Turkey Dental Tourism Statistics (2026)
Our research has been cited by BBC News, BDJ In Practice, Harper's Bazaar, LADbible, DentistryIQ and The Tab.
This page brings together official statistics from the ONS, the NHS, the British Dental Association and the Turkish government with UK Smiles' own data: 4,238 enquiries from people in the UK considering treatment in Turkey, 96 bookings, and five years of UK search trends. Figures were last checked on 11 October 2026.
Every external figure links to its source. Our own data is explained in the methodology section.
Key statistics at a glance
523,000
visits abroad for medical treatment by GB residents in 2024, a record (ONS)
6%
of UK adults have sought dental care outside the UK (GDC, 2024)
3 in 5
adults in England have not seen an NHS dentist in two years (NHS, 2025/26)
86%
of UK dentists surveyed had treated problems from dental work abroad (BDA)
UK Smiles data, n = 4,238
45%
of our 2026 enquiries were about dental implants, against 7% for veneers
UK Smiles data, 12 months
48 vs 35
average age of people asking us about implants, against veneers
Google Trends, UK
+1,200%
growth in searches for "turkey teeth gone wrong", the fastest-rising related search over five years
UK Smiles data: what 4,238 people considering Turkey told us
Between 26 June and 11 October 2026, 4,238 adults in the UK asked UK Smiles about dental treatment in Turkey. Each one told us what treatment they were interested in, when they wanted to travel and, optionally, what worried them most. These are the results.
Their biggest worry
Price gets people looking, but trust is almost as big a worry. Three in ten said their main concern was finding a clinic they can trust, and one in four was simply nervous about dental treatment.
The worry changes with age
| Age | Cost | Trust | Nerves | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 to 34 | 39.5% | 22.3% | 26.5% | 7% |
| 35 to 44 | 34.1% | 26.5% | 27.6% | 7.4% |
| 45 to 54 | 27.9% | 31.3% | 23.4% | 10.9% |
| 55 to 64 | 22.2% | 41.1% | 19.5% | 9.9% |
| 65 and over | 21.7% | 38.6% | 18.1% | 19.3% |
Share of each age group naming each worry as their biggest. The highest in each row is highlighted. Logistics (travel and time off) is left out, at 2% to 7% in every group. Based on the 2,523 who answered and gave a valid age.
What this means: cost is the worry under-45s name most often. From 45 upwards, trust overtakes cost, and for 55 to 64 year olds it is the main worry for 41%. Over-65s are also the most likely to worry about quality compared with the UK (19%). These are the age groups most likely to be asking about implants, a bigger, surgical treatment.
What they want
Among our enquiries, implants were the most requested treatment, and almost two in five people did not yet know what treatment they needed. Implant interest rises steadily with age, from a quarter of under-35s to nearly two thirds of over-65s, while almost three quarters of veneer enquiries came from under-45s. This mix partly reflects the treatments we advertised, but it matches the search data below, where interest in implants has caught up with veneers.
Who is asking, and how soon
More than half of enquirers are aged 35 to 54, and the median age is 44. Most people are planning ahead: six in ten chose "in three to six months", the longest option on the form, and only one in nine wanted to travel within a month.
UK Smiles data, 12 months
43.5
average age of everyone who enquired in the year to September 2026 (4,911 with a valid age)
UK Smiles data, 12 months
48
average age of people asking about implants, against 35 for people asking about veneers
UK Smiles data, 12 months
60%
of enquirers were 40 or over. Only 15% were under 30
The real face of Turkey teeth: across a full year of enquiries from every channel, not only social media, the typical person asking about treatment in Turkey is in their mid-forties and asking about implants. People asking about veneers are, on average, 13 years younger. The twentysomething chasing a Hollywood smile is the exception, not the rule.
The state of their teeth now
Four in ten are missing teeth, and one in six is missing most or all of them. For many people this is about being able to eat and smile comfortably again, not a purely cosmetic choice.
What patients spend and the smile they choose
£4,516
average quoted treatment, hotel and transfers included (median £4,229)
36 days
median time from booking to treatment
37
median age of booked patients, against 44 for enquiries
Three in four booked patients were quoted between £2,000 and £6,000. In our small sample of bookings, younger people were more likely to go ahead: under-35s made up 21% of enquiries but 22 of the 54 booked patients whose age we know (41%).
And the "too white" Turkey teeth of the headlines are not what most people ask for. Of the people who designed their smile on our design form, 57% picked a natural look and only 14% the Hollywood style, and 71% chose shade BL2, a bleached white one step down from the brightest. To see the difference, compare our Emax veneers in Turkey with the full-coverage zirconia crowns.
