If you’re looking to straighten your teeth at home, SmileLove is one company that probably came up on your search results. While SmileLove is no longer in business, knowing more about what the company offered, its pricing structure, and how satisfied customers were can help you know what to look for as you pick another brand to use.
| Effectiveness | 3/5 |
| FDA-Approved? | 5/5 |
| Value for Price | 3/5 |
| Customer Satisfaction | 1/5 |
SmileLove is a brand that offers clear aligners to help correct orthodontic issues such as underbites, overbites, and misaligned teeth. The company uses a mail-order system, where you take your impressions at home, mail the impression kit back, and start payment to receive your aligners.
While the SmileLove website is still active, the company had to pause services during the COVID-19 pandemic. SmileLove attempted to relaunch its aligner treatment services in 2021. However, the relaunch wasn’t successful, and the company is officially out of business.
Find the best alternatives in our review of the best invisible braces.
SmileLove doesn’t have any official information on its website available to note where the aligners are manufactured. However, most other aligner companies, including Invisalign, are manufactured in the United States.
SmileLove was designed around the clear aligner model. It offered an Aligner Bundle that included all of the SmileLove clear aligners you would need throughout the course of treatment, as well as a carry case and post-treatment retainers.
The Aligner Bundle also included a cleaning spray for the aligner trays and lip balm, and customers received a premium teeth whitening kit that was shipped after they had completed their aligner course.
SmileLove offered aligners that could treat:
SmileLove follows the same process that most mail-order aligner companies use. Here’s an overview of what SmileLove customers could expect through the entire process.
The first step for customers interested in SmileLove was to take the Smile Assessment quiz. This was used to get an idea of what problems customers were wanting the aligners to address and see if the customer was a candidate for treatment with the company’s invisible aligners.
The next step was to order an impression kit and complete the impression process. The impression kit was shipped to the customer’s house, and they could take impressions of their teeth from the comfort of their home.
Often, these kits come complete with practice putty to help customers develop self-confidence with the process. After the molding process, they would mail the impression kit back to SmileLove so that the orthodontist could look at it and devise a treatment plan.
Once payment was complete, SmileLove shipped out the entire treatment plan of aligners at once. Customers would wear each aligner for two weeks, progressing through the entire set.
The length of the alignment process depends on the individual and how much teeth movement is involved, but the average treatment time for other invisible aligners for straighter teeth is under 2 years [1].
To maintain their newly straightened smile after using the aligner kit, customers would use the included retainers with their Aligner Bundle.
There are cases where candidates weren’t able to get a new smile through SmileLove invisible aligners. In this situation, the SmileLove team would let the customer know that the service wasn’t a good fit for them and direct them to talk to their orthodontist about other possible treatment options, such as braces.
Clear aligners usually cost less than braces, and SmileLove isn’t an exception. SmileLove’s treatment program costs a little less than $2,000, but how much you pay depends on what package you choose. The cheapest package was the Fast Track Kit & Aligners, also known as the fast track bundle, which was $1,895 paid upfront.
If you wanted to just start with the impression kit before deciding if you wanted to go forward with your aligners, it was $250 for the impression kit and then $1,649 for the aligners after that.
The company also offered financing with 0% interest that allowed customers to split the monthly payments over the course of 12, 18, or 24 months. SmileLove also accepted insurance payments and qualified for most HSA and FSA purchases.
For more complicated cases that could still be treated with the use of SmileLove’s aligners, the company charged a premium of an additional $300. Complex cases were defined as those needing more than 20 steps—or 40 aligners—during treatment. Individuals who needed the complex case adjustment would be informed of this during the Treatment Preview process.
SmileLove accepts insurance payments, which means that whether it is covered by insurance depends on the customer’s insurance and if SmileLove is considered in-network or out-of-network. To learn more about dental insurance options, see our comprehensive guide.
When you’re looking for a braces alternative like aligners to correct misaligned teeth or very slightly crooked teeth, it’s important to see what results real customers have had. Below are some pictures of before and after from users of SmileLove.
When looking at SmileLove reviews, many of the more recent ones are negative because of the company’s out-of-business status. It seems that all paying customers were not informed that the company was no longer in business and were still having payments taken out for new aligner treatment plans.
Some had very high hopes thinking that SmileLove was the best company for straightening teeth naturally, only to find they never received aligners. Below, we’ve included some SmileLove reviews from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and TrustPilot.
SmileLove’s business practices have been uncertain over the last few years, so many people are wondering where it currently stands.
Yes, as of 2022, SmileLove is officially out of business. The company faced struggles during the COVID-19 pandemic and had to temporarily shut down. SmileLove attempted to continue with services in 2021 but was unable to meet the supply demands of its customers.
As of January 2022, there is no official lawsuit against SmileLove because of its business practices. However, many customers have expressed interest in a class action lawsuit at some point in the future.
SmileLove has its return policy on its website. Customers can request a full refund on non-custom products, such as its premium whitening kit, and impression kits within 30 days of purchase. All items must be unopened and unused.
If you’re understandably weary of SmileLove’s whitening products, try Glo Science Whitening.
In some cases, the company may offer refunds on its aligners if the SmileLove team determines that the company’s process isn’t a good fit for the customer’s needs. Users who aren’t happy with their results after they finish treatment can contact SmileLove to come to a mutually agreeable resolution.
For those who have paid SmileLove but never received any products, getting their money back may be more complicated. Unless the company begins responding to SmileLove’s customer support requests, it may require a civil lawsuit to get money back from SmileLove.
How does SmileLove compare to others? SmileLove clearly isn’t available anymore, but the good news is that there are plenty of other Invisalign alternatives to choose from. Here are just a few of the other top names in the aligners industry.
Byte is a trusted dental product supplier and has a 4.67/5 star rating by customers on the Better Business Bureau, which is much higher than Smile Love. Byte reviews mention that the home aligner company stays in constant communication and users are satisfied with their results. Byte works exclusively with orthodontists to design your customized plan at the same price as SmileLove.
AlignerCo has a 4.26/5 star rating by customers on BBB. Positive AlignerCo reviews focused on excellent customer service and an effective treatment experience. Similar to other aligner companies, most of the poor ratings are due to quality issues with the aligners or not seeing results in the expected timeframe.
The BBB gives Candid an A+ rating, and customers agree with an average review score of 4.74/5. Candid reviews note that the process is quick and easy and results are as expected. Negative reviews mention the high cost of Candid aligners and that some customer service reps were pushy.
Invisalign is the only company on our list not to be listed with BBB, so it’s not possible to do a direct comparison between ratings. However, overall, customers appear to be happy with the process and customer service of Invisalign as well as their results. Check out our Invisalign review for more details.
Let’s take a look at the most common questions about SmileLove.
If you’re interested in aligners to help you get a perfect smile, there are several companies to choose from other than SmileLove, such as Byte or AlignerCo. While at-home aligners are an affordable alternative to traditional braces and can offer some orthodontic benefits, such as being convenient and easily accessible, it’s important to note that the American Dental Association and Association of Orthodontists don’t recommend mail-order aligners.
