A dental clinic in a polyclinic in Singapore is usually the cheapest fully-qualified place to get your teeth checked, scaled or filled. Eight polyclinics run a dental service: five under SingHealth (Bedok, Eunos, Pasir Ris, Punggol, Tampines) and three under National University Polyclinics (Bukit Panjang, Jurong, Queenstown). A citizen pays roughly $22 to $39 for the first examination and $53 to $89 for scaling and polishing, and elderly and child citizens pay about half that. Everything runs by appointment, and CHAS, Pioneer or Merdeka subsidies can knock the bill down further. Here is the full list, the 2026 fees by residency, and how to pay the least.
Only eight of Singapore's polyclinics run a dental clinic. The rest send you elsewhere, so it is worth checking the list before you turn up. The two clusters that offer dental care are SingHealth Polyclinics and National University Polyclinics (NUP). National Healthcare Group (NHG) polyclinics in the north and central regions do not run their own dental clinics, and direct patients to government dental institutions or CHAS clinics instead.
Dental at a polyclinic is by appointment only. There are no walk-in cleanings. SingHealth takes dental bookings through one central line on 6643 6969, while NUP also offers an emergency walk-in slot at a higher flat fee for genuine dental emergencies.
| Cluster | Polyclinic | Region | How to book |
|---|---|---|---|
| SingHealth | Bedok | East | 6643 6969 |
| SingHealth | Eunos | East | 6643 6969 |
| SingHealth | Pasir Ris | East | 6643 6969 |
| SingHealth | Punggol | North-East | 6643 6969 |
| SingHealth | Tampines | East | 6643 6969 |
| NUP | Bukit Panjang | West | Health Buddy app or clinic |
| NUP | Jurong | West | Health Buddy app or clinic |
| NUP | Queenstown | Central-West | Health Buddy app or clinic |
Polyclinic dental clinics handle everyday general dentistry rather than cosmetic work or implants. If you need braces, veneers or a dental implant, you will be referred to a specialist centre such as the National Dental Centre Singapore (NDCS) or the National University Centre for Oral Health (NUCOHS), where fees are higher.
For the bread-and-butter stuff, a polyclinic does the job at a subsidised rate. The standard menu covers examination and diagnosis, scaling and polishing, tooth-coloured and amalgam fillings, extractions under local anaesthetic, simple root canal treatment, simple dentures and crowns, basic gum (periodontal) treatment, dental X-rays, and paediatric dentistry for ages 0 to 18.
Polyclinic dental fees are tiered by who you are. Singapore citizens pay the lowest rate, with an even lower band for child and elderly citizens, then permanent residents, then non-residents who pay close to private-clinic prices. Each procedure shows a range because the price moves with how simple or complex the work is, and every figure already includes 9% GST.
The table below is built from the published SingHealth Polyclinics charges (the fees on that schedule were last revised on the dates noted by SingHealth, and GST moved to 9% from 1 January 2024). NUP fees sit in a similar band; NUP's published dental consultation runs about $20 to $37 for an adult citizen by appointment, with an emergency walk-in flat fee of $40.50, effective 1 August 2025. Treat these as a guide, since a clinic can revise charges without notice.
For a fuller breakdown of how these polyclinic rates compare with private and CHAS clinic pricing, see our Singapore dental costs and subsidies guide.
| Procedure | Citizen (adult) | Citizen (child/elderly) | Permanent resident | Non-resident |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examination and diagnosis / review | $21.60 to $38.70 | $11.10 to $20.10 | $34.00 to $60.30 | $57.01 to $99.95 |
| Scaling and polishing | $52.60 to $89.20 | $26.20 to $44.60 | $79.60 to $133.30 | $148.24 to $276.75 |
| Filling (amalgam or tooth-coloured) | $26.50 to $67.90 | $13.10 to $34.10 | $39.90 to $102.00 | $74.45 to $176.25 |
| Extraction | $31.20 to $58.30 | $15.50 to $28.80 | $46.70 to $87.40 | $80.88 to $218.00 |
| Dental X-ray | $16.00 to $40.50 | $8.10 to $40.50 | $24.20 to $42.90 | $48.18 to $60.28 |
The headline fees are before subsidies. If you hold a CHAS Blue, CHAS Orange, Pioneer Generation or Merdeka Generation card, you can claim a dental subsidy on top, and from 1 October 2025 those amounts went up. The catch is that CHAS subsidies are designed for participating private clinics rather than the polyclinic's own subsidised rate, so check which route is cheaper for your card before booking.
