Dental Lab Price List Template: Tiers, Rush Fees and AI Fee Notes

Structure a dental lab price list as product families with material tiers, add-on lines kept separate, a published rush surcharge tied to turnaround days, and written remake rules by cause. Then use AI to turn each decision into a one-or-two-sentence fee note for dentists. You choose the numbers; the assistant explains them.

Most free price list templates give you a blank table: item, price. The queries from dentists don't come from the table. They come from the lines nobody explained: why this crown costs more than that one, what "rush" means, who pays when a case is remade. The aim here is a price list that answers those questions before they are asked.

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Group products into families and tiers

Start with the families you actually make: single crowns, bridges, veneers, removable work, implant components, appliances. Within a family, tiers separate by material or complexity. Tiers make a list readable, and they let you raise one tier without rewriting everything. Use plain names, since dentists skim; keep the same names on the price list, invoice and case record.

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All of these are illustrative, so replace them with your own. A good test for a tier: could a dentist describe the difference between two tiers to a colleague in one sentence? If not, merge them or rename them.

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Keep add-ons and extras on separate lines

Things that vary from case to case should not be baked into a base price. Common add-on lines: a custom shade or characterisation, a study model, a surgical guide, an implant abutment, a digital design fee for a scan you have to repair, a courier collection fee for out-of-schedule pickup. Show each as its own line with its own price. A single blended price looks simple but hides what a dentist is paying for, so every query lands as a dispute.

Work out rush fees from what a rush really costs

A rush fee should repay the lab for the disruption, and the surest way to set one is to cost the disruption. Here is an illustration with stated assumptions.

• Assumption 1: bench labour and overhead cost $1.20 a minute.
• Assumption 2: a standard crown takes 70 minutes of hands-on time across the stages. A rush case does not change those minutes, but it jumps the queue and causes about 35 minutes of re-sequencing, overtime or lost batching, shorter-notice courier or all of these.
• Assumption 3: a very short turnaround causes about twice that disruption.

Rush with 4 to 5 working days: 35 minutes at $1.20 is $42, so a 25% surcharge on a $165 crown ($41.25) is about right; round it to $40. Rush with 2 to 3 working days: 70 minutes at $1.20 is $84; 50% of $165 is $82.50; round to $80. Next-day work is not offered, because it could not be done without cancelling a case already in progress.

This lab then turns the percentages into flat per-unit amounts, because a flat figure is easier to quote on the phone and to check on an invoice. A lab whose products run from $75 night guards to $280 dentures might keep percentages instead: a flat $40 on a night guard is more than half its price, which is hard to defend when the disruption is the same.

Define the days precisely: "working days from the day the case is received, excluding the receipt day, and counting only days the lab is open". Say whether rush is accepted only by prior agreement, and say what happens if the case arrives incomplete (the clock starts when the missing item arrives). Imprecise rush rules are the commonest cause of fee arguments. The case tracking template computes due dates by working days with a lookup, so the same turnaround table can drive both documents.

Write remake rules by cause, not by mood

Remakes are where goodwill is won or lost, and a vague rule leaves every case to a judgement call. Write the policy as a short table with the cause, what the lab does and what the dentist is charged.

The percentages are examples and the policy is yours to set. Two things make such a table work: you apply it equally, and the remake and the credit are recorded in the same place, so they reach the statement. The quality control checklist and remake log holds the record, and the invoice template with statements and chasers shows how a credit appears on the dentist's account.

Turn each rule into a plain-English fee note

This is where AI earns its place. A fee note is one or two sentences beside a line on the list that says what the fee is and why. Writing 25 of them by hand takes an afternoon and ends up inconsistent; an assistant drafts the set in minutes and you edit.

I run a dental laboratory. Write a plain-English fee note for each item below, one or two sentences each, addressed to a dentist. Rules: use only the facts I give; no sales language; no promises about quality or fit; do not use the words "premium service". State what is included and what is charged separately.

1. Rush (4 to 5 working days): surcharge of $40 per unit on top of the product price. Working days count from the day after receipt, only days the lab is open. Rush is by prior agreement. If the case arrives incomplete the clock starts when the missing item arrives.
2. Urgent (2 to 3 working days): surcharge of $80 per unit; same rules as rush.
3. Remake for lab fault: remade with priority at no charge; original credited in full.
4. Remake after a prescription change: the new item is charged at the standard price and the original at 50%.
5. Custom shade or characterisation: $25 per unit, added as a separate line.

An illustrative result for note 1: "A rush case is made in 4 to 5 working days instead of 8, for a surcharge of $40 per unit. Days count from the day after we receive the case. Please agree rush with us before you send it, because we plan the bench a day ahead." Look at what to fix. The last sentence is invented: the prompt never said the lab plans the bench a day ahead, and the assistant added a plausible reason. Delete or confirm any "because" clause the model supplies. Read for numbers, too, since "50%" turning into "half" is fine but "50%" turning into "a third" is not.

