“What type of crown lasts the longest?”

All crowns should last about 20 years if the patient takes care of their teeth properly and follows recommended maintenance schedules. Gold crowns set the highest standards due to their antibacterial properties. It is the only crown material that can possibly fight cavity causing bacteria and it also tends to be the thinnest material we can provide. So gold crowns are the gold standard.

Full Gold Crown or Zirconia Crowns

Gold traditionally lasts the longest but it all really depends on the state of the tooth that is getting crowned.

Metals, Gold, metal alloys are still the best choice for longevity when it comes to dental crowns. They are far superior to porcelain and zirconia with regard to longevity.

The reason is that, when a lab makes your dental crown, they can heat the metal to make it malleable and they can shape, bend and drag it to perfectly seal off the area where your dental crown meets your tooth.

In contrast, they have to cut or shave porcelain and this will inevitably result in small micro-gaps. These micro-gaps can lead to tooth decay and cavities under your crown and this is the #1 cause of dental crown failure.

Metal can be adapted to the stone model of your tooth when fabricating a crown and porcelain and zirconia cannot be heated and adapted - this is the basis for superiority of metals in crown fabrication.