Root Canal Treatment Cost in India: A Straight Answer
The same root canal is quoted at ₹2,500 in one clinic and ₹12,000 down the road. Neither is necessarily wrong. Here is what actually drives the price.
Root canal treatment — RCT — is the most commonly quoted and most commonly misunderstood dental procedure in India. Two clinics five minutes apart will quote you numbers that differ by 4x. This is not usually one of them cheating you. It's four real variables you can learn to read.
Typical price ranges in 2026
These are broad ranges across Indian cities. Treat them as a sanity check on a quote, not as a fixed rate card.
- Front tooth (incisor/canine), single canal: roughly ₹2,000–₹6,000
- Premolar, two canals: roughly ₹3,000–₹8,000
- Molar, three or more canals: roughly ₹4,000–₹12,000
- Re-treatment of a failed RCT: roughly ₹6,000–₹15,000
- Crown after the RCT (often quoted separately): ₹3,000–₹25,000+ depending on material
Tier-1 metro specialist clinics sit at the top of every range. Tier-2 and tier-3 city general practices sit at the bottom.
The four things that actually move the price
1. Which tooth it is
A front tooth typically has one canal. A molar can have three or four, sometimes more, and they curve. More canals means more time, more files, more X-rays. This alone explains most of the spread.
2. Who is doing it
A general dentist (BDS) and an endodontist (MDS, root canal specialist) will quote differently. For a straightforward front tooth, a competent general dentist is entirely appropriate. For a curved molar canal, a re-treatment, or a tooth that's already failed once, the specialist premium buys you a meaningfully better chance of the tooth surviving.
3. Single sitting vs multiple sittings
Single-sitting RCT is convenient and often costs a little more. Multi-visit treatment lets the dentist medicate an infected canal between visits. For a badly infected tooth, multiple sittings is a clinical decision, not an upsell.
4. Equipment
Rotary instruments, an apex locator, and especially a dental operating microscope raise both cost and success rate. A clinic charging ₹12,000 for a molar under a microscope is charging for something real.
The crown is not optional (and it's usually quoted separately)
This is where most "surprise" bills come from. A root-canal-treated back tooth is brittle and will crack without a crown, often within a year or two. When you compare quotes, compare RCT + crown, not RCT alone. A ₹3,000 RCT with a ₹15,000 crown is more expensive than a ₹7,000 RCT with a ₹6,000 crown.
Rough crown costs: metal ₹3,000–₹6,000; porcelain-fused-to-metal ₹5,000–₹9,000; full ceramic/zirconia ₹8,000–₹25,000.
How to tell a fair quote from a bad one
- It's itemised. RCT, crown, X-rays and the consultation listed separately.
- The number of canals is mentioned. A dentist who has looked at the X-ray knows this.
- The number of visits is stated up front.
- An extraction was at least discussed. For some teeth, extraction plus an implant is genuinely the better plan. A dentist who never mentions the alternative isn't giving you a choice.
Is a cheap root canal a bad root canal?
Not automatically. A ₹2,500 front-tooth RCT from an experienced general dentist in a tier-2 city is a normal, fair price. What should worry you is a quote given without an X-ray, a clinic that can't tell you how many visits it will take, or a price that only holds "if you start today".
Getting a second opinion is cheap — usually one consultation fee. On EnamDoc you can book a consultation with another verified dentist near you and compare the treatment plans side by side before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
Is root canal treatment painful?
The procedure itself is done under local anaesthetic, so you should feel pressure but not pain. Most of the pain people associate with root canals is the infection beforehand — which the treatment relieves. Mild soreness for two to three days afterwards is normal.
Does insurance cover root canal treatment in India?
Most standard health insurance policies in India exclude routine dental treatment, covering it only when it follows an accident. Some corporate group policies and dedicated dental plans include RCT with a per-year cap. Check your policy wording for "dental" under exclusions before you assume.
How long does a root canal treated tooth last?
With a properly fitted crown and normal oral hygiene, a root-canal-treated tooth commonly lasts ten to fifteen years or more. The most common reason for early failure is skipping the crown on a back tooth.
