If you grind your teeth, a mouthguard from the chemist costs a fraction of a custom one and is available this afternoon. So are shop-bought mouthguards any good, or is the price difference simply dentistry marking things up? The honest answer is that they have a genuine place, and it is a considerably narrower place than the packaging suggests.
On this page
- What you are actually buying
- Where they are perfectly fine
- The problems with nightly use
- What makes a custom guard different
- The cost comparison, honestly
- Sports guards are a separate question
- If you are not sure you grind
- In summary
What you are actually buying
Most shop-bought guards are “boil and bite”: a thermoplastic tray softened in hot water, then bitten into so it takes a rough impression of your teeth. Others are simple one-size trays with no moulding at all.
Either way, the fit is an approximation. It captures the general shape of your arch rather than the precise contours of each tooth, and it cannot account for how your teeth meet.
Where they are perfectly fine
To be fair to them, they do have uses:
- Short-term or occasional use. A stressful fortnight, a holiday when you have forgotten your proper guard.
- Testing the water. If you are not certain you grind, or not sure you could tolerate wearing something at night, a cheap guard for a couple of weeks answers that question inexpensively.
- Better than nothing. If a custom guard genuinely is not affordable right now, some protection beats none, provided it fits reasonably and is not causing problems.
That last point matters, and I would rather say it than have someone go unprotected out of a sense that it is custom or nothing.
The problems with nightly use
For long-term protection, four issues arise.
Bulk. Shop guards are considerably thicker than they need to be, which makes them uncomfortable and hard to sleep in. A guard that annoys you ends up in the drawer, and a guard in the drawer protects nothing. This is by far the most common way they fail.
Fit. An approximate fit means the guard can shift, rub the gums, or come loose during the night. Poor fit around the gum line can also trap plaque.
Durability. The softer materials used chew through in months for a determined grinder, where a custom guard lasts years.
Bite position. This is the one people rarely consider. A guard that does not distribute forces evenly holds your jaw in an awkward position night after night, which can aggravate jaw joint and muscle problems rather than helping them. Soft, spongy guards can be particularly unhelpful here, because chewing on something springy can actually encourage more muscle activity in some people.
What makes a custom guard different
A custom guard is made from precise impressions of your own teeth, so it fits exactly. That allows it to be considerably slimmer, which is the single biggest factor in whether you will actually wear it.
It is made from harder, more durable material, designed to last years rather than months. And crucially, it is designed around how your teeth meet, so forces are distributed evenly rather than concentrated on a few teeth.
Your dentist also checks the fit at the appointment and adjusts it, then reviews both the guard and your teeth at subsequent visits, where the wear on the guard shows exactly what your teeth have been spared. Our page on bite guards and splints explains how they are made.
The cost comparison, honestly
A custom guard costs more upfront. Nobody should pretend otherwise.
The arithmetic that matters is over time. A shop guard replaced every few months adds up, while a custom guard lasts years. And set either against the cost of repairing what grinding damages: a single cracked cusp needing an onlay or crown costs considerably more than the guard would have.
Our post on whether worn teeth can be rebuilt explains what restoration involves once damage has been done, and our page on tooth restoration covers the treatments. Prevention is comfortably the cheaper route.
Sports guards are a separate question
Worth separating, because the purpose is different. A sports mouthguard protects against impact, not grinding.
Here the case for custom is even stronger, because a guard that shifts or comes loose during play offers little protection at the moment it is needed. For contact sports, a properly fitted guard is well worth having, particularly for children and teenagers whose adult front teeth are at stake.
If you are not sure you grind
Many people have no idea. The signs are mostly indirect: waking with jaw ache or a dull headache, teeth that look flattened or feel tender first thing, ridged lines along the inside of your cheeks, and dental work that keeps chipping.
Our post on the signs you grind your teeth at night covers them all, and a check-up will confirm it, since the wear patterns are usually visible long before you have noticed anything.
The NHS page on teeth grinding has further general guidance.
In summary
Shop-bought mouthguards are fine for short-term or occasional use, and better than no protection at all. For nightly wear they are bulky, wear out quickly, fit approximately, and often end up unworn, which is the real failure. A custom guard is slim enough to actually sleep in, lasts years, and is designed around your bite.
If you grind and would like a guard that fits properly, ring us on 01255 422506. Our posts on crowns coming off and whether it is too late to fix your teeth cover what grinding eventually costs.
This article is general information rather than personal dental advice. Every mouth is different, so please speak to your dentist about your own teeth.