Dental Implant or Bridge? How to Choose After Losing a Tooth
Updated: Oct 7
Implant or bridge comes down to three things a dentist can check in one visit: the teeth on either side of the gap, the bone underneath it and your general health. The short rule is this. If the neighbouring teeth are healthy and there is enough bone, an implant lets you replace the tooth without cutting down the teeth beside it. If those neighbours already need crowns, or an implant does not suit you, a bridge is a sound choice.
An implant is a titanium post set into the jawbone in place of the tooth's root, topped with a crown. A bridge is a false tooth joined to a crown on each of the two teeth beside the gap.
Below are the questions people bring to the chair: which lasts longer, whether a bridge harms the teeth beside it, when a bone graft comes into it, whether an implant is worth it, and what happens if you do nothing. If the tooth came out today, go straight to the section on when to call.
The short version
• Neither wins in every mouth. The neighbouring teeth, the bone and your health decide.
• An implant stands in for the root and leaves the neighbours alone. A bridge is quicker, but the two teeth beside the gap are shaped down to carry crowns.
• Cleveland Clinic puts a bridge at 5 to 15 years on average, and says an implant can often last for life.
• Waiting is allowed, but teeth can shift and bone can shrink. Get the gap checked.
Written by Dr. Gloria Jung, DDS, BSc, at Lux Dental in downtown Vancouver. Reviewed on 2 October 2026 against guidance from the Canadian Dental Association, the American Dental Association, Cleveland Clinic, the Government of Canada and peer-reviewed dental research, listed at the end of this post.
Is an implant or a bridge better for one missing tooth?
Neither wins in every mouth, and the choice turns on three things.
First, the teeth beside the gap. If they are sound and untouched, an implant spares them. If they already have large fillings or need crowns, a bridge uses work they may need anyway.
Second, the bone. An implant needs enough healthy jawbone to hold it. A bridge does not ask the bone under the gap to hold anything.
Third, your health. Cleveland Clinic lists active gum disease, unmanaged diabetes and smoking or vaping among the reasons an implant may not be a good idea.
Here is the head-to-head.
Implant | Bridge |
Neighbouring teeth: left alone | Neighbouring teeth: trimmed to take crowns |
Bone: needs enough, or a graft first | Bone: not asked to hold it |
Time: 3 to 9 months of healing | Time: weeks, with a temporary bridge between visits |
Lasts: often for life, crown replaced at some point | Lasts: 5 to 15 years on average |
Surgery: yes, with the gum numbed | Surgery: none |
Care: brush and floss, watch the gum around the post | Care: brush, floss and clean under it daily |
Best when: healthy neighbours, enough bone, good health | Best when: neighbours need crowns anyway, or an implant does not suit you |
Cost is not in the table on purpose. It depends on your mouth, and the section on cost below lists what changes it.
How is a dental implant different from a bridge?
An implant takes the place of the root, while a bridge replaces only the crown and borrows its support from the neighbours. Every other difference follows from that.
One missing tooth, two ways to fill it. The same comparison is written out in the table above and in the paragraphs below.
An implant has three parts, Cleveland Clinic explains: a threaded post that acts as the root, a small connector called the abutment, and the crown you see. Healing takes time because the jawbone has to fuse to the post, which is called osseointegration. Cleveland Clinic puts that at three to nine months. Near the front of the mouth, a temporary tooth can fill the gap meanwhile.
A traditional bridge is three crowns joined as one piece: a crown on the tooth at each side of the gap, and a false tooth, the pontic, between them. The two teeth that carry it are called abutments. To fit the crowns, the dentist removes some of their enamel. Cleveland Clinic notes that this step is irreversible.
The temporary bridge covers you while a lab makes the final one, which Cleveland Clinic says usually takes about two to four weeks.
Our restorative dentistry page covers crowns and bridges at Lux, and our dental implants page covers implants.
Does a bridge damage the teeth next to it?
Yes, in one specific way: the two teeth beside the gap are permanently shaped down. To fit the crowns, a dentist removes enamel from them, and Cleveland Clinic says that step is irreversible.
Those teeth then carry the bridge. Cleveland Clinic warns that decay or an injury to one of them can weaken the bridge, and that a tooth that is not strong enough to support it can fracture.
"But Dr. Jung, a crown is only a cap, so where is the harm?" A cap on a tooth that needed one is fine. The harm is in shaping a tooth that did not.
The long-term numbers are kinder than that sounds, and it is fair to say so. In a systematic review of conventional bridges (Tan and colleagues, 2004), the ten-year risk of losing a bridge to decay was 2.6%, and the ten-year risk of an anchor tooth fracturing was 2.1%. The same review found that success, meaning no complication of any kind, was lower than survival: 71.1% at ten years, against 89.1% survival.
