For years, the list of teeth-straightening options was pretty short — just braces and Invisalign. But when companies started sending clear aligners straight to their customers’ homes, it changed everything.
SmilePath is a fairly recent addition to the Australian clear aligner marketplace, yet they have a serious advantage over the competition: the lowest aligner prices in the country. But does that mean they’re the right choice? In this SmilePath review, we’ll discuss each important detail of their service offerings to help you decide if they’re a good fit for you.
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Is SmilePath Legit? They Provide Quality Care, Minus the Huge Price
SmilePath is an excellent choice for anyone seeking affordable teeth straightening services in Australia. While they don’t offer in-person teeth scans or remote oversight, they still provide excellent service at a reasonable rate.
If cost is a concern for you, but you don’t want to sacrifice quality, SmilePath is a great option. Their pricing is hundreds of dollars cheaper than any other clear aligner company in Australia.
SmilePath vs. Byte (Our #1-Ranked Provider)
We think SmilePath is an excellent budget-friendly treatment option, but if you’re looking for the best experience overall, Byte’s efficiency, technology, and personalized customer support are tough to beat.
The best option for you depends on your specific goals, condition, and budget, but we think Byte’s efficiency and exceptional support make them a fantastic choice for almost anyone looking to make cosmetic teeth shifts. For a more detailed look at Byte, check out our in-depth review below.
What Is SmilePath?
SmilePath is one of several companies who deliver customized clear aligners straight to your front door, along with competitors like Byte and EZ Smile. Over the past couple of years, they’ve turned heads with their low prices and stunning results, and with their sister companies AlignerCo (U.S.) and Straight My Teeth (U.K.), they’re providing quality teeth-straightening solutions on three continents.
SmilePath’s biggest advantage is its pricing — their $1,899 price point is significantly cheaper than any competitor in Australia. But that doesn’t mean you’re getting inferior products. SmilePath still offers well-made aligners and provides strong customer support. However, SmilePath’s aligners aren’t for everyone, and they typically only fix minor crowding and spacing issues. If you have more significant issues, like a major underbite or overbite, you’re probably better off with an in-office option like Invisalign.
How Does SmilePath Work?
The first step is to create and submit moulds of your upper and lower teeth by purchasing and using an impression kit. If their dental team decides that you’re a suitable candidate for treatment, they will send you a preview image of your new smile. If you like what you see, they’ll produce your aligners and ship them within a few weeks.
When you receive your aligners, start wearing them right away — if you choose their standard clear aligner plan, you’ll wear them for 20–22 hours per day, while people who choose their NightOnly clear aligners will wear them for 8–10 hours. Their all-day aligners take 4–6 months on average, while their nighttime aligners take longer.
Pros & Cons of SmilePath
Let’s look beyond SmilePath’s impressive pricing and see what else they have to offer. While their low costs are certainly an advantage, SmilePath also has some disadvantages to consider too.
Pros
- SmilePath has the lowest pricing available in Australia for at-home clear aligners. They also frequently run sales on their website that lower their rates even more.
- SmilePath also offers a nighttime option that allows you to only wear your aligners while you sleep, adding another layer of convenience and discretion.
- They have a strong customer support department that will answer your tough questions professionally and politely.
- Their financing options make it easy for anyone to get clear aligners, even if your credit score needs some work.
Cons
- Some of their competitors offer free teeth scanning services at physical office locations, but SmilePath requires that you make molds of your teeth yourself.
- Based on customer reviews, SmilePath also doesn’t ship your aligners as quickly as some competitors, so you may end up starting your alignment a week or two later than you could with another company.
- Unlike in-office options, which can correct a wide range of severe misalignments, SmilePath can only treat mild and moderate cases of crowding and spacing.
Effectiveness
The decision to align your smile isn’t one to take lightly. Orthodontic treatment is expensive and a significant time investment, so you want to make sure that you can get high-quality results.
SmilePath works best for people with minor cases of spacing and crowding. If you have a severe case, you’re likely better off with an in-office option like Invisalign, which can correct even significant dental and jaw misalignments. But if you’re a suitable candidate for treatment, SmilePath can reliably transform your smile.
SmilePath recommends that you check-in throughout treatment, but they don’t require it.
One major benefit of in-office treatments is the regular hands-on care you’ll receive. During office visits, your dentist can check on your progress and make changes to your plan to address potential issues. Some at-home aligner companies attempt to provide similar oversight by reviewing photos of your teeth every few weeks. It’s not as intensive as sitting in a dentist’s chair, but it still lets them keep your treatment on track.
