How it works
MyLocalDentists.co.uk is free for you. Three steps from a problem to a dentist you chose yourself, with no sales calls.
Search by treatment and place
Choose the treatment, such as a check-up or an emergency appointment, and type your town or postcode. You get the practices in the nearest town we cover, ranked by verified patient review score, then by distance from the middle of that town's listed practices. No one pays to rank higher; featured listings are paid and shown in their own labelled block above that list. When a town has more than three, they take turns in that block day by day, and on other days sit in the list where their reviews place them.
Check the profile
Every practice listed was on the Care Quality Commission register when its details were read, and its profile shows that date. Treatments, fees and opening times appear once the practice adds them; reviews appear once verified patients leave them.
Contact one practice
Call the practice, or send one enquiry if its profile offers that. An enquiry goes to that practice only. We never sell your details or pass them to anyone else.
What we promise
No paid placement in the ranked list
Order is verified patient review score. A featured listing buys a share of a slot that is labelled as featured, above that list; it never changes the organic order. A Featured practice not in today's slot sits in the list where its reviews place it.
From the CQC register
Every practice listed was on the Care Quality Commission register of dental services when its details were read from that register, and its profile shows that date. Unclaimed listings are labelled, and any practice can ask us to remove its listing.
Verified reviews only
We ask the practice to confirm the reviewer was a patient. It does not see what the review says until it is published. Practices can never edit or remove it.
Your details stay yours
An enquiry goes to one practice, the one you chose. No lead selling, no follow-up calls from strangers.
How to choose a dentist
Start with what you need. A routine check-up can go to any nearby practice taking patients; braces, implants or a root canal are worth comparing more carefully. Then look at four things on each profile: the treatments the practice says it offers, the fees it publishes, its register details, and what verified patientssay.
Ring two or three practices before you decide. Ask whether the appointment would be NHS or private, which dentist you would see, and how soon they can fit you in. For anything beyond a check-up, ask for a written treatment plan with the cost before work starts.
How do I check a dentist is registered?
Search the dentist's name on the General Dental Council register at gdc-uk.org; every dentist working in the UK must be on it. In England you can also read the practice's inspection reports on the Care Quality Commission website.
How are reviews checked?
First the reviewer confirms their email address. Then, if the practice has claimed its listing, we ask it to confirm the reviewer was a patient, showing it only the month of the visit and the date the review was written, never the treatment or what the review says. If it has not claimed its listing, or does not answer within 14 days, a moderator checks instead. If the practice disputes the review, it stays unpublished while a moderator checks it. Once the review is live, the practice cannot edit or remove it.
Do I need an account to contact a practice?
No. Call the practice, or send one enquiry from its profile if it offers that, without creating an account. The enquiry goes to that practice and no other. We keep a copy to check it was delivered, and we never sell your details.
What if something goes wrong with my treatment?
Raise it with the practice first. The General Dental Council says every NHS and private practice must have a formal complaints procedure. If that does not settle it, our guide on how to complain about a dentist explains where to go next for NHS and for private care.
Read more: how to complain about a dentist; GDC: how to make a complaint or get a refund.
Before your appointment
Every dentist working in the UK must be registered with the General Dental Council, and you can look a dentist up by name on the GDC register. In England the practice itself is registered with and inspected by the Care Quality Commission, which publishes its reports. For what NHS treatment costs, see NHS dental charges in England.
Ready? Find a dentist or browse by treatment. Run a practice? See what a listing costs.