How soon can I get an implant or bridge after a tooth extraction?
Cited to 4 sources. Reviewed 2026-08-25.
It depends on which one and on your bone. Dental implants can be placed immediately at the time of extraction, early at around 4 to 8 weeks once soft tissue has healed, or delayed after several months of bone healing. Cleveland Clinic says a bridge often means waiting a few months after an extraction so the gums and bone can heal. Cochrane found no clear winner between immediate and delayed implants, but immediate placement carries a higher complication risk.
- Immediate implant
- Same appointment as the extraction
- Early implant
- About 4 to 8 weeks
- Delayed implant
- Roughly 3 to 6 months
- Bridge
- Often a few months after extraction
What to expect, step by step
Immediate implant placement, where the implant goes straight into the fresh socket. Cochrane calls these immediate implants.
What to do: Discuss whether your bone volume and infection status make you a candidate. Not everyone is.
Early placement after soft tissue has healed over the socket. Cochrane calls this the immediate-delayed window, inserted after weeks up to about a couple of months.
What to do: Keep the site clean. This is a common compromise between speed and predictability.
Delayed placement into partially or completely healed bone. Human socket studies show bone largely filling the socket over roughly the first three to four months.
What to do: Your dentist may image the site to confirm bone volume before scheduling.
Osseointegration, where bone fuses to the implant. Cleveland Clinic gives 3 to 9 months for the jawbone to fuse around the implant, with the first round of healing taking about a week.
What to do: Wear any temporary tooth you were given. The final crown goes on after fusion is confirmed.
Implants: immediate, early or delayed
Cochrane's review of implants in fresh extraction sockets sets out the three categories cleanly. Immediate implants go into the socket just after the tooth comes out. Immediate-delayed implants go in after weeks up to about a couple of months, to allow soft tissue healing. Delayed implants go in after that, into partially or completely healed bone.
Their conclusion is worth quoting fairly: there is insufficient evidence to determine the advantages or disadvantages between the three approaches, based on few underpowered trials often at high risk of bias. They do note a suggestion that immediate and immediate-delayed implants may carry higher risks of failure and complications than delayed implants, while the aesthetic outcome might be better when placing implants just after extraction.
In practice your dentist is weighing bone volume, whether infection was present, whether the socket walls are intact, and how visible the tooth is. A front tooth with thin bone is a different problem from a back molar.
Bridges: usually a wait of months
A bridge sits on the gum rather than in the bone, so the constraint is different. The gum surface has to stop changing shape before you cement something permanent onto it, otherwise you end up with a gap under the pontic that traps food.
Cleveland Clinic states that if you need a tooth extraction first, you might have to wait a few months before getting your dental bridge, because that gives the gums and underlying bone time to heal. After the bridge is placed, Cleveland Clinic says it takes on average one to two weeks for your teeth and gums to settle, though it can take longer for the bridge to feel natural.
Many people wear a temporary bridge or partial denture during the wait so they are not walking around with a gap.
What happens to the site while you wait
The ridge does not stay the same shape. After an extraction the alveolar bone remodels and shrinks, most of it in the first months. That is why timing is a real clinical decision rather than just a scheduling one, and why some dentists place a bone graft into the socket at the time of extraction to preserve ridge volume for a future implant.
If a graft was placed, your timeline changes. Grafted sockets typically need several months to consolidate before an implant goes in, and your surgeon will set the interval based on the graft material used.
Mayo Clinic notes that dental implant surgery may involve several procedures and that because bone healing takes time, the whole process can take many months. Plan around that rather than expecting a single appointment.
Call your dentist or oral surgeon if
- An extraction socket that has not closed over by 3 to 4 months, which should be assessed before any restoration
- Persistent pain, foul taste or discharge at the site, which needs resolving before an implant is placed
- A socket that traps food at every meal months after the extraction
- Fever of 100.4 F (38 C) or higher, or pus from the site
- Numbness in the lip or chin that has not resolved after the extraction
Related questions
Can I get an implant the same day as my extraction?
Sometimes. Cochrane describes immediate implants placed into fresh sockets, but notes they may carry a higher risk of failure and complications than delayed placement. Whether you are a candidate depends on your bone and whether infection was present.
How long after an extraction can you get a bridge?
Cleveland Clinic says you might have to wait a few months so the gums and underlying bone can heal. A temporary can usually fill the gap in the meantime.
How long does the whole implant process take from extraction to crown?
Often six months to a year. After placement, Cleveland Clinic gives 3 to 9 months for the jawbone to fuse around the implant, and any healing time before placement is on top of that.
Sources
- Dental implants in fresh extraction sockets (immediate, immediate-delayed and delayed implants) (Cochrane)
- Dental Implants (Cleveland Clinic)
- Dental Bridges (Cleveland Clinic)
- Dental implant surgery (Mayo Clinic)
Reviewed against the sources above on 2026-08-25. General information only, not dental advice. Your own provider's aftercare instructions come first.
Keep reading
Yes, a hole or dip where your tooth was can still be there weeks after an extraction and usually be normal. The gum surface generally closes within 1 to 2 weeks, but the bone underneath keeps filling in for months, and Cleveland Clinic notes a large tooth such as a molar can take up to about 4 months for the jaw to fully heal. What is not normal is a hole that is painful, smells, or is getting larger rather than smaller.
Most people are past the worst of a tooth extraction within 3 days, and the gum over the socket usually closes in 1 to 2 weeks. Bleeding and swelling dominate day 1, discomfort peaks in the first 48 hours, and routine activity is usually fine again after 48 to 72 hours. The bone underneath takes much longer: several weeks at minimum, and up to about 4 months for a large molar socket to fill in completely.
Dental implant healing runs in three stages. Soft tissue heals over the first 1 to 2 weeks, osseointegration (bone fusing to the implant) takes roughly 3 to 6 months and can run as long as 9 months, and then the abutment and final crown are fitted over another few weeks. If you needed a bone graft or sinus lift first, add several more months before the implant is even placed.