SmilePath recommends that you send them photos of your teeth every two weeks, but they don’t require it. So while their oversight isn’t inherently as robust as companies like Straight Teeth Direct, it can be if you diligently send them your photos.
SmilePath crafts their aligners with plastic from Raintree Essix.
Quality materials mean quality products. SmilePath creates durable and effective aligners by partnering with Raintree Essix, whose premium plastics have been a staple in the clear aligner industry since 2005. This ensures that your aligners will be sturdy and long-lasting, able to convey the results you were promised.
They aren’t quite as experienced in the home aligner game as other manufacturers like Align Technology, but you can still trust Raintree Essix products.
SmilePath trims their aligners to match your gum line, sacrificing some power.
When designing aligners, the company can either cut them straight across or “scallop” them to follow your gums. A scalloped cut is less visible, but a straight cut lets the aligners grip your gums and apply more force, moving your teeth more effectively.
Affordability
Braces and Invisalign are so expensive that orthodontic treatment has long been reserved for people with ample financial resources. Thankfully, at-home clear aligner companies have expanded teeth alignment to include many people who could never afford braces or Invisalign. And SmilePath isn’t just thousands less than traditional orthodontics; they’re more affordable than all their home aligner peers too.
SmilePath’s sticker price is just $1,899, or $1,999 for their NightOnly option.
By cutting out office visits, SmilePath significantly undercuts the costs of traditional orthodontics. In fact, SmilePath’s $1,899 price point is often less than half as much as braces or Invisalign.
SmilePath’s pricing is especially impressive when you realize that the three other major at-home aligner companies currently available in Australia charge between $2,499 (EZ Smile) and $3,149 (SmileDirectClub). Even better is the fact that SmilePath includes your initial impression kit and one set of retainers at no extra charge.
Accessible financing plans can make that low price even more manageable.
If you don’t have $1,899 laying around (or $1,999 for their NightOnly option), SmilePath makes financing easy. Their SmileFlex plan partners with Zip to provide an installment plan for 18 monthly payments of $117. However, this option requires a credit check.
Not confident in your credit? No worries. Their SmileFlex Easy plan, provided through a partnership with Partial.ly, doesn’t require a credit check, so everyone qualifies. This option requires a $599 down payment followed by six monthly payments of $300.
Aftercare Expenses
Once you’ve achieved your dream smile, you’ll want to maintain it. Industry-wide wisdom recommends wearing a nightly retainer indefinitely after treatment so that your pearly whites stay in position.
SmilePath includes one set of retainers in your aligner package. You’ll need to replace them about every six months, so this covers your first half-year of aftercare maintenance. After that, you’re on your own. That’s why SmilePath started their Smile Protection plan. For $872 you’ll receive eight sets of retainers, making them around $109 per set.
SmilePath includes a free whitening kit in their full aligner package.
Most aligner companies throw in free whitening products when you purchase their treatment, and SmilePath is no different. If you pay upfront or choose their SmileFlex payment plan, they will include a free whitening kit with your aligner purchase. If you choose SmileFlex Easy, you’ll need to pay $59.99 for whitening separately.
Convenience
Other than the prohibitively high costs, the sheer amount of time required to align your teeth with traditional orthodontics is a major barrier to this treatment. Many people just can’t fit frequent visits to the orthodontist into their busy lives.
SmilePath and other at-home clear alignment companies offer a much more convenient option by cutting out the need for in-person office visits. Plus, the average timeline for at-home treatment is half a year or less, compared to the typical 18 months for braces and 12 months for Invisalign. This streamlined treatment means that SmilePath is unquestionably more convenient than in-office options. When compared to other top-rated home aligner products, however, they’re just average.
SmilePath offers fewer “startup” options than other leading brands.
The first step can be the most difficult part of at-home clear aligner treatment, and with SmilePath, there’s only one way to go about it. We mentioned the impression kit earlier, but how does it work? SmilePath will send you a special putty in the mail and it’s your job to mix it, bite down, and create a mould of your teeth. Sounds simple enough.
But, as many customers find out, it’s easier said than done, and some people need multiple kits to get it right. Go with an in-office option and your dentist or orthodontist will take care of this entire process for you, ensuring perfect impressions or dental scans on the first try. Some at-home companies have clinics where professionals will take intraoral scans for you and send them directly to the dental team, streamlining the process. SmilePath, however, does not, so you’ll need to purchase and use an impression kit.
Thankfully, if you have trouble getting good impressions, SmilePath offers video chat support to help you make accurate molds of your teeth. Still, some people can struggle with this step, so it’s unfortunate that they don’t offer any alternatives.
