Most people who need dental implants do not have the cost sitting in a checking account. A single implant runs $3,000 to $6,000 all-in, and full mouth cases reach $30,000 to $60,000 or more. Since most dental insurance treats implants as elective and contributes little or nothing, financing is how the majority of implant patients actually pay. That makes the financing decision almost as consequential as the treatment decision, because the wrong loan structure can add thousands of dollars to an already expensive procedure.
The problem is that financing gets presented at the worst possible moment. You are sitting in a consultation, you have just heard a five-figure number, and the treatment coordinator slides a tablet across the desk with a single financing option already pulled up. Most patients sign whatever is in front of them. The practices are not necessarily acting in bad faith, they simply offer whichever lenders they have partnered with, but no one in that room is paid to tell you whether a different product would cost you less.
This comparison covers the three lenders you are most likely to encounter for implant-sized cases: CareCredit, LendingClub Patient Solutions, and Proceed Finance.
Why is financing dental implants different from financing other dental work?
The amounts change which products make sense. Financing a $700 crown and financing a $40,000 full mouth restoration are different problems, and a product designed for one can be a poor fit for the other.
Small balances suit short-term promotional financing, where the goal is simply to spread a manageable cost over months. Implant cases are large enough that three other factors start to dominate: the interest rate you will actually pay over the life of the loan, the maximum amount the lender will approve, and how long you can stretch the term before the monthly payment fits a real budget. A five-figure balance also raises the stakes of any fine print. A deferred-interest clause that costs a crown patient $90 can cost a full-arch patient $9,000.
Keep that frame in mind as you read the three options below. Each one is built for a different kind of borrower, and each one has a failure mode.
How does CareCredit work, and what is the deferred-interest catch?
CareCredit is a healthcare credit card issued by Synchrony Bank, and it is the option you are most likely to be offered because it is accepted at the widest network of dental practices. For purchases of $200 or more, it offers promotional periods of 6, 12, 18, or 24 months with no interest, provided you pay the full balance before the promotion ends.
The catch is in that word "provided." CareCredit's short-term promotions use deferred interest, not true zero percent financing. Interest accrues silently from the day of purchase at the card's standard rate, which is 32.99 percent as of mid-2026. Pay the balance in full and on time, and that accrued interest is waived. Miss the deadline by a month, or finish the promotional period owing even a small remainder, and the entire accrued amount hits your account retroactively. On a $6,000 implant balance, ending a 12-month promotion just $100 short can add roughly $2,000 in backdated interest.
For balances too large to clear inside 24 months, CareCredit offers longer fixed-payment plans at reduced rates: currently 17.90 percent over 24 months, 18.90 percent over 36 months, 19.90 percent over 48 months, and 20.90 percent over 60 months on purchases of $2,500 or more. Those rates are honest, but they are roughly double what a strong-credit borrower can get from an installment lender.
CareCredit works best for a specific patient: someone financing a smaller case, perhaps one or two implants, who is confident they can clear the full balance inside the promotional window. Used that way, it is genuinely free money. Used as a long-term loan for a full-arch case, it is one of the more expensive options available.
How does LendingClub Patient Solutions work?
LendingClub Patient Solutions offers fixed-rate installment loans from $500 up to $65,000, with terms as long as 144 months. This is a fundamentally different product than CareCredit. There is no promotional window and no deferred interest. You borrow a fixed amount, you get a fixed rate, and you pay the same amount every month until the loan is done.
Two features matter for implant patients. First, the application starts with a soft credit inquiry, so you can see your actual rate and monthly payment before anything touches your credit score. That makes it cheap to comparison shop. Second, advertised APRs run from 0 to 30.99 percent depending on credit, which means the product is only as good as the rate you personally qualify for. A borrower with strong credit might land a rate in the high single digits and pay far less than any CareCredit plan. A borrower with weak credit might be quoted something close to CareCredit's standard rate, at which point the comparison gets closer.
The predictability is the real selling point. There is no scenario where a missed deadline triggers thousands in retroactive interest. For patients who know they will need years, not months, to pay off treatment, that certainty is worth a great deal.
How does Proceed Finance work, and why is it built for All-on-4 cases?