On scaling alone, the per-visit subsidy is $40 for Pioneer Generation, $35 for Merdeka Generation, $30 for CHAS Blue and $20 for CHAS Orange, with polishing subsidised separately on top. CHAS Orange holders also gained a subsidy extension of up to $45.50 across ten basic and preventive procedures from October 2025, and seven restorative procedures (such as root canals and dentures) now carry higher subsidies for all four card types.
Not sure which card you qualify for? Household income and Annual Value thresholds decide it. Our CHAS card guide walks through the tiers and how to apply, and you can sanity-check your dental budget against the rest of your spending in the personal budget calculator.
| Card type | Scaling subsidy | Polishing subsidy |
|---|---|---|
| Pioneer Generation | $40.00 | $30.50 |
| Merdeka Generation | $35.00 | $25.50 |
| CHAS Blue | $30.00 | $20.50 |
| CHAS Orange | $20.00 | $13.50 |
MediSave does not pay for routine cleaning or a simple filling. It is reserved for dental surgery, the most common example being the removal of impacted or buried wisdom teeth done as a surgical procedure. When a procedure qualifies, you can use up to $300 per day from MediSave plus a withdrawal tied to the surgical table, and a polyclinic that does the surgery (or the specialist centre it refers you to) will help you file the claim.
Seniors got a useful extra from mid-2026: Flexi-MediSave lets eligible older Singaporeans tap a limited amount of MediSave each year for outpatient care, which can include some dental costs. If you want to understand what your MediSave can and cannot stretch to, the MediShield Life glossary entry and our Basic Healthcare Sum guide explain how the account is meant to work.
Say you are an adult Singapore citizen booking your first cleaning at SingHealth Bedok. You pay an examination and diagnosis fee in the $21.60 to $38.70 band, plus scaling and polishing in the $52.60 to $89.20 band. A typical bill therefore lands somewhere around $74 to $128 before any subsidy, all-in with GST.
Now add a card. A CHAS Blue holder claims roughly $30 off the scaling plus $20.50 off the polishing, so the same visit can drop toward the $25 to $80 region depending on the complexity band. A Pioneer Generation senior, already on the lower elderly-citizen fee tier and the highest subsidy, often pays the least of anyone. The lesson: book the polyclinic, bring your card, and ask the front desk to apply whichever route is cheaper for you.
Eight do. SingHealth runs dental at Bedok, Eunos, Pasir Ris, Punggol and Tampines, while National University Polyclinics offer it at Bukit Panjang, Jurong and Queenstown. NHG polyclinics do not have an in-house dental clinic and refer patients to CHAS clinics or public dental institutions instead.
For an adult Singapore citizen the scaling-and-polishing fee runs about $52.60 to $89.20 inclusive of GST, plus a separate examination fee on the first visit. Child and elderly citizens pay roughly half, while permanent residents and non-residents pay more. A CHAS, Pioneer or Merdeka card reduces it further.
Polyclinic dental is by appointment only for routine care. SingHealth takes bookings on 6643 6969 and NUP books through its clinics or the Health Buddy app. NUP does offer an emergency walk-in slot at a flat fee of $40.50 for genuine dental emergencies, but normal cleanings and fillings always need a booking.
CHAS subsidies are built for participating private clinics, so compare the CHAS route against the polyclinic's own subsidised fee before booking. MediSave only covers dental surgery such as surgical wisdom-tooth removal, not routine cleaning or simple fillings, and is subject to daily and surgical withdrawal limits.
This is general financial information for Singapore, not personal financial advice. Figures change — verify current rates against the official sources above before acting. See our full disclaimer.