Types of Crowns in Turkey: Zirconia, Emax, Monolithic and Layered Compared

A crown is a cap that covers a tooth on every side. Once it is fitted, you will bite, chew and smile with it every day for years.

The material decides three things: how strong the crown is, how natural it looks, and how likely it is to chip. No single material wins all three.

That is why a good treatment plan names the material for each tooth, rather than just saying "crowns". If your quote only says "porcelain" or "premium crowns", it is worth asking exactly what that means.

So what are the options?

Monolithic means "one piece". A monolithic zirconia crown is milled from a single solid block of zirconia by a computer-guided machine, then stained and glazed.

Zirconia is an extremely tough ceramic, at around 1,200 MPa of strength on our spec sheet. Because the crown is one piece, there is no separate surface layer waiting to flake off.

That makes it the usual choice for back teeth, for people who grind, and for full sets of crowns that take real biting force.

The trade-off is looks. Basic single-shade zirconia lets less light through than natural enamel, so on its own it can look slightly flat on front teeth.

A layered zirconia crown has two parts: a strong zirconia core, with a thin layer of porcelain baked over the outside.

The porcelain adds translucency and fine surface detail, so layered crowns look closer to Emax. They are mostly used on front teeth, where looks matter most.

The catch is the join. The porcelain layer is weaker than the zirconia underneath, and in older research it was the part most likely to chip. More on that in the research section below.

Is there a way to get the looks without the layer?

Multilayer zirconia is still one solid piece, but the block it is milled from changes in shade and translucency from one end to the other.

The crown is positioned in the block so the warmer, stronger zirconia sits near the gum and the paler, more see-through zirconia forms the biting edge. That copies the way a natural tooth looks, without adding a porcelain layer.

The clinic in Antalya offers two premium multilayer options as upgrades to standard zirconia: IPS e.max ZirCAD Prime by Ivoclar, and Sagemax NexxZr. Our guide to Sagemax NexxZr zirconia and why people choose it goes into the materials in detail.

For many people having a full smile, multilayer zirconia is the middle ground: strongest at the gum end and a little less strong at the biting edge, with a much more natural finish.

Emax is the brand name of IPS e.max, a lithium disilicate glass ceramic made by Ivoclar. It is best known for veneers, but it is also used for crowns.

Its big strength is looks. Emax lets light through in a way that is very close to natural enamel, so it is the go-to material where a crown shows most, on the front teeth.

It is not as strong as zirconia, at around 400 to 500 MPa depending on the product, so it is a less natural fit for back molars or for people who grind heavily.

If you are weighing it up for your front teeth, our page on Emax crowns in Turkey and what they cost sets out the prices, the process and the warranty.

Porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns, often shortened to PFM, have a metal core with porcelain on top. For decades they were the standard crown, and some clinics still offer them because they are cheap to make.

They are strong and have a long track record. The problem is cosmetic: if the gum shrinks back over the years, the metal edge can show as a dark line, which we explain in our guide to the black line some crowns leave at the gum.

The metal core also blocks light, so the crown can look more opaque than the teeth around it.

UK Smiles does not use metal or porcelain-fused-to-metal crowns. Every crown we arrange is all-ceramic, either zirconia or Emax.

Here is how the crown types you are likely to see on a Turkey quote compare side by side.

So which one should you have?

Most people do not need one material for every tooth. The dentist matches the material to the job each tooth does.

Not sure whether you need crowns at all? Our comparison of crowns versus veneers in Turkey explains how much tooth each one removes and who suits which.

Every crown, whatever it is made of, needs the tooth to be shaped on all sides to make room. That is the biggest decision in the whole process, bigger than the material.

A Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry study measured it: on front teeth, full-coverage crown preparations removed roughly 63% to 72% of the tooth above the gum, against roughly 3% to 30% for veneer preparations.

The material changes this a little. Zirconia can be made thinner than many other ceramics and still be strong, so a monolithic zirconia crown may need slightly less shaping than a layered one. But a crown is always a bigger step than a veneer.

That is why a good dentist only recommends crowns where a tooth needs them: heavy fillings, cracks, root canal treatment, worn or badly shaped teeth. If your teeth are healthy and you only want a colour or shape change, ask whether veneers would do the job.

What if the tooth is missing altogether?

When a tooth is missing, a dental implant replaces the root and a crown sits on top. The same materials are used, and zirconia is a popular choice because it is strong and does not show metal at the gum.

An implant crown is either screwed onto the implant or cemented. Screw-retained crowns can be removed by the dentist later if anything needs attention, which is why many dentists prefer them.

For a whole jaw of missing teeth, a full bridge on four or six implants is usually more practical and affordable than a crown per implant. Our guide to choosing All-on-4 or All-on-6 in Turkey explains how that works.

Layered zirconia had a chipping problem. A 2015 systematic review in Dental Materials estimated five-year survival of zirconia single crowns at 91.2%, against 95.7% for metal-ceramic crowns. A leading cause of failure was the porcelain layer on top of the zirconia fracturing.

One-piece zirconia changed that. In a 2021 study of 50 monolithic zirconia crowns on back teeth, 98% survived five years, with no fractures or cracks found.

Emax holds up well over time. A 2018 study of one-piece Emax crowns on back teeth found 83.5% survived ten years. That was on molars and premolars, the hardest job for a glass ceramic, which is why Emax is usually kept for the front.

The lesson from all three: keep the crown in one piece where you can, use zirconia where the load is highest, and save the most translucent materials for where they show.

How long a crown lasts depends as much on you as on the material. Brushing, cleaning between the teeth, regular check-ups and a night guard if you grind all add years.

As a rough guide, with good care:

These are typical ranges, not promises. The tooth underneath can still decay, so the edge where crown meets tooth is where most problems start.

So what should you ask before you choose?

Whoever you book with, these questions tell you a lot about the quality of the plan.

With UK Smiles, a full set of 20 zirconia crowns typically costs around £2,980, and 20 Emax crowns around £4,370, or around £3,626 for 16. Those are package prices, with your hotel in Lara and VIP airport transfers included.

Privately in the UK, crowns typically cost around £700 to £1,500 a tooth, so a full set of 20 often runs to £14,000 or more.

Premium multilayer zirconia is an upgrade on standard zirconia, and the price depends on how many crowns you are having. For the full breakdown, see our guide to dental crowns in Turkey, prices and materials.

You do not have to work this out alone. Send us photos or an X-ray, and the dentist will recommend a material for each tooth, with the reasons, in your treatment plan.

At the clinic in Antalya you see a trial version of your smile before anything is fitted, so you can check the shape and shade first.

There is nothing to pay up front, so you can book with complete peace of mind. All you need to do is book your flights and fill in our booking form, and we will sort the rest.

If you are leaning towards zirconia for a full set, our page on zirconia crowns in Turkey covers the options in more depth.