From impressions to full aligner kit, you can expect to wait 7–8 weeks.
SmilePath states their process is faster than this, but we are basing our timeline on the experiences customers report in their reviews. Once they receive your impressions, SmilePath will take around three weeks to create and send a smile projection — a 3D rendering of your post-treatment smile. If it looks good, let them know that you’d like to continue with treatment, and they’ll manufacture and ship your aligners in 4–5 more weeks. So, if there are no hitches in the process and you respond to your treatment plan right away, you’ll be wearing your first aligners 7–8 weeks after returning your impressions. That’s slightly slower than other clear aligner options, both at-home and in-office.
Start to finish, treatment takes 4–6 months on average.
If you choose SmilePath’s all-day aligners, you’ll probably see results in 4–6 months, while their NightOnly plan takes longer, since you’ll wear your aligners for less time each day. This is pretty average for home aligners, and much quicker than in-office alternatives.
However, that’s because Invisalign and their in-office peers usually take on more complex misalignments, which take longer to correct, while SmilePath is best for milder cases. Go either route and your treatment time will depend on the severity of your misalignment. Particularly simple cases might take less than four months, while tougher ones can take longer than six.
Appearance
Braces are inherently noticeable and many people feel self-conscious wearing them to meetings, on dates, and out with mates. That’s why invisible aligners have been such a big hit. Every clear aligner is going to look much better than braces but there is quite a bit of variance regarding how different companies’ clear aligners look. Ultimately, which ones look best depends on your personal tastes and preferences.
SmilePath uses a transparent, smooth plastic for their aligners.
The idea seems logical: the clearer and smoother the aligner, the less noticeable it will be. But that’s not always the case. The surfaces of your teeth are matte and porous, so they don’t reflect light, while smooth aligners do. Compared to textured or “frosted” aligners, SmilePath’s might look artificially shiny. However, some people say that they prefer the reflective plastic, so this truly is a subjective matter.
Aligners from SmilePath are handcrafted and trimmed to match your gum line.
The other major discerning factor for clear aligner appearance is whether they’re cut straight across the gumline or scalloped to match your unique gumline. Straight-cut aligners tend to be more noticeable because there’s plastic covering your gums, while scalloped aligners are more discreet. SmilePath scallops their aligners for a more natural look.
Without office visits, SmilePath can’t add any attachments to your aligners.
Invisalign and ClearCorrect can add elastics and affix small attachments to your teeth surfaces to help their aligners make more complex dental shifts. While incredibly useful, these attachments also make your aligners more noticeable.
Since a dentist needs to apply them in person, SmilePath can’t use any supplementary attachments, so their aligners are slightly less powerful than in-office brands, but they’re also more discreet.
Remove your aligners before eating and drinking to avoid stains.
SmilePath aligners are relatively stain-resistant, but you should still avoid eating and drinking anything other than water while wearing them. If you stain them, you’ll be stuck wearing discolored aligners until you can move on to your next set.
Customer Experience
When you choose at-home aligner treatment, you’ll be working directly with the company, not a specific dentist like you would with Invisalign. So you want a company who will treat you right — provide helpful answers, address your concerns, and deliver on their promises.
In-office treatment is the gold standard for customer care, since you’ll have face-to-face interactions with dentists and staff who know you personally. Even though it’s hard for remote services to match that individualization, SmilePath does an admirable job, although there are a couple areas where they could improve.
As a smaller company, SmilePath’s customer support appears attentive and responsive.
SmilePath is a smaller company than some of their competitors, like Byte. This helps them provide timely and accurate answers to your toughest questions. They’re available by phone, email seven days a week, and webchat anytime. In our experience, SmilePath’s representatives respond very quickly, and we also appreciate that they offer video chats for impression kit support.
SmilePath’s return and refund policies aren’t as extensive as some competitors.
If you complete an impression kit, but they determine their aligners won’t work for you, they’ll issue a full refund. They’ll also issue a refund if you request one within 48 hours of receiving your aligner package. After that, refunds are off the table.
Sometimes teeth can be stubborn, refusing to move as expected. Other home aligner companies offer free refinements and lifetime guarantees, and if you go with an in-office option, your dentist can work with you to achieve the results you want. SmilePath doesn’t go quite that far. It’s rare, but if your results don’t match the smile from your treatment preview, you can request refinement aligners. However, you might need to pay an extra $200.
What Are SmilePath Customers Saying?
SmilePath doesn’t have a lot of customer reviews online, but you can find plenty of reviews for AlignerCo, the name they use in the U.S. In fact, we found roughly a thousand AlignerCo reviews scattered across the internet, and reading through them can give you a good feel for what to expect from SmilePath.
