Is Invisalign Faster Than Braces?

Teeth-straightening treatment can be a significant time investment, and many adults prioritize efficiency when comparing their options. If you’re excited to see your new smile as soon as possible, you may be asking: which treatment option is faster, Invisalign or braces?

In this guide, we’ll explain which option will offer the fastest route to your new smile, and the different factors that can play a role in your treatment duration.

Which Is Faster: Braces or Invisalign?

The quick answer? Invisalign. With treatment times averaging 12-18 months, Invisalign typically achieves final results sooner than braces — which average around 18-24 months. Certain types of braces deliver results faster than others.

For example, self-ligating braces typically finish treatment a few weeks faster than their traditional counterparts. However, Invisalign is still faster, no matter which braces you choose or who administers your care.

Startup Speed: Braces vs. Invisalign

Both Invisalign and braces begin with a dentist or orthodontist analyzing your unique smile, then completing diagnostics to determine your ideal treatment plan.

Invisalign uses digital scans instead of traditional teeth impressions. After taking these 3D scans, your dentist or orthodontist will upload them. Then, they’ll use Invisalign’s proprietary ClinCheck software to design a plan tailored to your smile. Once your doctor is confident in their plan, Invisalign technicians review it and either approve it or send it back for revision.

Once all parties, including you, agree on the plan, Invisalign will create all of your aligners and send them to your doctor. This process, from scans to aligner delivery, typically totals about three weeks. Once your dentist or orthodontist receives your aligners, you’ll visit the office again to start your treatment. You’ll go in for follow-up appointments every 4-8 weeks, and finish in about 12-18 months.

With braces, your orthodontist can use traditional impressions or digital scans to plan your treatment. From there, they might use a planning software of their choice, the proprietary software of a specific braces manufacturer, or even design your plan by hand. This is potentially a faster startup process than Invisalign since the orthodontist might not need to include a third party in the decision making or wait on manufacturing.

Once they have created a treatment plan, you’ll have a relatively long appointment where your orthodontist affixes the braces to your teeth. After that, you’ll just need to return for adjustments every 4-8 weeks, and you’ll finish treatment in roughly 24 months.

Why Is Invisalign Faster?

Invisalign and braces are both widely considered safe and effective ways to straighten your teeth, but they take different approaches to reach the same goal. This difference in time frame largely comes down to the way each treatment applies force to your teeth and how often adjustments are made.

Braces use brackets affixed to each individual tooth, connected by an archwire that, when tightened, gradually moves them. This focuses movement on each individual tooth, and it’s often not possible to direct force against numerous teeth at the same time. On the other hand, Invisalign usually renders faster results since the aligners can apply force to all of your teeth at once.

To keep your teeth moving, your dentist or orthodontist needs to continuously adjust that force. With braces, your orthodontist will adjust your archwire about every 4-6 weeks. During Invisalign treatment, each new aligner set serves as an adjustment. Depending on your plan, this means you alter the pressure on your teeth every 1-2 weeks — much more frequently than braces. This is another major factor in Invisalign’s faster timeline.

Does It Depend on My Dental Condition?

If you have a complicated condition that can be corrected by both Invisalign and braces, you’ll probably have a long timeline regardless of which one you choose. However, even if your treatment time is longer than average, Invisalign will still likely be faster overall than braces.

In a study comparing Invisalign to conventional braces, patients with mild-to-moderate class I malocclusions were separated into groups and treated with one or the other. The Invisalign patients completed treatment in an average of 11.5 months while patients treated with traditional braces finished in an average of 17 months.

These results are illuminating but should be taken with a grain of salt, since the study was funded by Invisalign themselves. Still, it showcases Invisalign’s faster treatment times. So, even if your condition is a little more complicated, Invisalign treatment will likely be faster than braces due to the way the force is applied to the teeth and the frequency of adjustments.

The Exception: Human Error

All teeth straightening treatments require some level of personal responsibility. You have to show up to regular appointments and maintain good oral hygiene no matter which treatment you choose. But clear aligners demand a higher level of compliance than braces do, which has the potential to impact treatment times.

The freedom of clear aligners presents you with much more personal responsibility. While you’re free to remove your clear aligners as needed, you’re also responsible for putting them back in. This is simple in theory, but in practice, some people don’t find it quite as easy to manage.

You should remove your aligners before eating, and you’ll need to brush and floss before putting them back in. For most, this habit poses no problem, but for others, the best of intentions can be derailed.

For example, if your job doesn’t include a set time for lunch breaks, clear aligner treatment could present a challenge. If it’s already complicated to squeeze in a meal during your workday, then brushing, flossing, and replacing your aligners has the potential to delay your treatment.

You must wear your aligners for 22 hours per day to ensure their effectiveness. So before choosing Invisalign, it’s important to be honest with yourself about whether or not this is something your lifestyle can accommodate. These treatments are carefully planned in advance, so a few missed hours here and there can accumulate and cause significant delays.

If you don’t wear your aligners for 22 hours a day and treatment gets derailed, your next aligner set might not fit correctly, and you’ll need to get new ones. Invisalign manufactures these aligners, then ships them to your dentist or orthodontist’s office, likely adding a few weeks to your treatment time.

With braces, delays in treatment are a simpler fix since the braces are irremovable. You’ll just need to wear them slightly longer, so there won’t be any manufacturing or shipping factors to consider.

Final Thoughts

Both Invisalign and braces are regarded as safe and effective ways to get the smile you’ve always wanted. If you follow your treatment plan and wear your Invisalign aligners for 22 hours per day, you’re likely to arrive at that smile quicker than you would with braces.

If your lifestyle doesn’t allow for the type of maintenance clear aligners require, then braces might end up being faster. It’s important to be realistic about which treatment your lifestyle can best accommodate.

Either way, both of these treatments will provide you with a smile you’ll love!