How much do braces cost - dd will need them but she's only 9 with plenty of baby teeth still. I want to start putting money aside.

[Nicotina]

My dd will need braces but not for a bit yet. She still has loads of baby teeth that are slow to shift (currently bribing her to wiggle the loosest a bit each day). I am prepared to spend above the basic if I can save enough- not even clear on how much basic costs tbh. I want to put money aside for it (already started ). Please give me an idea from your current or recent experience.
I had braces and, eventually, crowns from the 70s/80s. My teeth are very crooked and I smile with my mouth closed because of it. I want to do what I can to avoid this for dd.

Both my children have had braces, one privately and one on the NHS. If your child's teeth meet the criteria she may get braces on the NHS in which case they won't cost you anything. However, the state of the teeth does need to meet certain criteria so they would need to be quite crooked/large overbite/crowded. DS1's braces cost £3,000 and I think that is pretty standard. If you have to pay for them, most orthodontists do payment plans, we paid his off at £150 a month.

3k seems typical privately but if the function is affected she may eventually qualify for free nhs treatment.

It's quite a lot! DD age 8 has just been referred to orthodontist. She still has a few baby teeth so I was surprised I didn't think they would refer her until they had all come out. I'm hoping that a referral this early means she will qualify for free braces although am prepared to pay for them if necessary through a payment plan.

Privately they generally start at around £3,000. Bear in mind it might not be a fixed cost though, as if you're going privately you will need to pay for any breakages etc, the additional costs of which can mount up (and makes it especially important to follow all the advice from the orthodontist!)

Also, with braces, expensive is not always better - the traditional metal brackets work faster and are less likely to break than the clear or porcelain ones, for example, but the latter will be far more expensive.

Thanks so much. 3k up was sort of what I had in mind. At the moment, she seems pretty chilled about metal ones because Edith Hallow on The Worst Witch has them .
Interesting that metal is supposed to work better.
Food for thought. Thanks so much.