Before and after for an unclear line

Before, on the price list: "Rush: +25%". After: "Rush (4 to 5 working days): $40 per unit. Please agree it with us first." The second version is longer by eight words and answers the three questions that would otherwise come by phone: how fast, how much and whose permission.

A crown price rise worked through with stated assumptions

Say a lab makes 400 standard zirconia crowns a month at $165, with 8% of them rush at 4 to 5 days. Over the past year its costs have risen by about 5%, which it wants to pass on in part: raise the base crown price to $172. All numbers are illustrative.

• Base revenue before: 400 x $165 = $66,000 a month.
• Base revenue after: 400 x $172 = $68,800, an increase of $2,800 a month.
• Rush cases: 8% of 400 is 32 cases a month. The surcharge was $40; keep it at $40. Rush income is 32 x $40 = $1,280 a month, unchanged.
• Rush cost check: at the old $1.20 a minute, 32 cases x $42 of disruption is $1,344, already a little more than the $1,280 the surcharge brings in. With costs up about 5%, the disruption is nearer $44 a case, so the gap widens, which suggests raising the surcharge to $45 next time. The decision is the owner's, and the assistant's only job is to show the sum.

A $7 rise is 4.2% on the crown. If the lab thought in terms of 5%, it can see it is passing on slightly less than the rise in costs, which is a defensible choice for a competitive family but worth knowing. For comparison, a car detailing price list with packages and add-ons and a plumbing flat-rate price list do the same line-by-line costing for other trades.

Add-ons, minimums and delivery on a filled-in extras table

Extras are where small amounts add up and where dentists feel surprised, so give them their own table with the rule beside each price. Here is an illustrative set:

A line with its rule beside it needs far less explanation later. Ask an assistant to check the table for ambiguity before you publish. Paste the list and ask: "Read this as a dentist who has never used our lab. List every line where you cannot tell what is charged or when." A typical response flags "Scan repair: does 'cannot be used' mean we told them or they found out?" and "Minimum invoice: does it apply per case or per invoice?" Fixing those two lines costs five minutes and saves a month of queries.

Volume tiers and account rates

Some labs give larger accounts a lower rate. If you do, set the rule by something countable, such as units a month, not by who you like. Illustration: standard list for accounts under 20 units a month; 3% off the list at 20 to 49 units; 5% off at 50 or more, reviewed each quarter. State it in the account terms, and keep rush and remake rules the same for every tier, because those apply to everyone.

Do the sum on what the tier costs. A practice sending 60 crowns a month at $165 pays $9,900. At 5% off the list, that is $495 a month lower, or $5,940 a year. Compare it with the cost of winning a replacement account (a trial case, outreach time, remakes while you learn their preferences) before you decide the discount is too deep. The assistant can lay out the comparison as a table, but the decision is a business one.

Add a new product without breaking the list

Say the lab starts making sleep apnoea appliances. A new product needs the same five facts as the rest: family, tier, turnaround, price and any add-ons. Add it to the master list with a new version date, give it a fee note, and add the turnaround to the due-date table. A short prompt turns the facts into a note: "Write a two-sentence fee note for a custom-made mandibular advancement appliance, $320, 10 working days, no rush offered. Include that the dentist supplies the bite registration. Use only these facts." Check the output does not say anything clinical, since claims about what an appliance treats belong with the clinician, not in a lab's price note.

A dentist-facing guide to reading the list

Many questions would not arrive if the list came with a half-page guide. Draft one with the assistant from your rules, covering how turnaround is counted, how to ask for rush, what to do if a case is remade, how credits appear on statements and who to contact. Keep it to four short paragraphs, and put it on the back of the list. Example paragraph: "Turnaround is counted in working days, starting the day after we receive your case. If your case arrives with a missing item, we will tell you the same day and the count starts when the item arrives." That sentence prevents the most common rush dispute without a single phone call.

The change-notice email, drafted and checked

When prices change, a short email to every account should say who is affected, what changes, when, and what stays the same. Include a before-and-after table in the email body, because dentists scan for their own products.

Write a 130-word email from a dental laboratory to all dentist accounts. Prices change on [date]. Say: cases received before that date keep the current price; zirconia crown moves from $165 to $172; layered ceramic crown moves from $215 to $225; all other prices are unchanged; rush and remake rules are unchanged and are on the attached list. Tone: courteous and direct. Do not apologise, do not use the word "unfortunately", do not blame suppliers. Offer to talk through the list on request. Sign as [your name], [lab name].

