We found no dental implant service run by Boots itself. Boots had a chain of private dental practices, Boots Dentalcare, but it announced its exit from dentistry in 2004. Today, the clearest link between Boots and implants is a clinic inside the Boots store on Market Street in Manchester, which the CQC lists as run by Portman Healthcare Limited. This page explains what happened to Boots Dentalcare, what that Manchester clinic is, and where to look instead if you want implants from a high-street dental group.
Did Boots ever offer dental treatment?
Yes. Boots ran its own dental practices under the name Boots Dentalcare. A 2002 British Dental Journal article describes Boots Dentalcare as part of Boots the Chemists, with its head office on the Boots site in Nottingham.
The chain did not last. LaingBuisson reported on 30th September 2004 that Boots had announced plans to cease trading in peripheral businesses including dentistry. A report in Australasian Dental Practice said Boots was divesting its chain of 54 dental practices in the UK following substantial operating losses, that the chain of non-NHS practices had been operating since 1999, and that Boots Group PLC reached agreement to sell the businesses to Optical Express.
So any article that quotes Boots Dentalcare implant prices or a current number of Boots dental practices is describing something that no longer exists.
Is there a dental implant clinic inside a Boots store?
There is at least one. The CQC lists Arndale Dental & Implant Clinic – Boots Manchester at the 2nd floor, Boots Store, 32 Market Street, Manchester, M1 1PW. The provider is Portman Healthcare Limited, part of the PortmanDentex group. The CQC says the service was registered on 31 July 2023 and that it has not inspected this service yet.
| Detail | What the CQC record shows |
|---|---|
| Name | Arndale Dental & Implant Clinic – Boots Manchester |
| Address | 2nd floor, Boots Store, 32 Market Street, Manchester, M1 1PW |
| Provider | Portman Healthcare Limited |
| Registered with CQC | 31 July 2023 |
| Inspection | Not inspected yet |
The clinic appears on the CQC list of services run by Portman Healthcare Limited, alongside many other Portman practices. It is a Portman practice that happens to be in a Boots building. Boots does not run it. For what Portman practices charge for implants, see our Portman Dental Care implants review. For other Manchester clinics and their published prices, see our Manchester implant cost guide.
Where to look instead of Boots
If you liked the idea of a well-known high-street name, these are the large UK dental groups we have reviewed. Each review sets out what the group itself publishes and what it does not.
- mydentist dental implants review
- Bupa dental implants review
- Portman Dental Care implants review
- Nuffield Health dental implants review
Or compare independent clinics near you: our UK dental implant cost guide links to city pages that list published implant prices clinic by clinic.
Can you get implants on the NHS instead?
Rarely. The NHS says implants are usually only available privately and are expensive. It says that, although it is rare, implants are sometimes available on the NHS for patients who cannot wear dentures for certain reasons, such as mouth cancer or an accident.
How to check any implant clinic, wherever it is
| Check | Where | What to look for |
|---|---|---|
| Dentist registration | GDC online register | Search the name of the dentist who will place the implant. |
| Specialist title | GDC specialist lists | Only dentists on a specialist list can use the title “specialist”. |
| Practice inspection | CQC find a dentist | The latest report, if any. The CQC inspects 10% of dentists in England each year and does not rate them. |
| Treatment plan | GDC standards | A written treatment plan with a realistic indication of the cost before treatment starts. |
Before you commit, ask which implant brand will be used. Our implant brand comparison explains why that matters for repairs later on.
Frequently asked questions
Does Boots do dental implants?
No. We found no dental implant service run by Boots. Boots announced its exit from dentistry in 2004 and agreed to sell its Boots Dentalcare practices to Optical Express.
What happened to Boots Dentalcare?
Boots announced in 2004 that it would stop trading in peripheral businesses including dentistry. Reports at the time described a chain of 54 non-NHS practices that had been operating since 1999, and an agreement to sell the businesses to Optical Express.
Is there a dentist inside Boots in Manchester?
Yes. The CQC lists Arndale Dental & Implant Clinic – Boots Manchester on the 2nd floor of the Boots store at 32 Market Street, run by Portman Healthcare Limited. It was registered in July 2023 and had not been inspected when we checked.
Is the Boots Manchester dental clinic run by Boots?
No. The CQC names Portman Healthcare Limited as the provider. It is a Portman practice located inside a Boots store.
Where can I compare implant prices instead?
Our city pages list published implant prices clinic by clinic, and our reviews of mydentist, Bupa, Portman Dental Care and Nuffield Health explain what each group publishes.