Emergency Dentist on the NHS: How to Get Urgent Care Today
Reviewed and updated 12 August 2026 · By the DentistTracker team
To see an emergency dentist on the NHS, phone your own dental practice first and ask for an urgent appointment. If you do not have a dentist, call NHS 111 or use 111 online, which runs 24 hours a day — an adviser will assess your symptoms and can book you into an urgent dental care service. According to the NHS website, you should be offered urgent dental treatment within 24 hours or 7 days depending on your symptoms, and in England it costs a flat £27.90, or nothing if you qualify for free treatment.
Looking for a dentist? We track which NHS practices are accepting new patients in every English town, using daily-checked NHS data — check your town now.
What counts as a dental emergency?
There are three levels, and each has a different route to care. A true emergency means A&E or 999: serious injury to your face or jaw, heavy bleeding from your mouth that will not stop, or severe swelling that makes it hard to breathe or swallow, or that stops you opening one or both eyes. An urgent problem needs a dentist quickly but is not life-threatening. A routine problem — a check-up, mild sensitivity — can wait for a normal appointment.
According to the NHS website, problems that need urgent dental care include:
- a knocked-out tooth or other injury to your teeth
- severe tooth or mouth pain that painkillers do not help, or that stops you sleeping or getting on with daily life
- a swelling, lump or patch inside your mouth that is getting bigger or does not go away
- bleeding or severe pain after having a tooth removed
- a broken or loose filling, denture, crown, bridge or veneer
The NHS says urgent treatment should be offered within 24 hours or 7 days depending on your symptoms, and that a knocked-out adult tooth needs attention within 1 hour, or as soon as possible.
If you have a regular dentist: ask for an urgent appointment
Phone your practice as soon as it opens and say you need an urgent appointment, describing your symptoms clearly — severe pain, swelling, bleeding or a damaged tooth. Urgent cases are handled differently from routine bookings, so do not simply accept the next routine slot if you are in real pain. If the practice is closed, its answerphone message may tell you what to do out of hours; if not, or you cannot get through, use NHS 111.
No dentist? Use NHS 111
You do not need to be registered with a dentist to get urgent NHS dental care. Call 111 free of charge, or use 111 online at any time of day or night. An adviser will assess your symptoms, and if you need urgent treatment they can make you an appointment at an urgent dental care service — sometimes called an urgent dental hub — or point you to the right local service.
These appointments deal with the immediate problem rather than a full course of treatment. According to the NHS website, urgent treatment can include an examination and X-rays, dressings, draining an abscess, one urgent filling, emergency partial root canal treatment, removing up to 2 teeth, and management of knocked-out teeth.
If you are then stuck finding any practice that will take you on, our guide to what to do when no NHS dentist is available works through every fallback option.
Is there a 24-hour emergency dentist near me on the NHS?
Not in the way many people hope. There is no national network of walk-in, round-the-clock NHS dental surgeries. What does run 24 hours a day is NHS 111 — online and by phone — and it is the front door to out-of-hours care. Many areas have evening, weekend and bank-holiday urgent dental clinics, but you normally reach them through 111 rather than by turning up.
If severe symptoms start overnight, use 111 online first. If you have any of the red-flag symptoms below — swelling affecting your breathing or swallowing, bleeding that will not stop, serious facial injury — do not wait for a dentist. Go to A&E or call 999.
How much does an emergency NHS dentist cost?
In England, urgent NHS dental treatment costs a flat £27.90 at the rates that apply from 1 April 2026. That single charge covers the urgent work needed to sort the immediate problem. If you need follow-up work later — a permanent crown after an emergency dressing, say — that is a new course of treatment charged at the normal NHS dental bands of £27.90, £76.60 or £332.10.
Urgent treatment is free if you are exempt from NHS dental charges — for example if you are under 18, pregnant or have had a baby in the last 12 months, or receive certain benefits. Our guide to free NHS dental treatment lists every exemption, so check before you pay.
Be careful when phoning around. Some practices advertising emergency appointments are offering private slots, where the fee is set by the practice and can be several times the NHS urgent charge before any treatment costs are added. Always ask whether an appointment is NHS or private, and what it will cost, before you book.
When to go to A&E or call 999
A&E does not offer dental treatment such as fillings or extractions — it is for emergencies that involve serious injury, uncontrolled bleeding or a threat to your airway. According to the NHS website, go to A&E if you have:
- serious injuries to your face or jaw
- heavy bleeding from your mouth that will not stop
- severe swelling of your mouth, lips, throat or neck, when you’re also having difficulty breathing or opening one or both eyes
- a head or face injury followed by loss of consciousness, vomiting or double vision
If swelling is affecting your breathing or swallowing and you cannot get to A&E safely, call 999.