So a bridge on sound teeth is a proven treatment. The reason to weigh it is that the shaping cannot be undone. If you already have a bridge, Cleveland Clinic advises cleaning under it every day with floss threaders or small interdental brushes.
How long does a bridge last compared with an implant?
An implant usually outlasts a bridge, though over ten years the gap is smaller than people expect. Cleveland Clinic puts a bridge at five to 15 years on average. It says an implant can often last for life, while the crown on top may need replacing, since most crowns and bridges last around 15 years.
Here are the research numbers. In a 2007 systematic review (Pjetursson and colleagues), conventional tooth-supported bridges survived at a rate of 93.8% after five years and 89.2% after ten. Implant-supported single crowns survived at 94.5% after five years and 89.4% after ten. A 2012 review (Jung and colleagues) looked at the post itself: 97.2% of implants were still in place after five years and 95.2% after ten.
Read those together. At ten years a bridge and the crown on an implant are close. The implant post in the bone does better than either, and that fits Cleveland Clinic's longer view, which favours the implant.
Survival is not the same as trouble-free. In the 2007 review, 38.7% of patients with an implant-supported bridge had some complication within five years, against 15.7% for bridges on natural teeth. Technical problems, such as chipped porcelain or a loose screw, were more frequent with implants. An implant is long lasting, but it is not maintenance free.
Do I need a bone graft for an implant?
Not always. You need enough healthy jawbone to hold the implant, and a bone graft is how a dentist builds bone up when there is not enough. The Canadian Dental Association says that if your jawbone has shrunk, you may be able to have a graft to build it up.
Cleveland Clinic lists the usual reasons a graft comes into it: bone lost after an extraction, a jaw that has thinned, and bone lost to gum disease. It also lists lifting the maxillary sinuses, which sit above the upper back teeth, and says that is necessary before an implant in some situations. That is what people mean by a sinus lift.
A graft adds time. Cleveland Clinic says the graft itself needs at least three months to heal, and nine to 12 months if it is large. Once it has healed, it is best to place the implant within six to 12 months, or the graft starts to shrink.
If a tooth has just been taken out, or is about to be, ask whether the socket can be protected at the time. Cleveland Clinic lists filling an empty socket after an extraction as one use of a graft.
Whether you need a graft is measured, not guessed. Lux has CBCT 3D imaging on site, which helps us plan where an implant would sit and check the bone. The Canadian Dental Association notes that implants may be placed by your own dentist or by a specialist. At your consultation we will tell you whether a graft or sinus lift would be needed for you, and whether that step is done here or with a specialist.
Not sure which fits your gap?
The consultation is free. Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm, at 1631 Davie Street.
What about screwless and metal-free implants?
Metal-free implants exist, and "screwless" is a loose word, so both deserve a plain answer.
Most implants are titanium, and the Canadian Dental Association describes an implant as an artificial root made of titanium metal. Cleveland Clinic adds that some are ceramic, and that both materials are safe and biocompatible. Ceramic implants are usually made of zirconia.
The research on zirconia is encouraging but younger. A 2023 systematic review of 25 studies (Mohseni and colleagues) found a ten-year cumulative survival of 95.1%. It also noted that zirconia implants have not been studied as extensively as titanium ones. Whether a ceramic implant would suit you, and whether it is something we place or refer, is a question for the consultation.
On "screwless": the post in the bone is a threaded post, as Cleveland Clinic describes it. What varies is how the crown attaches to the connector on top. It can be screwed on or cemented on. In a systematic review of 73 studies (Wittneben and colleagues, 2014), five-year survival was 96.03% for cemented and 95.55% for screw-retained work, which is not a significant difference. Screw-retained work had fewer technical and biological complications overall. Excess cement left under the gum is a recognized risk for inflammation around an implant (Jepsen and colleagues, 2015).
If a clinic advertises "screwless" implants, ask what exactly is screwless.
When is a bridge the better choice?
When the neighbouring teeth already need crowns, or when an implant is not a good fit for you. A bridge is not a lesser treatment. The 2007 systematic review put a conventional bridge on two end teeth in the same first-choice group as an implant crown and an implant bridge.
A bridge is usually the better choice when:
The neighbours already need crowns. A bridge then asks little more of them than they were going to need.
There is not enough bone, and you do not want a graft or a sinus lift. A bridge does not rely on the bone under the gap. Cleveland Clinic lists severe jaw bone loss among the reasons an implant may not suit.
Your health is not ready for implant surgery. Cleveland Clinic says smoking or vaping can disrupt implant healing, and that unmanaged diabetes and untreated gum disease are reasons for caution.
You want it finished in weeks, not months. A bridge takes weeks. An implant takes months of healing.
