New Smile Dental Group
According to our open methodology, this clinic scored 50.8/100 for transparency, reputation, service accessibility, and digital visibility.
Overall rank: #13 of 15 ranked clinics · Last checked: 25 August 2026
Positions by Rating Profile
- Overall Transparency & Trust#1350.8/100
- Best for Expats#1250.3/100
- Best for Dental Implants#750.5/100
- Best for Emergency Dental Care#359.5/100
- Best Price Transparency#1433.2/100
- Best English-speaking Clinics#1353.5/100
- Best for Families / Children#457.4/100
- Sleep Dentistry (GA / deep sedation)not ranked
General Anaesthesia & Deep Sedation
Whether the clinic documents treatment under general anaesthesia or deep / twilight sedation — "sleep dentistry", where the patient is asleep and unaware (does not feel, see, or hear the procedure). Ordinary conscious sedation, where the patient stays awake and responsive, does not count here. This is informational and does not affect the transparency score.
- ? General anaesthesia / deep sedation (sleep dentistry) — Not verified FAQ confirms 'full IV sedation with an anesthesiologist' but does not specify patient is asleep/unconscious
Summary
New Smile Dental Group is a dental clinic in San Francisco, San José, focused on implants, All-on-4/6/8 and full-mouth restoration, with a multi-specialist team led by founder Dr. Mario Bonilla and on-site lab and 3D CBCT imaging. It markets to international patients; some third-party reviews report treatment complications.
Strengths
- Information Transparency: 20 of 20 points.
- Medical Infrastructure: 15 of 15 points.
Weaknesses
- Price Transparency: 0 of 15 verifiable points (missing: prices or price ranges published; cleaning price listed; filling price listed; crown price listed; implant price listed; consultation price listed; x-ray / imaging price listed)
- Reputation & Reviews: 4.5 of 14.5 verifiable points (missing: review recency; no recurring complaints)
Score Breakdown
Every criterion below is scored from public sources. ✓ verified yes · ✗ verified no / not found · ◐ partial · ? unverified (scores 0, not a negative finding).
Information Transparency
Whether basic facts about the clinic - its team, premises, services, and location - are publicly verifiable.
| ✓ | Has a working website [s1] | 4/4 |
| ✓ | Dentist names listed [s1] | 3/3 |
| ✓ | Dentist specializations listed [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Real clinic photos [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Service list published [s1] | 3/3 |
| ✓ | Clear contact details [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | English website version [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Address and map published [s1] | 2/2 |
Price Transparency
Whether patients can estimate costs before visiting. Published price ranges count; exact prices are not required.
| ✗ | Prices or price ranges published [s1] | 0/3 |
| ✗ | Cleaning price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Filling price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Crown price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Implant price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | Consultation price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
| ✗ | X-ray / imaging price listed [s1] | 0/2 |
Reputation & Reviews
Public review signals. The Google rating is adjusted with a Bayesian prior (rating 4.0, weight 25) so a 5.0 from a handful of reviews does not outrank a 4.8 from hundreds.
| ◐ | Google rating (Bayesian-adjusted) as of 2026-08-25 [new-smile-dental-group-refresh] | 3/6 |
| ◐ | Google review volume [new-smile-dental-group-refresh] | 1/3 |
| ✗ | Review recency [new-smile-dental-group-refresh] | 0/3 |
| ? | Clinic responds to reviews | 0/2 |
| ✗ | No recurring complaints [s1] | 0/2 |
| ? | No suspicious review patterns | 0/2 |
| ? | Active Facebook presence | 0/1 |
| ? | TripAdvisor presence | 0/0.5 |
| ✓ | Other review platforms [s1] | 0.5/0.5 |
Medical Infrastructure
The range of publicly documented equipment and services. This measures documented availability, not clinical quality.
| ✓ | On-site X-ray [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | CBCT (3D imaging) [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Implantology [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Orthodontics [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Oral surgery [s1] | 2/2 |
| ✓ | Pediatric dentistry [s1] | 1.5/1.5 |
| ✓ | Emergency care [s1] | 1.5/1.5 |
| ✓ | Works with international patients [s1] | 2/2 |
Communication & Service
How easy it is to contact the clinic, get answers, and book - especially for international patients.
| ✗ | WhatsApp / LINE available [s1] | 0/2 |
| ? | Response speed | 0/1.5 |
| ✓ | English spoken [s1] | 2.5/2.5 |
| ✓ | Pre-visit consultation possible [s1] | 1.5/1.5 |
| ✓ | Clear service explanations [s1] | 1/1 |
| ✓ | Convenient opening hours [s1] | 1.5/1.5 |
AI & Search Visibility
Whether the clinic is discoverable when patients search - including via AI assistants. Checked with fixed queries: "best dentist San Jose", "English speaking dentist San Jose", "dental implants San Jose", "emergency dentist San Jose", "San Jose dental clinic for expats".