How UK searches are changing
- Interest is still growing, slowly. Comparing January to September each year, UK search interest in "turkey teeth" was about 22% higher in 2026 than in 2022 and about 4% higher than in 2025.
- Summer is peak season. Interest peaks in July and is lowest in December. On average, July runs about 65% above December.
- Wales shows the strongest interest per head. "Turkey teeth" makes up a larger share of all searches in Wales (index 100) than in Northern Ireland (74), Scotland (70) or England (68). This is interest per person, not total searches: England makes far more searches in total because it has far more people. By the same per-head measure, the two keenest cities in Britain are Liverpool (100) and Birkenhead (96), with Newbuildings in Northern Ireland third (93). Google only scores cities where searches are frequent enough to measure, so no other city reaches its threshold for this exact phrase.
- Implants have caught up with veneers. Comparing January to September, interest in "veneers turkey" fell by about a third between 2022 and 2026, while "dental implants turkey" held roughly steady. The two are now level (table below).
| January to September | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dental implants turkey | 48.4 | 39.0 | 36.5 | 40.8 | 45.8 |
| veneers turkey | 70.3 | 48.2 | 45.1 | 47.4 | 46.8 |
Average Google Trends index, UK, the two terms compared together. Higher means more relative interest.
Fastest-rising related searches
| Search | Growth in interest |
|---|---|
| turkey teeth gone wrong | +1,200% |
| uk dentists turkey teeth | +350% |
| turkey teeth shaved | +200% |
| turkey teeth packages | +120% |
| composite bonding turkey | +70% |
Google Trends "rising" searches for "turkey teeth", UK, five years to October 2026. These show relative growth, often from a small base, not search volumes [13].
The takeaway: people are researching the risks before they book. The fastest-rising searches are about things going wrong and what UK dentists think. Our guide to Turkey teeth gone wrong covers the warning signs.
How many people from Britain go abroad for treatment?
Office for National Statistics figures show a record 523,000 visits abroad for medical treatment by residents of Great Britain in 2024 [1]. That was up from 431,000 in 2023 and 348,000 in 2022, a rise of around 50% in two years [2].
These figures cover all medical treatment. Dental treatment is a large part of it: in a 2024 survey of 2,415 adults, the General Dental Council found 6% of UK adults had sought dental care outside the UK, mainly to save money [3]. Earlier ONS figures, quoted in the British Dental Journal, show trips abroad specifically for dentistry rose from 48,000 in 2014 to 144,000 in 2016 [14].
No official body publishes a figure for UK dental patients travelling to Turkey alone.
In short: going abroad for treatment is no longer unusual. About 6% of adults have already done it for their teeth, and trips abroad for medical care of any kind rose by half in two years.
Turkey's health tourism in numbers
| Year | Health tourists | Revenue | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | About 1.4 million | $2.3 billion | Ministry of Trade [6] |
| 2024 | About 1.5 million | More than $3 billion | Official figures [5] |
| 2025 | 1,398,580 | $3.022 billion | HIB [4] |
| Q1 2026 | 302,487 | $761.5 million | HIB [4] |
Figures come from different Turkish bodies, so treat year-on-year comparisons as approximate. Health tourism revenue grew from $1.9 billion in 2022 [6] to just over $3 billion in 2025, although patient numbers dipped by around 7% in 2025 [5]. Turkey does not publish an official figure for dental patients alone. In 2022, the Turkish Dental Association estimated 150,000 to 250,000 foreign dental patients a year [7].
Why people go: access to NHS dentistry
- Only 18.8 million adults in England, about 40% of the adult population, were seen by an NHS dentist in the 24 months to 31 March 2026 [15]. The Royal College of Surgeons put it more bluntly: three in five adults have not seen an NHS dentist in two years [16].
- Where you live decides a lot. In South Yorkshire, 56% of adults were seen by an NHS dentist in that period. In Somerset it was 23%, less than half the rate [16].
- An Office for National Statistics survey of 91,773 adults in summer 2026 found that in nine areas of southern England, more adults now have a private dentist than an NHS one, including six of the seven areas in the South West. In Devon and Cornwall, almost one in five adults said they had no dentist at all [17].
- In an Ipsos poll of 1,091 British adults in February 2025, 18% had been unable to get an NHS dental appointment in the previous two years, and a quarter of those had tried to treat themselves [11].
