Is Luxury Toothpaste Worth It?

There seems to be a luxury revolution happening in personal care goods of all kinds, and oral hygiene is the latest category of consumer products to get an indulgent makeover. Luxe brands that sell fancy soaps and face creams are now offering high-end toothpaste. So does a $17 tube of toothpaste care for your teeth better than a regular $4 tube?

The quick answer is no. Most of the luxury toothpaste brands we’ve seen aren’t offering any new ingredient mixes or proportions compared to regular toothpaste brands. They all seem to be sticking to the conventional recipe of a mild abrasive such as calcium carbonate to scrub the teeth. One disadvantage is some of them don’t include fluoride to re-mineralize teeth and prevent decay.

What sets these new toothpastes apart is how they’re presented. The packaging is either lavish and intricate or intentionally minimalist, both of which are hallmarks of other luxury self care items. This certainly makes them stand out from the sea of white, blue, and green that is on most of the packages in the toothpaste aisle. A few of these brands offer less conventional flavors, such as ginger, licorice, cardamon, and jasmine that you don’t find in more mainstream brands.

Despite the fact that these luxury toothpastes don’t seem to have any health advantage over conventional toothpastes, we can think of one way they can improve your dental hygiene routine: by making brushing a more pleasant experience.

What you’re buying with these luxury toothpastes is an elevated experience, where the sensory qualities have been designed to make you feel good, whether it’s the visual pleasure of the beautiful packaging or the pleasing taste of a new flavor. If any of these things make you more likely to brush your teeth twice a day, and for the full two minutes we recommend, then it’s hard for us to tell you not to use them. But if you opt for a brand that doesn’t contain fluoride, be sure you’re getting fluoride on your teeth another way, such as by using a mouthwash that contains fluoride.