| ? | Mentioned for: best dentist San Jose | 0/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: English speaking dentist San Jose | 0/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: dental implants San Jose | 0/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: emergency dentist San Jose | 0/1 |
| ? | Mentioned for: San Jose dental clinic for expats | 0/1 |
| ? | Structured data on website | 0/1.5 |
| ? | Google indexing quality | 0/2 |
| ✓ | Dedicated service pages [s1] | 1.5/1.5 |
Licensing & Credentials
Whether the clinic publishes its operating licence and the dentists working there together with their professional licence numbers. A verified “not published” is recorded as a red flag; data we have not checked yet is shown as unverified and carries no penalty.
Clinic operating licence: not checked against public sources yet — unverified, no penalty
Dentists & professional licences
| Dentist | Specialization | Licence No. |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Mario Bonilla [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Implants, root canals, All-on-4/6/8 (founder) | 1654099 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
| Dr. Silvia Odio [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Periodontics, gum surgery, implants | 235403 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
| Dr. Dashiel Carr [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Implantology, oral surgery, extractions | 310206 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
| Dr. Mariela Bertheau [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Endodontics | 410110 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
| Dr. Allan Vargas [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Oral and maxillofacial surgery | 349007 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
| Dr. Raquel Ulloa [s1] [new-smile-dental-group-doclic] | Cosmetic dentistry, oral surgery | 372408 (Colegio de Cirujanos Dentistas de Costa Rica) |
Red Flags
- low Opaque or bait pricing (-2 pts) — No prices or price ranges published (derived from data).
Red-flag penalty applied: -2 points (capped at -20).
Data We Could Not Verify
- Reputation & Reviews: Clinic responds to reviews
- Reputation & Reviews: No suspicious review patterns
- Reputation & Reviews: Active Facebook presence
- Reputation & Reviews: TripAdvisor presence
- Communication & Service: Response speed
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: best dentist San Jose
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: English speaking dentist San Jose
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: dental implants San Jose
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: emergency dentist San Jose
- AI & Search Visibility: Mentioned for: San Jose dental clinic for expats
- AI & Search Visibility: Structured data on website
- AI & Search Visibility: Google indexing quality
Unverified items score 0 points but are not treated as negative findings. If you can document any of them, please send a correction.
Contact Information
| Website | https://www.newsmilecostarica.com/ |
|---|---|
| Phone | +506 4010-3333 |
| Google Maps | Map listing |
| Address | 38, Av. 2, San Francisco, San José 10103, Costa Rica |
Contact details are provided for identification only and may change; verify with the clinic directly.
Sources
| ID | Source | What it supports | Accessed |
|---|---|---|---|
| s1 | https://www.newsmilecostarica.com/ | website, services, implants, international focus | 2026-07-14 |
| s2 | https://www.medicaltourismco.com/clinic/costa-rica/san-jose/new-smi… | address, phone, dentist roster with specializations, CBCT imaging, Google rating 4.3 (30 reviews) | 2026-07-14 |
| s3 | https://www.trustpilot.com/review/www.newsmilecostarica.com | third-party reviews including complaints about complications | 2026-07-14 |
| new-smile-dental-group-refresh | https://www.google.com/maps/place/New+Smile+Dental+Group+-+Costa+Ri… | most recent visible reviews posted about 2 years before 2026-08-25 | 2026-08-25 |
| new-smile-dental-group-doclic | https://www.colegiodentistas.org/listado-odontologos/ | searched: ALLAN VARGAS — CCDCR registry shows ALLAN VARGAS GONZALEZ, código 349007, especialidad CIRUGIA ORAL-MAXILOFACIAL, Estado Activo — exact specialty match to clinic's 'Oral and maxillofacial surgery'. | 2026-08-26 |
Change History
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 2026-08-26 | License verification 2026-08-26 against CCDCR (no Costa Rica clinic/establishment register exists; clinic-level licensing not searched): all 6 named doctors matched active CCDCR records, most confirmed by matching registered specialty. |
| 2026-08-25 | Re-verification 2026-08-25: confirmed website live, address unchanged, not permanently closed; site and Maps both now show phone +506 4010-3333 vs stored +1 800-661-2126 (recorded as correction); Google rating changed 4.3->4.4, review count changed 30->35; captured Maps URL, geo coordinates, and review recency (older). |
A question or a correction?
Have a question, a suggestion, or a correction to this page? Get in touch — we read every message. Verified data corrections are reviewed against sources and applied with a public change-history entry.