- Of those who could not get an appointment, 19% went abroad for treatment (a small group, roughly 37 people) [12].
- NHS charges in England rose on 1 April 2026: a check-up is £27.90, fillings £76.60, and crowns, bridges and dentures £332.10 [9]. Cosmetic treatments such as veneers are not available on the NHS, so they are paid for privately.
Why it matters: for many people the choice is not simply NHS or Turkey. It is a wait for NHS care, a private UK bill, or treatment abroad.
UK vs Turkey dental costs
The biggest reason people give for travelling is cost. The table below uses UK Smiles' own prices for treatment at the Dental Centre in Antalya, against our estimate of typical private prices in the UK. Packages include the hotel and transfers, but not flights, time off work or any follow-up care at home.
| Treatment | Typical UK private price (estimate) | UK Smiles in Turkey |
|---|---|---|
| 20 zirconia crowns | £14,000 to £30,000 | Around £2,980 |
| 20 Emax crowns or veneers | £15,000 to £30,000 | Around £4,370 |
| Single dental implant | £2,000 to £3,000 (with crown) | From around £270 (crown extra) |
| All-on-4, both jaws | £16,000 to £28,000 | Around £6,296 |
| All-on-6, both jaws | £20,000 to £36,000 | Around £6,730 |
On a full set of zirconia crowns that is a saving of around 79% to 90%. A full set of crowns is not the right first option for healthy teeth, though: crowns remove much more tooth than veneers or whitening, and any reputable dentist should tell you if a smaller treatment would do. For every treatment, see our Turkey teeth cost breakdown. UK Smiles prices are as of October 2026, and every quote is confirmed in writing before you book.
When dental work abroad goes wrong
In a survey of 1,000 UK dentists by the British Dental Association, published in 2022 [8]:
- 94% had seen patients who had dental treatment abroad, and 86% had treated problems arising from it.
- Crowns (87%) and implants (85%) were the treatments most often needing follow-up.
- The most common problems were failing or failed work (86%), pain (76%) and poorly done work (72%).
- 65% said putting it right cost patients at least £500, 51% said more than £1,000, and one in five said more than £5,000.
Whoever treats you, the lesson from these figures is to get a full assessment with X-rays before you travel, and to know who will look after you once you are home. Our guide to what to do when Turkey teeth go wrong covers the warning signs, and our dental implant risks section explains how each problem is managed.
Turkey teeth on social media and in the news
- The hashtag #TurkeyTeeth had 700.8 million TikTok views and 18,200 Instagram posts when researchers counted them for a study published in the British Dental Journal in 2025 [14].
- The same study found 131 UK news articles about dental tourism between 2018 and May 2023. 92.4% were in tabloids, 80.9% in The Sun or Mail titles, and almost all the stories about complications involved Turkey [14].
Methodology
UK Smiles enquiry data: 4,238 enquiries from UK adults through our Facebook and Instagram enquiry forms between 26 June and 11 October 2026. Every enquiry gave a treatment interest and travel timeframe. The biggest-worry question was optional and was answered by 2,526 people. Ages outside 18 to 90 were excluded. Treatment interest partly reflects which treatments we were advertising at the time, so it is a guide to demand rather than a national measure.
UK Smiles booking data: 96 bookings recorded in our patient system between 1 August and 9 October 2026. Quoted values (92 bookings) include treatment, hotel and transfers but not flights. Age was known for 54 booked patients. Smile design and shade choices come from 28 people who completed our online design form, and the state of people's teeth from 252 consultation forms.
UK Smiles full-year data: the age figures in "Who is asking" marked "12 months" cover 6,076 enquiries from every channel (website, social media and WhatsApp) between 1 October 2025 and 30 September 2026, of which 4,911 gave a valid age between 18 and 85.
Search data: Google Trends for the United Kingdom, five years to 11 October 2026. Trends figures are an index of relative interest, not search counts: Google takes "turkey teeth" as a share of all searches made in each place, then scores the place with the highest share 100 and the rest relative to it. A region scoring 68 has about two thirds the interest per head of the region scoring 100, whatever its population. "Rising" searches compare the most recent period with the one before it.
All UK Smiles figures are totals and percentages. No individual can be identified from them.
How to cite this page
You are welcome to use these statistics. Please credit UK Smiles and link to this page:
UK Smiles (2026). Turkey Dental Tourism Statistics. https://www.uksmiles.co.uk/turkey-dental-statistics
For UK Smiles data, please describe it as "UK Smiles data from 4,238 patient enquiries, 2026". Where a figure comes from another organisation, please also credit the original source listed below. For press enquiries, interviews or the underlying figures, email Sam Riley at hello@uksmiles.co.uk.