A bridge is not for every gap. The American Dental Association points out that its success depends on its foundation, so the teeth carrying it must stay healthy and strong. Cleveland Clinic says a traditional bridge is used when you have healthy natural teeth on both sides of the gap.
Three cases sit outside that list. If several teeth are missing, ask for a full plan, because the answer changes. If you would rather not have surgery, a bridge or a removable denture fits. If a back tooth has gone and nothing is shifting, a check followed by a period of waiting is reasonable.
Which fits my gap? A starting point only. The same logic is written out in the text above.
Is a dental implant worth it?
Often, in the right mouth. What you are buying is a replacement that leaves the neighbouring teeth alone and that Cleveland Clinic says can often last for life, with the crown on top replaced when it wears.
What it costs, beyond money, is months of healing, a minor surgery, and daily cleaning around it for good. An implant cannot get a cavity, but the gum around it can become inflamed. A 2015 consensus report (Jepsen and colleagues) estimated a weighted mean prevalence of 43% for peri-implant mucositis, the milder inflammation, and 22% for peri-implantitis, the inflammation that comes with bone loss around the implant. It identified plaque and smoking as risks for the milder kind.
Worth it also depends on how many years you expect to use the replacement. The more there are, the more an implant's lifespan counts. If an implant does not suit you, a well-made bridge is a sound answer, not a consolation.
What happens if I do nothing after losing a tooth?
Often little at first, but the teeth around the gap can shift and the bone can shrink. The American Dental Association says that remaining teeth may shift and, in some cases, bone loss can occur around a missing tooth. A large space can affect how you speak or eat, and even a missing molar can affect how you chew.
Cleveland Clinic calls losing an adult tooth like pushing over the first domino. Left untreated, it says, tooth loss can lead to bone loss, shifting teeth, jaw pain and more tooth loss, and replacing the tooth can reduce those risks.
The changes are slow and quiet, so you will not feel them happen. That is why an exam is worth having, even if you decide to wait.
Doing nothing is still a choice you are allowed to make. For some gaps it is reasonable for a while, as long as you know what to watch. Ask to have the gap checked at your regular exams so shifting is caught early.
A removable partial denture is a third option. It needs no surgery. At the time of writing, partial dentures are on the CDCP's covered list, with preauthorization, which makes this the one option on this page the plan can help with.
How much does an implant or a bridge cost?
It depends, and the figure that counts is the written estimate you get after the exam. A blog post cannot see your mouth, so this one carries no prices.
These are the things that change the cost:
How many teeth. One tooth, or a row of them.
The bone. A graft or a sinus lift is an extra procedure with its own healing time.
Imaging. The scans used to plan an implant.
The material for the crown or bridge. There is more than one choice.
The neighbouring teeth. If they need crowns anyway, that changes the comparison.
Insurance, and the limits on it. Plans differ, so ask your insurer about both options.
The CDCP is accepted at Lux Dental, but neither of these two treatments is on its covered list. At the time of writing, the Canadian Dental Care Plan's Dental Benefits Guide lists fixed bridges, implants and bone grafts among its exclusions, which are procedures it never covers. On the CDCP? Ask what the plan leaves for you to pay before treatment starts.
Want an estimate for your own mouth?
What happens at a consultation at Lux Dental?
Treatment rooms at Lux Dental, downtown Vancouver.
The consultation is free: an exam, a look at your options, and then a written estimate. The decision is yours.
The exam. We look at the gap, the teeth beside it, the gums and your bite. Bring a list of your medications and any health conditions, because they matter to this choice.
Imaging. CBCT 3D imaging on site, which helps us check the bone and plan where an implant would sit, alongside any x-rays we need.
Every option, including the quiet ones. An implant, a bridge, a removable denture, and leaving the gap for now, with what each involves for the teeth beside it.
Who does what. If a step such as a bone graft or a sinus lift is done here or with a specialist, we will tell you before you decide.
A written estimate. It comes after the exam, once we know what each option would involve.
A few practical things, since people ask:
We are open Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm. We are at 1631 Davie Street in downtown Vancouver.
We offer both. Lux provides bridges and dental implants.
We speak your language. I speak English, Korean and Mandarin, and our team also speaks Korean and Vietnamese.
When can this wait, and when should I call?
A gap with no pain can wait for a planned visit, but a few situations cannot. A tooth that hurts is not always a tooth that has to come out, and why a tooth hurts when you bite down covers the usual causes.
What is happening | What to do |
A tooth was knocked out whole | Put it back in the socket if you can, or keep it moist, and call us right away. Same-day visits depend on availability |
Swelling spreading toward the eye or neck, or trouble breathing or swallowing | Go to an emergency department now, or call 911 |
The tooth is gone and nothing hurts | Book a consultation soon. It does not have to be today |
You have a bridge that is loose or cracked, or hurts when you chew | Call us this week |
You have an implant that is loose, or the gum is swollen, bleeding or has pus | Call us promptly |
You are not sure | Call. We will tell you which of these it is |
For an emergency, see our page on dental emergencies.
