Best Dentists in Wellington

We assessed 76 dentists in Wellington and ranked the top 5 on public rating quality, review volume and how recent the reviews are. The businesses listed below hold 4,885 Google reviews between them. No business can pay for a place in these rankings. Last updated 22 October 2026. How we rank

Top 5 Dentists in Wellington

The top 5 dentists in Wellington are #1 Johnsonville Dental Centre, #2 Wellington Dentists, #3 City Dentists, #4 Dental Care Centre Lower Hutt, and #5 Newtown Dental, ranked by Top5 Score.

  • 1

    Johnsonville Dental Centre

    ★ 4.9 991 reviews +5 Score 199
    Highest
    5★ 938 4★ 45 3★ 4 2★ 1 1★ 3

    Johnsonville Dental Centre covers routine checkups and cleans, fillings, crown repairs, and braces, with dentists Robin and Ryan both drawing repeat visits from families who have switched from long-standing practices elsewhere.

    Level 2/128 Johnsonville Road, Johnsonville, Wellington

    Call 04 939 8649 Map Is this your business?
  • 2

    Wellington Dentists Ltd

    ★ 4.9 926 reviews +10 Score 198
    0.6 behind
    5★ 900 4★ 4 3★ 4 2★ 2 1★ 16

    Wellington Dentists handles extractions, bridge work, fillings, and hygiene cleans, with dentists Rob, Ruth, Laura, Jeff, and Jay each noted for walking patients through every step before and during treatment.

    124A Willis Street, Te Aro, Wellington

    Call 04 499 1091 Map Is this your business?
  • 3

    City Dentists

    Verified
    ★ 4.9 365 reviews Score 188 -1
    11.3 behind
    5★ 331 4★ 29 2★ 2 1★ 3

    City Dentists attracts patients who stay for decades, with dentists Chris, Kamil, Alice, and Kristen each building long-running relationships through plain-English explanations and conservative, no-upsell treatment decisions. Anxious patients who avoided dental care for years, sometimes over a decade, describe leaving appointments calm and genuinely willing to return.

    Best for

    Long-term patients who want consistent, trusted dentists

    • ✓ Dentists explain procedures in plain language before starting work
    • ✓ Nervous and lapsed patients treated without pressure or judgment
    • ✓ Multiple dentists available including Chris, Kamil, Alice, and Kristen

    119/123 Featherston Street, Wellington Central, Wellington Mon 7am–8pm · Tue 7am–4pm · Wed 7am–8pm · Thu–Fri 7am–4pm · Sat–Sun Closed

    Website 04 978 4964 Map Profile
  • 4

    Dental care centre Lower Hutt

    ★ 4.9 611 reviews Score 181
    17.7 behind
    5★ 594 4★ 7 3★ 1 2★ 1 1★ 8

    Dental Care Centre Lower Hutt walks new patients through every available treatment option, including costs, before any work begins, with Dr Ali and Khilood consistently noted for patient-led decision-making across consultations, extractions, and cleans.

    29 Waterloo Road, Hutt Central, Lower Hutt

    Call 04 589 9499 Map Is this your business?
  • 5

    Newtown Dental

    ↓ 1
    ★ 4.6 496 reviews +1 Score 178 -1
    21.3 behind
    5★ 441 4★ 10 3★ 4 2★ 7 1★ 34

    Newtown Dental takes on wisdom tooth extractions, impacted teeth, and emergency dental work that other Wellington practices have turned away, including cases referred to oral surgeons elsewhere.

    Lychgate Centre Level 1/100 Riddiford Street, Newtown, Wellington

    Call 04 389 3808 Map Is this your business?

More rankings

More services in Wellington 7 links
Dentists elsewhere in New Zealand 5 links

Before you choose a dentist in Wellington

Dental fees in NZ are unregulated and vary widely between practices, so the same treatment can cost very differently across town. Ask for a written treatment plan with itemised costs before agreeing to anything, check whether the dentist is registered with the Dental Council of New Zealand, and ask how after-hours emergencies are handled.

The questions below are drawn from 455 customer reviews collected for this page.

What does dental treatment typically cost in New Zealand?

Adult dental care in New Zealand is largely user-pays, with fees unregulated and varying between practices. A standard check-up and clean runs between $100 and $250, while a basic filling costs roughly $150 to $400 depending on size and material.

Crowns range from $1,500 to $2,500 or more, and root canals sit in a similar bracket, with one Wellington clinic charging around $1,800 for a single tooth. Children under 18 receive free basic dental care through the Community Dental Service or an enrolled private provider, and Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ) offers emergency dental grants for adults in financial hardship who need urgent treatment.

How do I check that a dentist is registered and what to do if something goes wrong?