Frequently asked questions
-
How many people from the UK go abroad for dental treatment?
There is no official count for dental treatment alone. Office for National Statistics figures show a record 523,000 visits abroad for medical treatment of all kinds by residents of Great Britain in 2024, up from 348,000 in 2022. A 2024 General Dental Council survey found 6% of UK adults had sought dental care outside the UK.
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How many health tourists does Turkey get?
Turkey received almost 1.4 million health tourists in 2025, who spent just over $3 billion, according to the Service Exporters Association. In the first quarter of 2026 there were 302,487 international patients. The Turkish Dental Association has estimated 150,000 to 250,000 foreign dental patients a year.
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How much cheaper is dental treatment in Turkey than in the UK?
It depends on the treatment. As an example from our own prices, a full set of 20 zirconia crowns with UK Smiles is around £2,980 with the hotel and transfers included, against roughly £14,000 to £30,000 privately in the UK, a saving of around 79% to 90%. A single dental implant is typically £270 in Turkey with the crown on top priced separately, against £2,000 to £3,000 in the UK for an implant and crown together.
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How many UK dentists see problems from dental work abroad?
In a British Dental Association survey of 1,000 UK dentists published in 2022, 94% had seen patients who had treatment abroad, and 86% had treated problems arising from it. Crowns and implants were the treatments most often needing follow-up.
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How old is the typical person getting Turkey teeth?
Older than the stereotype. Across 4,911 UK Smiles enquiries with a valid age in the year to September 2026, the average age was 43.5, and 60% of enquirers were 40 or over. Only 15% were under 30. People asking about implants averaged 48, while people asking about veneers averaged 35.
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Which part of the UK is most interested in Turkey teeth?
Per head of population, Wales. Google Trends scores Wales 100 for "turkey teeth" against 74 for Northern Ireland, 70 for Scotland and 68 for England, meaning the phrase makes up a bigger share of all searches in Wales than anywhere else. At city level, Liverpool and Birkenhead show the highest interest per head in Britain. England makes the most searches in total because it has by far the largest population.
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What worries UK patients most about treatment in Turkey?
In UK Smiles data from 4,238 enquiries between June and October 2026, the most common worry was cost and value for money (31% of those who answered), followed closely by finding a clinic they can trust (30%) and nerves about dental treatment (25%). Trust becomes the biggest worry from age 45 upwards.
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Do most people choose the bright white Hollywood smile?
No. Among the 28 people who designed their smile on the UK Smiles design form in 2026, 57% picked a natural look and only 14% chose the Hollywood style. The most popular shade was BL2, a bleached white one step down from the brightest. This is a small sample, so treat it as an indication rather than a national figure.
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Can I use these statistics in an article?
Yes. Please credit UK Smiles and link to this page, uksmiles.co.uk/turkey-dental-statistics. Where a figure comes from another organisation, the original source is listed at the bottom of the page.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics: estimated visits abroad for medical treatment by residents of Great Britain, 2024
- The Telegraph, reporting ONS figures (via Yahoo News), 26 October 2025
- General Dental Council: public experiences of dentistry research, 1 August 2024
- Daily Sabah, reporting Service Exporters Association (HIB) figures, 15 July 2026
- Hürriyet Daily News: Türkiye health tourism figures
- Turkish Ministry of Trade figures for 2023, reported by Anadolu Agency via haber.aero
- Euronews, citing the Turkish Dental Association, 13 October 2022
- British Dental Association: UK dentists picking up the pieces from dental tourism boom (survey of 1,000 dentists, 2022)
- NHS Business Services Authority: NHS dental charges in England from 1 April 2026
- NHS Business Services Authority: Dental Statistics, England 2024-25
- Ipsos for PA Media: NHS dental access poll, 20 March 2025
- PA Media, reporting the Ipsos poll, 21 March 2025
- Google Trends, United Kingdom, search term "turkey teeth", five years to 11 October 2026
- Doughty et al. Dental tourism in UK news media. British Dental Journal 2025; 238: 230-237
- NHS Business Services Authority: NHS Dental Statistics for England 2025/26, published 27 August 2026
- Royal College of Surgeons of England: Three in five adults have not accessed NHS dental care in the last two years, 27 August 2026
- Dentistry.co.uk, reporting the ONS Health Insight Survey (91,773 adults, July to August 2026), 1 October 2026