Kaiser Permanente	Says its Northern California Delta Dental plan has more than 25,000 affiliated providers in California.

These are each carrier's own counts, measured in different ways, and they do not tell you how many offices are near you. Search each directory for your own dentist.

Where they differ

The same procedure, filed differently

Factor	Detail
Root canals	MetLife lists some as basic, Cigna lists them as basic restorative, and Guardian, UnitedHealthcare and Humana list them as major.
Extractions	MetLife lists simple ones as basic and impacted ones as major, while Guardian, Cigna and Humana list extractions as basic. Cigna lists oral surgery as major.
Crowns, bridges and dentures	Major on MetLife, Guardian, Cigna and Humana.
Implants	UnitedHealthcare says a basic plan typically will not cover them. Guardian says a higher-level plan can help. Principal says implants may not be covered.
Cosmetic work	Delta Dental says whitening is rarely covered by any dental insurance, and Principal says bleaching and veneers may not be covered. Anthem says some plans may include whitening.
Orthodontics	UnitedHealthcare says most plans do not cover it. Cigna says coverage varies and may have age limits. Ameritas describes a mid-range individual plan with a child benefit.

Waiting periods

What carriers say about waiting

Factor	Detail
Cigna	Says waiting periods are more often a feature of PPOs. Its Dental Care DHMO page says no waiting periods for that plan.
Humana	Says its Dental Value DHMO has no waiting periods.
UnitedHealthcare	Says typically none for preventive care, and some plans have four to twelve months for basic and major services.
Anthem	Says diagnostic and preventive care in network has no waiting period on the plans it describes, and shorter waits than traditional plans for other services on one plan.
Principal	Says no waiting period when the benefit is purchased during your employer's annual enrollment.
HealthCare.gov	Warns that separate Marketplace dental plans can have waiting periods for adults.

How to choose

What to check before you pick a carrier

Search each carrier's directory for your dentist and likely specialists, under the specific plan
Compare the annual maximum, the deductible and the waiting periods for the care you expect
Check how the plan files the procedures you may need, such as root canals and extractions
Look at exclusions for implants, orthodontics and cosmetic work
Ask for the schedule of benefits and the network list in writing
Use the insurance benefit estimator to model one real treatment plan on each

Questions people ask

Common questions

Which dental insurance company is the best?

No page can honestly say. The right plan depends on which dentists are in the network, the care you expect, your state and your employer's options. Compare the annual maximum, deductible, waiting periods, exclusions and network for the plans you can actually buy, and model a real treatment plan on each.

Is Delta Dental better than MetLife or Cigna?

It depends on your dentist and plan. Delta Dental is a national association of independent companies, MetLife and Cigna are single carriers, and each offers several plan types. Search each network for your dentist, compare the schedules of benefits and ask for a pretreatment estimate under each.

Do all carriers file a root canal the same way?

No. MetLife lists some root canals as basic, Cigna lists them as basic restorative, and Guardian, UnitedHealthcare and Humana list them as major. The tier decides your share and any waiting period, so ask the plan how it classifies the exact code before treatment.

Which carriers have the biggest networks?

Each carrier reports its own count in its own way. MetLife says over 470,000 in-network providers for its group PPO, and Principal, Guardian and Humana each cite more than 130,000. The numbers are not directly comparable. Search the directory for your dentist, since local coverage is what matters.

Which carriers sell dental plans to individuals?

UnitedHealthcare, Anthem, Guardian, Humana, Ameritas and MetLife (TakeAlong) describe individual plans, and Delta Dental companies offer individual plans in most states. Aetna and Principal describe employer plans. Availability varies by state, so check each carrier's page for your ZIP code.

Which carriers have dental HMOs?

Aetna calls its version a DMO, and MetLife (five states), Cigna, Humana and Guardian (select states) describe dental HMOs. Delta Dental's DeltaCare USA is a dental HMO. Availability varies by state and employer, and the term covers designs that differ. Read the plan documents.

Do any carriers offer plans with no waiting periods?

Some describe them. Humana says its Dental Value DHMO has none, Cigna's Dental Care DHMO page says none for that plan, Principal says none when the benefit is bought at your employer's annual enrollment and Anthem says some plans have none. Confirm the terms of the specific plan.

How do I compare annual maximums across carriers?

Ask each plan for the current figure, and check whether it resets on the calendar year or a benefit year and whether preventive care counts. Carriers' overview pages mostly leave the amounts to plan documents, so compare the plan documents you can actually obtain.

Which carrier covers implants?

Coverage depends on the plan level. UnitedHealthcare says a basic plan typically will not cover implants and plans with major coverage may pay part, Guardian says a higher-level plan can help, and Principal says implants may not be covered. Ask for a written position on the specific codes.

Should I choose a carrier by price?

Price is one input. A cheaper plan may have a smaller network, a waiting period or a low annual maximum, and it may exclude the treatment you need. Compare the total cost for the care you expect, including premium, deductible, coinsurance and what the plan will not pay.

Is a carrier's own comparison of itself reliable?

Treat it as marketing. Carriers describe their own products, and some compare themselves with discount plans or competitors. Use them to learn the terms, then check the actual plan documents and a written estimate.

How do I find out which carrier my employer offers?

Ask your benefits administrator, or check the enrollment materials. Employers choose the carrier and the plans, and the same carrier can offer different plan levels to different employers. Compare the options offered, using the questions on this page, before the enrollment window closes.