Knocked-out tooth: what to do in the first hour
A knocked-out adult tooth can often be saved if you act fast. The NHS advice is:
- Pick the tooth up by the crown — the white part — and do not touch the root.
- If it is dirty, rinse it gently in milk, saline or your own saliva.
- If you can, push it gently back into its socket and bite down softly on a clean cloth to hold it in place.
- If you cannot put it back, store it in milk or saliva and get to a dentist as soon as possible.
Never try to put a baby tooth back in — it could damage the tooth growing underneath. Seek an emergency dental appointment for any knocked-out tooth, even if you cannot find it. If your own practice cannot see you quickly, call 111.
Dental abscess: the warning signs
A dental abscess is a build-up of pus in the teeth or gums caused by an infection, and the NHS is clear that it will not go away on its own. Contact a dentist or NHS 111 rather than your GP surgery, which cannot provide dental care. Symptoms include intense toothache or gum pain, redness inside or outside your mouth, sensitivity to hot or cold, a bad taste, difficulty opening your mouth or chewing, a swollen face or jaw, swollen neck glands and a high temperature.
Go straight to A&E if you have difficulty breathing, speaking or swallowing, a swollen or painful eye, or sudden problems with your eyesight. While you wait to be seen, a pharmacist can advise on painkillers such as paracetamol or ibuprofen.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
The steps above describe England, and the other UK nations work slightly differently. In Scotland, contact your own practice in the daytime; out of hours, phone 111 to reach the emergency dental service — NHS inform explains the arrangements. In Wales, contact your practice, or phone 111 for advice; if you do not have a dentist, your local health board runs a dental helpline that can arrange urgent care — NHS 111 Wales lists the numbers. In Northern Ireland, contact your practice in opening hours; at weekends and on bank holidays, emergency dental clinics treat dental pain, swelling or bleeding — details are on nidirect. Dental charges also differ outside England.
After the emergency: find a regular NHS dentist
An urgent appointment fixes the immediate problem, but it does not give you ongoing care — for that you need a practice currently taking NHS patients. DentistTracker checks the NHS website daily and lists NHS dentists accepting new patients town by town, so you can see who to call instead of working down a phone list. Once you have found one, our guide to registering with an NHS dentist explains how to get on the books before the next problem becomes an emergency.
Frequently asked questions
Can I call 111 for an emergency dentist?
Yes. Call 111 or use 111 online at any time, day or night. An adviser will assess your symptoms and, if you need urgent treatment, can book you an appointment at an urgent dental care service or direct you to a local clinic. You do not need to be registered with a dentist, and the NHS says urgent treatment should be offered within 24 hours or 7 days depending on your symptoms.
How much does an emergency dentist cost on the NHS?
In England, urgent NHS dental treatment costs a flat £27.90 at the rates from 1 April 2026. It is free if you are exempt — for example under-18s, women who are pregnant or have had a baby in the past 12 months, and people on certain benefits. Any follow-up work is a separate course of treatment charged at the normal bands of £27.90, £76.60 or £332.10. Private emergency appointments cost more, so check which you are booking.
Is there a 24-hour emergency dentist on the NHS?
There is no national network of 24-hour NHS dental surgeries, but NHS 111 runs around the clock, online and by phone, and is the route into out-of-hours urgent dental care. Many areas have evening, weekend and bank-holiday clinics that 111 can book you into. For severe swelling affecting your breathing, swallowing or eyes, bleeding that will not stop, or serious facial injury, go to A&E or call 999 instead of waiting.
Will A&E treat a toothache?
No. A&E does not provide dental treatment such as fillings or extractions, and the NHS advises that GP surgeries cannot provide dental care either. Toothache needs a dentist: contact your practice or NHS 111 for an urgent appointment. A&E is the right place for serious facial injuries, heavy bleeding from the mouth that will not stop, or severe swelling of the mouth, lips, throat or neck that makes it difficult to breathe, swallow or open one or both eyes.
What should I do if my tooth gets knocked out?
Hold the tooth by the crown, not the root. If it is dirty, rinse it gently in milk, saline or saliva. Try to place an adult tooth back into its socket and bite gently on a clean cloth; if you cannot, keep it in milk or saliva. Never reinsert a baby tooth. The NHS advises getting dental attention within 1 hour or as soon as possible — call 111 if your practice cannot see you.
Can I get emergency dental treatment if I'm not registered with a dentist?
Yes. Urgent NHS dental care does not depend on being registered anywhere. Call NHS 111 or use 111 online and an adviser will assess you; urgent dental care services see people without a regular dentist and charge the standard £27.90 urgent rate in England, or nothing if you are exempt. Ongoing care is separate — you will still need to find a practice accepting NHS patients afterwards.