All over the country, people are looking for affordable dental insurance, so that they can get the dental treatment they need without having to pay an arm and a leg for it. Since dental insurance coverage isn’t included on many health insurance plans, it’s something that many people for are having to shop for on their own.

But if you’re not an insurance whiz, how do you know if you’re truly finding “affordable” dental insurance? After all, there are so many websites out there that promise to have the best coverage at the lowest rates!

When you start shopping for affordable dental insurance, look for these 3 things:

1.Family dental insurance

If you need affordable dental insurance, then your wife and kids probably do, too. Instead of getting a bunch of individual policies, you can save some money by teaming up and getting family dental insurance. In most cases, family plans come with cheaper monthly premiums than you would get in an individual plan. And, as an added benefit, you don’t have to worry about keeping tabs on 4 or 5 different insurance policies!

2.An individual dental PPO plan

If you’re just shopping for insurance for yourself, you can save money by signing up for an individual dental PPO plan. In fact, PPO’s offer some of the cheapest coverage out there.

How?

When you have an individual dental PPO plan, you have to choose a dentist from an approved list of providers. In order to get on that list, the dentists have to agree to perform services and render treatment at a reduced rate.

Since the insurance company gets to save some money on your trips to the dentist, they can pass the savings onto you – in the form of lower monthly premium payments and, in some cases, lower deductible amounts.

3.Discount dental insurance coverage

While a discount plan doesn’t work like the traditional insurance policies do, it’s still a good way to save yourself some money. With discount dental insurance coverage, you do not have to pay any monthly premiums. Instead, you will pay a small annual fee. In exchange, you will have to pay a larger chunk of the bill for your services and treatments.

So, how does that save you money?

When you sign up for discount dental insurance coverage, you will get a card that entitles you to discounted rates whenever you go to the dentist. You may be able to get 50% off of your routine cleanings or 70% off on your x-ray costs.

And, unlike a traditional individual dental PPO plan, you don’t have to worry about meeting any deductibles in a discount plan – meaning that your savings can start immediately!