Proceed Finance is the least known of the three but the most specifically designed for large implant treatment. Loans go up to $75,000, the highest cap of the three, with terms from 24 to 144 months, no down payment, and no prepayment penalty. As of early 2026, borrowers with excellent credit see rates around 8.99 percent on a 72-month term and 10.99 percent on the full 144-month term.
The 12-year term is the distinctive feature. Stretching a full mouth case over 144 months produces a monthly payment that fits an ordinary budget, which is exactly why the company markets itself to All-on-4 providers. Since All-on-4 replaces every tooth in your mouth, with a fixed bridge on each jaw, cases routinely run $30,000 to $50,000 or more, and a loan cap of $75,000 is one of the few that covers the entire treatment including extractions, sedation, and the permanent bridge.
The tradeoffs are availability and total interest. Proceed is offered through partnered practices rather than applied for independently, so not every office has it. And a longer term always means more total interest paid, even at a lower rate. The 144-month option is a tool for fitting a payment into a budget, not a way to minimize the cost of borrowing. Paying it off early, which Proceed allows without penalty, is how you get both.
What do monthly payments actually look like on a $30,000 case?
Numbers make the differences concrete. Take a $30,000 full mouth case, which sits in the middle of the realistic range from our All-on-4 cost breakdown, and assume a borrower with good credit. These figures are approximate and rounded.
On CareCredit's 24-month deferred-interest promotion, the payment required to actually clear the balance in time is $1,250 per month, and few patients get a credit limit that high in the first place. On CareCredit's 60-month plan at 20.90 percent, the payment is roughly $810 per month and total repayment approaches $48,600. On a LendingClub installment loan at 12.99 percent over 84 months, the payment is roughly $546 per month with total repayment around $45,800. On Proceed Finance at 8.99 percent over 72 months, the payment is roughly $541 per month with total repayment near $38,900. Stretch Proceed to the full 144 months at 10.99 percent and the payment drops to roughly $376 per month, with total repayment around $54,100.
Read those numbers twice, because they contain the whole lesson. The lowest monthly payment and the lowest total cost are different answers. The 144-month Proceed loan is the easiest to live with each month and the most expensive over its life. The shorter Proceed term costs the least overall. CareCredit's long-term plans are the most expensive path for a case this size.
Which financing option fits which patient?
Match the product to the case size and your credit profile rather than taking whichever tablet gets handed to you.
For a single implant or small case that you can pay off within 24 months, CareCredit's promotional window is the cheapest option available, provided you treat the payoff deadline as immovable. Set the monthly amount yourself by dividing the balance by the number of promotional months, and automate it.
For a mid-size or large case where you need years to pay, a fixed installment loan from LendingClub or Proceed Finance will almost always beat CareCredit's long-term plans on rate. Prequalify with a soft pull, compare the actual APRs you are offered, and take the shorter term you can genuinely afford.
For a full-arch case at the top of the range, Proceed Finance's $75,000 cap and long terms are often the only way to finance the entire treatment through one lender. If your practice does not offer it, that is worth knowing before you commit, and it is a fair question to raise when choosing your implant provider in the first place.
Whatever you choose, remember that HSA and FSA funds can pay for implant treatment with pre-tax dollars, which effectively discounts the cost by your tax rate before any financing math begins.
What questions should you ask before signing any financing agreement?
Five questions protect you from the expensive surprises.
- Is this deferred interest or a true fixed rate? If deferred, what exactly happens if I have a balance remaining when the promotion ends?
- What is my actual APR after underwriting, not the advertised starting rate?
- What is the total amount I will repay over the full term at this payment?
- Is there a prepayment penalty if I pay this off early?
- Does this loan cover the entire treatment plan, including extractions, sedation, and my final permanent teeth, or only part of it?
A lender or treatment coordinator who answers all five clearly is giving you a real offer. Hesitation on question one or three is your cue to slow down.
The Bottom Line
CareCredit is the right tool for smaller implant cases you can pay off inside a promotional window, but its deferred-interest structure makes it a costly way to finance a full-arch case. LendingClub Patient Solutions and Proceed Finance offer the fixed rates and long terms that five-figure treatment actually requires, with Proceed's $75,000 cap and 144-month option built specifically for All-on-4-sized cases. Compare the total repayment cost, not just the monthly payment, and prequalify with more than one lender before you sign anything. And when you are ready, find qualified providers near you at Dental Implant Directory.
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Search our independent directory of dental implant providers organized by specialty, location, and credentials.