Composite vs. Porcelain Veneers: Which Is Better?

Chips, cracks, stains, even small or irregularly shaped teeth — these issues can all stand between you and the smile you want. Veneers offer a solution to all these problems, covering them up and presenting the facade of a perfect smile.

Composite and porcelain are two of the most common veneer materials. Which is best? We’ve got the details you need to pick your side in the composite vs. porcelain debate.

Treatment Overviews

Composite veneers are thin, customized shells affixed to individual teeth. Their purpose is to cover up various flaws, giving you a perfect-looking smile. They might help with enamel erosion and strengthen weak teeth, but composite veneers are considered cosmetic, not restorative.

Composite veneers are made from dental resin — a safe, durable plastic approved for use on the teeth. Dentists can shape this resin on the teeth (direct composite veneers) or outsource production to a laboratory (indirect composite veneers). With a lifespan of 7–10 years, you can expect that you will need to replace them several times. However, they cost $250–$1,500 per tooth, making this a relatively small burden, especially because you can plan for it.

Porcelain are similar in design, customization, and function, and they’re also a primarily cosmetic procedure. However, instead of dental resin, they’re made from porcelain — typically some combination of natural feldspar, kaolin, and quartz. You may come across dentists offering ceramic veneers and assume they are the same as porcelain. While some doctors use these interchangeably, they are not necessarily the same. All porcelain is ceramic, but not all ceramic is porcelain. Be sure to ask your dentist if their veneers are genuinely porcelain.

Porcelain veneers are extremely strong and typically last 15–20 years. However, the tradeoff for this strength is a hefty price tag: $925–$2,500 per tooth. Your price depends on the exact porcelain used, plus the fees from the lab and your dentist.

Quality Comparison

Your teeth work hard, and you use them every single day, so you need veneers that can reliably endure years of constant use. Even though porcelain will often last longer than composite material, both types of veneers are strong, durable, and comfortable.

Materials

Labs will typically make porcelain veneers out of feldspar, kaolin, or quartz, which are all strong, durable materials. These veneers are around 0.5mm thick. For composite veneers, dentists use a tooth-colored resin — the same material that they use for dental bonding and many white fillings. They’re often around 0.25mm thick, and can sometimes chip or crack easier than porcelain, but they can still stand up to years of chewing, biting, and other stresses.

Durability

Traditional veneers are the longest-lasting kind, often going 15–20 years or more before you need to replace them. The average lifespan of composite veneers isn’t quite as long — only 7–10 years, and some types only last around five.

Either way, you’re getting veneers that will last at least several years. Of course, their durability also depends on how well you care for them. If you maintain good oral hygiene and don’t use them as tools (opening packages, etc.), you should have either type for the long run.

Comfort

Since porcelain and composite veneers are designed to mimic your natural teeth, they shouldn’t feel uncomfortable or awkward. Most people adjust to them pretty quickly.

If you break or dislodge a porcelain veneer, that tooth might hurt or feel sensitive. Porcelain veneers require the dentist to “prep” your teeth, which means shaving down the enamel so that your veneers don’t make your teeth too thick. This enamel doesn’t grow back, and without it, your teeth will be extra sensitive to hot, cold, and other sensations. Veneers effectively protect your teeth, but when you break or lose one, you also lose that protection, so you should get it replaced as soon as possible.

Composite veneers are thinner, so they rarely require the same kind of prep. Your dentist might still need to shave down some enamel, but it will be less than they would with porcelain veneers. If you lose or break one, you’ll still want to get it replaced, but you probably won’t feel the same sensitivity.

Affordability Comparison

It doesn’t matter which type you get, veneers aren’t cheap. Even though composite options are less expensive than porcelain ones, they both can burden you with a hefty bill. Fortunately, there are ways to make that cost more manageable.

Sticker Price

Traditional veneers might be the most popular and durable type, but they’re also usually the most expensive — around $925–$2,500 per tooth. If you only need one veneer, that might seem manageable, but if you need several teeth covered, you could have a pretty steep final bill.

Composite is much more affordable at $250–$1,500 per tooth. Even though they’re cheaper than porcelain veneers, that price can still add up quickly if you’re covering multiple teeth.

Financing

Most of us don’t have thousands of dollars lying around to pay for veneers in one go. That’s why many dentist’s offices offer financing or payment plans. These plans break the bill into smaller chunks, so you can pay it off month by month. They’re definitely more budget-friendly, but many require a credit check to qualify.

Each office can set their own rates and plans, so consult your dentist about your financing options. Some offices offer their own payment plans while others partner with third-party financing companies. Even if yours doesn’t, they should be able to recommend some outside resources.

Insurance

Dental insurance can help pay for various treatments and appliances, but most plans won’t cover cosmetic treatments and unfortunately, veneers are almost always cosmetic. In certain rare cases, insurance might provide coverage if an injury or disease have made your veneers medically necessary, but you shouldn’t count on it otherwise. That said, every insurance plan is different, so check with your provider to find out for sure.

Replacements

As we’ve already noted, the prep involved with traditional veneers means that you can’t go without them for the rest of your life. The problem? Veneers don’t last forever. So after they wear out in 15–20 years, you’ll need to pay for new ones.

