From $299 per crown. IPS e.max lithium disilicate porcelain and ZirCAD Prime monolithic zirconia, milled in our in-house lab and finished by hand, at 80 to 90% less than US pricing.
A dental crown is a tooth-shaped ceramic shell that completely covers a damaged or structurally compromised tooth. Unlike a veneer (which only covers the front face), a crown wraps the entire tooth from the gumline up. It restores chewing strength, prevents further fracture, and seals the tooth against decay. Done well, a crown looks identical to a healthy natural tooth and lasts 15 to 20+ years.
Each crown is carved from a single solid block of dental ceramic by our CAD/CAM mill. There is no firing seam, no internal layer boundary, and no weak point. The crown is one continuous structure, which is where the strength comes from.
Milling produces a strong shape; hand-glazing gives it the natural translucency and shade gradient that matches your neighbouring teeth. Our lab technician layers and fires the surface stain by hand for every visible crown, posterior crowns get a simpler high-gloss glaze.
No outsourced labs, no shipping delays, no language barrier between dentist and technician. The dentist who scans your tooth talks to the technician in person, adjustments happen in hours and not days, and you get your final crown within the same trip.
Each case below was milled and finished by our team in Medellín. More on the full results gallery.
We use exclusively Ivoclar Vivadent ceramics for crowns, the same brand specified in US specialty practices. No porcelain-fused-to-metal, no generic substitutions, no surprise material swaps.
Crowns wrap the entire tooth and restore full chewing strength. If only the front face needs covering for cosmetic reasons, see veneers instead.
A root-canal treated tooth becomes brittle and fractures more easily under chewing force. A crown wraps and protects it for the long term. Standard recommendation in modern dentistry.
Old amalgam fillings expand and contract over decades, eventually cracking the tooth around them. When the filling occupies more than half the tooth, a crown is the durable fix.
Cracked or chipped teeth caught early can be saved with a crown. Wait too long and the fracture extends below the gumline and the tooth is lost. Get assessed quickly.
Porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns from the 1990s and 2000s show grey margins at the gumline and can darken adjacent teeth. Replacing them with all-ceramic ZirCAD Prime or e.max gives a modern, metal-free result.
Every dental implant gets topped with a crown. Our implant cases use the same ZirCAD Prime ceramic detailed here, milled in the same lab.
Internal staining from tetracycline, severe fluorosis, or non-vital pulp don't lift with whitening. Crowns cover the underlying tooth completely with no shadow showing through.
Our in-house lab mills your crown the same day we prep the tooth, so most cases finish within one trip and there's no shipping delay between try-in and final.
Send recent photos or X-rays. We send back a personalized plan with material, total cost, and timeline within 24 hours.
Bilingual driver picks you up at the airport. In-clinic exam, digital scan, tooth preparation under local anaesthetic, shade match. Temporary crown fitted same-day so you walk out with a functional tooth.
Our CAD/CAM mill carves the crown from a solid block of ZirCAD Prime or e.max. The lab technician hand-glazes the surface for shade and translucency. No shipping, no third-party delay.
The temporary comes off, the final crown is tried in for shape and shade approval, and bonded with Variolink resin cement only after you sign off. Bite checked and adjusted.
Final polish, bite check, photos, aftercare kit. Driver to the airport. Multi-year warranty and WhatsApp follow-up continue from home.
Same Ivoclar ceramic. Same hand-glazing. Same surgical protocols. The price gap is overhead, not material.
Prices reflect the all-in clinic cost: digital scan, tooth preparation, anaesthetic, lab work, temporary crown, and bonding. If the tooth needs a root canal first, it is quoted upfront in the treatment plan. Want the full trip handled? See our all-inclusive packages for hotel, driver, and concierge.
Real crown patients, talking about their week in Medellín. Watch on the page or open on YouTube.
ZirCAD Prime and IPS e.max are forgiving materials, but the bonding margin and the gum around the crown still need the same care as a natural tooth.
Soft foods only. Skip biting into anything hard, sticky, or crunchy: apples, ice, crusty bread, gum. Cold sensitivity is normal for the first few days; it fades as the bonding fully cures.
Soft-bristled brush and a non-abrasive toothpaste. Avoid charcoal and whitening pastes, they scratch the glaze. Floss once a day; the crown-to-tooth margin is what keeps moisture and bacteria out.
Coffee, red wine, dark teas, and tobacco do not stain ZirCAD Prime or e.max. The bonding margin can pick up surface stains over time, which a routine 6-month cleaning removes completely.
Bruxism is the #1 cause of premature crown failure. If your dentist sees wear or your partner says you grind, we make a custom night guard before you fly home. Wear it. It's the difference between 10 and 20+ years.
See your local hygienist twice a year, same as before. Tell them you have ceramic crowns so they use a non-abrasive prophy paste. We coordinate with your local dentist if anything looks off at a routine cleaning.
Message us on WhatsApp the same day. A loose crown caught early is a 30-minute re-bond. A loose crown ignored for two months can let bacteria in and the underlying tooth needs more work. Multi-year warranty covers material defects and bonding failures, including a return flight if needed.
The questions we hear most about crowns specifically.
From $299 per crown for IPS e.max porcelain, about 80 to 90% less than US pricing where the same crown typically costs $1,500 to $3,500. ZirCAD Prime zirconia from $319. Crown on an existing implant from $480. All-in clinic cost, no surprise lab fees.
15 to 20+ years with good care. ZirCAD Prime and IPS e.max are both modern monolithic ceramics with documented success rates above 95% at 10 years. Multi-year warranty included.
ZirCAD Prime zirconia and IPS e.max lithium disilicate, both from Ivoclar Vivadent. ZirCAD Prime is the same brand line as our e.max veneers; both are FDA-approved and the same materials specified in US specialty practices. We do not use porcelain-fused-to-metal (PFM), generic zirconia, or unbranded substitutes.
One trip across 2 to 5 days. Day 1 is the digital scan, tooth prep, and same-day temporary. The in-house lab mills your crown over the next 1 to 2 days. Day 3 to 5 is the try-in and bonding. No second trip needed.
A veneer covers only the front face of a structurally healthy tooth. A crown wraps the entire tooth, the right call when there's significant decay, an old large filling, root canal treatment, or fracture. We assess this from your photos or X-rays during the free virtual consult.
Most cases finish in 2 to 5 days because we glaze every visible crown by hand for the best shade match. For posterior emergencies or tight time constraints, we can complete a single crown in one extended visit using direct CAD/CAM milling, with a tradeoff on the depth of glaze layering.
ZirCAD Prime (zirconia) is stronger (1200 MPa flexural strength) and our default for posterior crowns and grinders. IPS e.max (lithium disilicate) has slightly better optical translucency and is our pick for visible front teeth where natural light play matters most. Both are made by Ivoclar and finished in our own lab.
Yes. Our clinic is INVIMA-licensed (Colombia's FDA equivalent), our materials (ZirCAD Prime, IPS e.max) are FDA-approved, and our sterilization follows international protocols. Many of our patients are referred by their US dentists.
Practical guides written for international patients planning crown work in Medellín.
The same trade-off applies to crowns: strength on one side, translucency on the other. The four factors we use to pick the right material.
When the tooth is healthy underneath, veneers are right. When it isn't, only a crown will do. Here's how to tell.
Why Colombia, why Medellín, what to expect on the trip, and how the math works for US, Canadian, and UK patients planning crowns or any restorative work.