Frequently asked questions
Is a bridge or an implant better?
Neither wins in every mouth. An implant leaves the neighbouring teeth alone and can often last for life, but it needs enough bone and healthy gums. A bridge is faster and needs no surgery, but the two teeth beside the gap are shaped down to carry crowns. The neighbouring teeth, the bone and your health decide, and an exam shows which applies.
Does a dental bridge damage the teeth next to it?
It changes them permanently. To fit the crowns, a dentist removes enamel from the two neighbouring teeth, and Cleveland Clinic notes that this step is irreversible. Those teeth then carry the bridge, so decay or a fracture in one can weaken it. If the neighbours already need crowns, the extra cost to those teeth is small.
How long does a bridge last compared with an implant?
Cleveland Clinic puts a bridge at five to 15 years on average and says an implant can often last for life, although the crown on it may need replacing at some point, since most crowns last around 15 years. In research, a bridge and an implant crown survive at similar rates after ten years: 89.2% and 89.4% in a 2007 systematic review.
Do I need a bone graft for a dental implant?
Not always. You need enough healthy jawbone to hold the implant, and a graft builds bone up when there is not enough, for example after bone loss or in the upper back jaw, where a sinus lift may be needed. Cleveland Clinic says a graft needs at least three months to heal. An exam and a 3D scan show whether you need one.
Is a dental implant worth it?
Often, in the right mouth. An implant spares the neighbouring teeth and can often last for life. The trade is months of healing, a minor surgery and daily cleaning around it, since gum inflammation around implants is common in the research. If an implant does not suit you, a well-made bridge is a sound option. Your teeth, bone and health decide.
What happens if I do nothing after losing a tooth?
Often little at first, but the American Dental Association notes that the remaining teeth may shift and bone loss can occur around the gap, and a missing molar can affect how you chew. These changes are gradual and quiet, so you will not feel them happen. Waiting is a choice you can make. Make it after an exam, and have the gap rechecked.
Does the CDCP pay for an implant or a bridge?
No. At the time of writing, the CDCP's Dental Benefits Guide lists fixed bridges, implants and bone grafts among its exclusions. Complete dentures are covered, and partial dentures with preauthorization. Private plans differ, so ask your insurer. At Lux, a written estimate comes after the exam, so you have something to take to them.
Book an implant or bridge consultation in downtown Vancouver
The right choice is the one your teeth, bone and health can carry.
If you have lost a tooth, or are about to, bring the question to Lux Dental. We are rated 4.9 on Google from 179 reviews at the time of writing, and we are open Monday to Saturday.
Consultations are free. Or call 604-670-1256. Lux Dental, 1631 Davie Street, Vancouver. Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm.
Sources: Canadian Dental Association, Dental Implants (cda-adc.ca, read 2 October 2026); American Dental Association, MouthHealthy, Missing Teeth and Bridges (read 2 October 2026); Cleveland Clinic, Dental Bridges (updated 24 May 2023), Dental Implants (updated 11 June 2026), Dental Bone Graft (updated 6 August 2024), Tooth Loss (updated 20 August 2024) and Avulsed Tooth (updated 16 May 2024); Government of Canada, Canadian Dental Care Plan Dental Benefits Guide (effective 1 April 2026) and What services are covered (canada.ca, read 2 October 2026); Pjetursson BE, Brägger U, Lang NP, Zwahlen M, Comparison of survival and complication rates of tooth-supported FDPs and implant-supported FDPs and single crowns, Clinical Oral Implants Research 18 (Suppl 3), 2007; Jung RE et al., Survival rate and complications of single crowns on implants with a mean follow-up of 5 years, Clinical Oral Implants Research 23 (Suppl 6), 2012; Tan K, Pjetursson BE, Lang NP et al., Survival and complication rates of fixed partial dentures after at least 5 years, Clinical Oral Implants Research 15 (6), 2004; Wittneben JG, Millen C, Brägger U, Screw- versus cement-retained fixed implant-supported reconstructions, International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Implants 29 (Suppl), 2014; Mohseni P, Soufi A, Chrcanovic BR, Clinical outcomes of zirconia implants, Clinical Oral Investigations 28, 15 (published online 23 December 2023); Jepsen S, Berglundh T, Genco R et al., Primary prevention of peri-implantitis: managing peri-implant mucositis, Journal of Clinical Periodontology 42 (Suppl 16), 2015. Google rating and review count checked 2 October 2026.
Dr. Gloria Jung, DDS, BSc, Lux Dental
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