An illustrative output: "Hello Dr [surname], from [date], two prices on our list change. Zirconia crown moves from $165 to $172 and layered ceramic crown from $215 to $225. Everything else is unchanged, including our rush and remake rules, which are on the attached list. Any case we receive before [date] keeps the current price. If you'd like to talk through the list, reply here or call. [your name], [lab name]". What to fix: nothing structural, but confirm the effective date and that the notice period meets what your account terms promise, typically around 30 days. If the assistant adds "we value your partnership", cut it unless it reads as true.

How the price list connects to everything else

The list should be the single source for four other documents: the invoice line descriptions, the due-date table in the tracking sheet, the trial-case offer and the dentist welcome pack. If any of these use different wording from the list, queries follow. Keep one master file with a "last reviewed" date, restrict who can edit it, and regenerate the others from it. For outreach to new dentists, the outreach tutorial uses the same list as the trial offer.

Where price lists go wrong

A realistic mistake and how it showed up

A lab updates its crown price on the list but forgets the invoicing template, which still carries the old figure. For three weeks, invoices go out at $165 while the list says $172, and the difference, about $7 a crown across 400 crowns, is $2,800 a month that nobody notices until a dentist forwards the new list and asks which one is right. The cure is a rule in the review checklist: any price change is made in the master file first, and the invoice template, tracking table and welcome pack are updated from it on the same day, with a named person ticking each off.

"From" prices. A list headed "from $165" invites the dentist to assume $165 is the price for their case. If you use "from", show what moves the price on the same line.

Calendar days versus working days. A dentist reading "5 days" as calendar days will think you are late. Write "working days" every time.

Rules in the head of one person. If the owner decides remakes by instinct, the list says nothing and staff cannot answer queries. Write it down.

AI explanations that sound confident and add facts. The fee note says "to keep the bench running smoothly" or similar, which is harmless; the dangerous ones say "we guarantee" or "this ensures". Search each draft for those words.

Stale copies. Dentists keep printed lists for years. Put the version date on every page and say that the newest list overrides the others.

Check the new list in use

1. Count queries about fees and rush in the first two months. The same question twice means a note needs rewording.
2. Pick 10 invoices and check every line against the list wording and price. Any mismatch is either a list error or an invoicing error; fix the cause.
3. Compare rush volume before and after. If rush is the norm for some practices, discuss their planning rather than only charging.
4. Check remakes against the policy table: every remake has a cause category, a decision and a credit if applicable.
5. Read the fee notes once more with a fresh eye after a month. Any that you have been explaining by phone need to say more.

If you'd rather go through the list with someone, that is what my AI implementation consultation is for: finding which parts of pricing and fee explanation are worth drafting with AI and which stay in your head.

Questions about lab price lists

Should a dental lab publish its prices or share them on request?

Sharing the list with every account and prospect avoids arguments, and a list that dentists can see makes your rush and remake rules easier to enforce. Some labs keep tiered contract rates private. Whatever you choose, apply the same rule to every dentist in the same tier.

How much should a rush fee be?

There is no standard. Base it on what a rush actually costs you: bench time displaced, overtime, courier cost. Many labs use a percentage of the product price that rises as the shorter turnaround bites. Work out your own cost first, then pick tidy percentages.

Who pays for a remake?

That depends on the cause, so write the rules by cause: lab fault, changed prescription, or an input the lab could not work with. State what happens in each case, and apply them consistently. Disputes drop once dentists can read the rule before sending a case.

How much notice should a price change get?

Thirty days is common practice for account customers, and your terms may say more. Give a clear effective date, say which products change and by how much, and state that cases received before the date keep the old price.

Can AI set my prices?

No. It can reformat tables, check arithmetic and draft explanations, but it cannot see your costs or your market. Feed it your decisions and ask it to explain them in plain wording, then check every number in the output.

Further reads

• Makeup Artist Price List Template: Build Bridal Rates With AI — Tiered packages and add-ons for a service business.
• How to Write a Salon Service Menu and Price List With AI — A service-menu take on price lists for another trade.
• Dry Cleaning Price List Template: Build It With AI and Check Margins — Checking margins line by line on a price list.
• Plumbers AI: Turn Supplier Price Lists Into a Parts Markup Sheet — Turning supplier prices into a markup sheet.
• Dental Fee Schedule: Set Fees and Explain Them to Patients With AI — The practice-side view of setting and explaining fees.
• How to Read AI Software Pricing: Seats, Credits, and Usage Fees — Spot hidden usage fees in tools you use to draft the notes.
• Dental Lab Communication: AI Replies on Turnaround and Remakes — Draft status, turnaround and remake replies from your case data and policy sheet, with hand-off rules and tracking links for a dental lab.
• AI Tools and AI Development: The Complete 2026 Guide — the AI hub, including every tutorial in the AI-for-business series.

Sources: general pricing practice and illustrative figures with stated assumptions; no vendor pricing is quoted. Replace every number with your own costs and check the notice requirements in your account terms.