Customers are thrilled by their low prices, but the positive feedback doesn’t end there. It’s clear that customers appreciate the way AlignerCo/SmilePath provides the same high-quality results as much more expensive (and time-consuming) options, and they also frequently compliment their customer support team.
While some other companies have a higher volume of customer feedback, we can’t complain about the high quality of SmilePath’s reviews.
SmilePath vs. Invisalign
By far the most significant difference between SmilePath and Invisalign is pricing. Invisalign costs between $4,000 and $9,000 on average, while SmilePath checks in at less than $2,000. For anyone with minor spacing and crowding issues, SmilePath can deliver similar results for a fraction of the cost.
However, if you have more serious dental issues, Invisalign is the better choice. With hands-on care from a dentist, their aligners can perform more complex dental and jaw shifts that may make them worth the extra expense. In addition, some people like the high level of customization that you’ll get with in-office consultations.
There truly is no substitute for in-office care from a certified orthodontist. However, if all you’re dealing with is some moderate crowding or spacing problems, SmilePath can achieve the results you want for less time and money.
SmilePath vs. Other At-Home Clear Aligners
SmilePath isn’t the only reputable at-home clear aligner company in Australia. There are actually several other companies offering similar services. However, none of them can compete with SmilePath’s great low rates.
SmilePath vs. Byte (Our #1-Ranked Provider)
Byte’s claim to fame is their “HyperByte” device, which they include in their aligner packages. This high-frequency vibration device is intended to make treatment faster and more comfortable, as it helps your teeth shift into place more easily. For this reason, Byte says their treatment plans take an average of 4–5 months.
Another perk of choosing Byte is their lifetime guarantee. Their “Byte-for-Life” warranty protects your smile forever. If your teeth ever shift out of place, Byte will send you new aligners for free to realign them (as long as you’ve been getting new retainers every six months). Byte may cost more than SmilePath, but they’re still a fantastic value.
SmilePath vs. EZ Smile
With an at-home alignment service priced at $2,499, EZ Smile comes the closest of any aligner company in Australia to competing with SmilePath’s low rates. EZ Smile also offers in-office teeth scans in several Australian cities, if you’d rather do that than take your own impressions. However, their prices are still hundreds higher than SmilePath, and EZ Smile doesn’t have a nighttime option.
Summary: Is SmilePath Right for You?
If you want to align your smile without breaking the bank, SmilePath is certainly worth considering. Few companies even come close to SmilePath’s exceptionally affordable prices.
That said, our #1 recommended provider, Byte, has a much more generous aligner bundle than SmilePath. Both are excellent options, but only you can decide on the best fit for your smile.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does SmilePath offer discounts?
They certainly do. When you visit SmilePath’s website, you’ll often discover money-saving discount coupons. We’ve seen them run sales for up to $400 off.
Can SmilePath correct my condition?
It depends. If you have a serious overbite, underbite, or crossbite, SmilePath might not be the right option for you. If you’re looking to correct moderate spacing and crowding issues, SmilePath is likely a good fit.
What about Invisalign?
Invisalign still has some significant advantages, even with all of the competition posed by at-home clear aligner companies. It can fix more serious dental issues than at-home aligners can, and regular visits with your orthodontist allow for adjustments and attachments on the fly.
How much will I end up paying?
This varies a bit depending on which financing option you choose and whether you use any discounts. Still, for most people, you’ll pay right around $1,899 for SmilePath’s all-day aligners or $1,999 for their NightOnly option.
How do I get started?
The first step is to take impressions of your upper and lower teeth so SmilePath’s dental team can take a look at your teeth and determine whether they can provide the results you want.
How long will it take?
If you select SmilePath’s all-day aligners, you’ll likely wear them for 4–6 months, depending on the severity of your misalignment. Their nighttime-only option takes longer, since you’ll wear your aligners for less time per day.
What is the most effective clear aligner company?
It’s tough to beat the power and versatility of in-office options like Invisalign and ClearCorrect. With hands-on care and orthodontic attachments, a dentist can use them to treat severe misalignments and even bite issues.
Do clear aligners hurt?
There can be some discomfort when you’re first switching to a new set of aligners, but for the most part they’re pretty comfortable.
Is at-home clear aligner treatment safe?
Yes. In fact, millions of people have already aligned their smiles using at-home clear aligners, and SmilePath has thousands of satisfied customers of their own. Even though you don’t have in-person office visits, there is still a robust customer support network ready to answer any questions you have and ensure great results for your alignment.