Every practising dentist in New Zealand must hold a current annual practising certificate issued by the Dental Council of New Zealand (DCNZ), which is the statutory body that registers and regulates dentists, dental specialists, hygienists, dental therapists, and clinical dental technicians. You can confirm registration for free by searching the public register at dentalcouncil.org.nz before booking, and it is worth doing this as a routine step rather than assuming all advertised practitioners are registered.

Dental hygienists and therapists appear on the same register but hold different scopes of practice to dentists, so check the role as well as the name. If something goes wrong, you can lodge a formal complaint with the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC), which investigates breaches of patient rights under the Health and Disability Commissioner Act 1994, or raise concerns directly with the Dental Council of New Zealand, which can impose conditions, suspend, or remove a dentist's registration.

How do I avoid being sold treatment I do not need?

Ask for a written treatment plan that lists each item, the cost, and at least one alternative, including the option of monitoring rather than treating immediately, before you agree to anything. Reviewers who felt most confident in their care noted that dentists explained the reasoning behind each recommendation and did not push for a decision on the spot, which is the standard you should expect.

X-rays and photographs that show you the problem directly are a reasonable thing to request, because they let you see what the dentist sees rather than taking the diagnosis on trust. A second opinion is sensible for any proposed treatment costing more than a few hundred dollars or involving a crown, root canal, or extraction, and a good dentist will not object to you seeking one.

What are the warning signs of a dental practice you should avoid?
  • –Prices quoted verbally over the phone or at reception that differ significantly from the final bill, with no written itemised estimate provided beforehand.
  • –Pressure to commit to expensive procedures, such as crowns or root canals, during the first appointment without time to consider options or seek a second opinion.
  • –Poor follow-up when a treatment fails or causes ongoing pain, including unanswered calls, delayed callbacks from management, or offers of only partial refunds on work that was performed incorrectly.
  • –Mismatched appointment bookings where the time allocated does not match the procedure requested, leaving the dentist unable to complete the work in a single visit.
  • –Rude or dismissive behaviour from a dentist during treatment, particularly if concerns raised mid-procedure are ignored or patients are made to feel a burden.
  • –Admin errors affecting critical paperwork, such as ACC claims being missed during submission, which can delay treatment and cause significant frustration.
What should you ask before booking a dentist?
  • –Ask for the exact cost of an initial consultation and any x-rays taken at that visit, since some practices charge separately for each x-ray and the total can exceed the consultation fee.
  • –Confirm whether the practice will provide a written treatment plan with itemised costs and alternatives before any work begins, so you are not asked to decide under pressure in the chair.
  • –Ask how after-hours or weekend emergencies are handled, as some Wellington practices operate seven days a week while others require you to find urgent care elsewhere.
  • –Find out whether you will see the same dentist at each visit, because continuity of care matters when managing ongoing treatment or complex dental history.
  • –Ask directly how the practice supports nervous or anxious patients, including whether sedation is available and how much notice is required to arrange it.
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About this ranking

What the 10 dentists listed above hold, at the 22 October 2026 check.

991
reviews held by the #1 ranked business
496
reviews held by the #5 ranked business
4.6
lowest rating among the 10 listed
1.7%
of their 4,885 reviews are one-star

We first assessed dentists in Wellington in June 2026 and have rechecked the ranking four times since. Johnsonville Dental Centre has held first place at every check, and Wellington Dentists Ltd, City Dentists and Newtown Dental have been in the top 5 alongside it throughout.

What has changed since June 2026?
Oct 2026

Dental care centre Lower Hutt entered the top 5 at #4. Supreme Dental Concepts left the top 5, down to #7. Central Hutt Dental, Supreme Dental Concepts and Switch Dental Lower Hutt entered the list.

Aug 2026

Lumino The Terrace Dental Practice | Lumino The Dentists entered the list at #9.

Jun 2026

First check. Johnsonville Dental Centre #1.

We updated the scoring method in July and September 2026. See what changed.

Months where nothing changed at the top are not listed.

How are the top dentists in Wellington chosen?

We build this page from Google Maps results for dentists in Wellington. Each one is scored on its public rating and review record, using the same published method on every page. Businesses outside the area, or whose reviews describe a different line of work, are left out. Every category and city is rechecked on a rolling cycle, about every two to three months. See how we rank for how rankings are made and who is left out.

Are you a dentist in Wellington?

No business can pay for a place in these rankings. Claiming and verifying your listing is free: it adds a small trust bonus (+3 points) to your score, for confirming a real operator stands behind the listing, and gives you a dashboard showing how your score is made up. A paid subscription adds a website link, a profile page and your ranking history. Claim your listing or see what a subscription includes.

Not listed? The usual reasons are a Google Business category that does not match, too few reviews to score near the top, or an address outside the area we cover. Check where you rank first, and if you think we missed you, get in touch.

How far is each one from you?

Type your suburb or use your location, and we'll show the distance on every card. The order stays the same.