Composite veneers don’t last as long, so you’ll need to replace them more often. If you want to keep wearing veneers forever, you’ll likely end up paying more in the long run. However, you can stop using most composite veneers any time you want. Since they rarely require prep, you’re not forced to get replacements when they wear out. So if yours break and you don’t have room in your budget for new ones — or you simply don’t want them — you can say “no thanks.”

Appearance Comparison

As a cosmetic treatment, veneers are all about improving the appearance of your smile, so of course you want them to look good. Both types will give you a straight, realistic-looking smile, although porcelain looks slightly more natural and maintains its color better.

Natural Appearance

Dental labs custom-make porcelain veneers for your teeth, and the dentist will texture them to mimic the surfaces of your teeth. They are textured, like the pores on enamel without the actual porousness. They are also slightly translucent on the outermost layer and reflect light the same way enamel does.

Composite veneers are slightly translucent and do a decent job matching your teeth surfaces. They don’t look quite as natural as porcelain, but people in public still won’t notice anything off about your teeth.

Color

When the lab and your dentist customize your veneers, they choose the color as well. You can usually provide some input here too. They’ll usually match the veneers to the current color, but if you’re getting veneers for all your visible teeth, and you want to brighten your smile, they can choose a slightly whiter shade. Porcelain and composite veneers offer the same range of shades.

Staining

Your teeth are porous, and those tiny pores can trap pigments from food and beverages, causing stains. Porcelain veneers, however, have no pores, so they don’t stain nearly as easily. Keep this in mind, since the natural teeth surrounding a veneer could discolor over time, making the veneer look whiter. Composite veneers stain more easily, since dental resin is porous.

Veneers can also hide stains. In fact, that’s the only reason some people get them. Porcelain veneers are thicker and more opaque, so they’ll cover up almost any stain, no matter how dark. Because composite veneers are thinner and more translucent, they might allow darker stains to show through. If your primary reason for getting veneers is tooth discoloration, depending on the severity of your stains, you might be better off with porcelain.

Convenience Comparison

Veneers are an efficient solution to many dental concerns, providing a brand new smile in a matter of weeks, days, or even hours. If that’s not convenient, we don’t know what is. Porcelain is quick and easy compared to other dental and orthodontic treatments, but composite is even quicker and easier.

Tooth Prep

Traditional porcelain veneers require your dentist to remove 0.5 millimeters of enamel to prevent the veneers from looking strange next to your natural teeth, and this procedure may require anesthesia. Enamel doesn’t regenerate, so you’re losing it for life. If your veneers ever break or wear out, you’ll need to get new ones.

Composite veneers are typically thinner, so they don’t require dentists to take off as much enamel. Some don’t require any enamel removal at all. That means you might not need as many office visits, or that your appointments won’t take as long. But most importantly, it means you most likely won’t need to get your teeth permanently altered.

Timeline

If you get direct composite veneers, your dentist will place them the same day you start the process, and you can walk out of the office with a new smile the same day as your consultation.  Even if you get indirect composite veneers that are made in a lab, the turnaround time is typically 1–2 weeks.

Porcelain veneers must be lab-made, and the process is complex, so manufacturing them often takes at least two weeks, meaning you don’t get them placed for 2–3 weeks after the dentist preps your teeth. During that time, you’ll need to wear temporary veneers.

Daily Wear Experience

Once you’ve got your veneers, there’s very little difference in how you care for them. Just maintain them like you would your normal teeth. Brush twice a day, floss once a day, and don’t use them to tear open packaging or chew pens. Keep in mind that composite veneers can stain easier, so if you want to avoid discoloring them, brush after you consume pigmented food and beverages like coffee, wine, and berries.

Which Is Right For You?

Ultimately, this is a personal decision. For some people, composite veneers are the best fit for their needs and goals. Others find that porcelain is superior for them. To make the best choice for your smile, you need to assess everything from your budget to your willingness to alter your enamel.

Choose Composite Veneers If…

• You are looking to make minimal to no enamel changes.
• You’re facing a tight deadline, such as a big event within the next week or two.
• Your budget is top of mind.
• You aren’t looking to hide dark brown or purple stains.
• You don’t care if your veneers strengthen your teeth.

Choose Porcelain Veneers If…

• You’re okay with wearing veneers for the rest of your life.
• You aren’t on a tight deadline.
• You have plenty of wiggle room in your budget.
• You need to cover very dark stains.
• You need to strengthen your teeth.

Alternative Treatment Options

We’ve covered everything you need to know to decide between composite and porcelain veneers — but they aren’t your only options. Before you make potentially permanent alterations to your teeth, think about the alternatives below.

• Snap-On Veneers: If you dislike the permanence of traditional veneers, snap-on veneers offer an alternative. They also hide imperfections behind the facade of perfect teeth, but they cover most of the teeth in an arch. Plus, they’re removable.
• Clear Aligners: For those considering veneers for alignment issues, correcting them might be better than hiding them. Clear aligners are essentially invisible and correct an array of orthodontic concerns.
• Teeth Whitening: If your main motivation for getting veneers is discoloration, you can treat most stains with a teeth whitening system. Even deep tetracycline stains are now treatable with certain professional whitening methods.
• Teeth Contouring: This procedure replaces veneers by altering each tooth’s size and shape.

Final Thoughts

If you are looking for a complete smile makeover, veneers can be an excellent solution. But before you move forward, you need to know your options — specifically, the types of veneers available and alternative treatments that might deliver similar results for a better price. Do your research and really think about your wants and needs before deciding.