Henry Schein vs Kent Express vs Dental Sky: Which UK Dental Supplier Is Cheapest in 2026?

The Three Giants of UK Dental Supply

Henry Schein, Kent Express, and Dental Sky together account for the majority of dental supply spend across UK practices. Most practices have accounts with at least two of them — and many use all three.

But which one is actually cheapest? The honest answer is: it depends on the product, the month, and your account tier. There is no single cheapest supplier across the board. What matters is knowing which supplier is cheapest for each specific product you order — and checking at the point of ordering rather than assuming.

Here's a category-by-category breakdown.

Nitrile Gloves

Nitrile gloves are among the most price-competitive products in dental supply, because they're high volume and standardised. Every supplier knows they're being compared on this product, so pricing is relatively tight.

What we see: Kent Express tends to be competitive on own-brand nitrile gloves. Henry Schein's own-brand Medicom line is often comparable, with price variations of 3–8% between suppliers on equivalent products. Dental Sky's Smart Blue nitrile gloves are frequently the lowest-cost option per glove when bought in case quantities.

Verdict: Check all three. The difference on gloves is small but compounds — a practice ordering 30 boxes per month at even 5% difference is spending £150–£300 extra per year unnecessarily.

Local Anaesthetics

This is where price differences become more significant. Septanest, Lignospan, and Ultracaine are brand-specific products that carry relatively fixed RRPs — but supplier pricing varies meaningfully.

What we see: Henry Schein typically carries the widest range of anaesthetic products and often offers volume pricing at lower thresholds than competitors. Kent Express is frequently competitive on Septanest specifically. Dental Sky's pricing on anaesthetics can be notably lower than the two larger suppliers on certain SKUs, though availability is sometimes limited.

Verdict: If you're ordering 100+ cartridges per month, Henry Schein's volume tiers often make them competitive. Below that threshold, Kent Express and Dental Sky frequently undercut on list price.

Composite Resins

Composite is where the real money is. Products like Filtek Z250, Tetric EvoCeram, and Venus Pearl are expensive, and the price difference between suppliers for the same product can reach 20–30%.

What we see: Henry Schein tends to run more frequent promotional pricing on composite than the other two, particularly on 3M products. Kent Express is consistently competitive on Dentsply and Ivoclar lines. Dental Sky's composite pricing is often the lowest list price but with fewer promotions.

Verdict: Never order composite without checking all three. A single syringe of premium composite can vary by £8–£15 between suppliers. A practice using 10 syringes per month at a £10 average difference is spending £1,200 extra per year.

PPE (Masks, Aprons, Bibs)

PPE pricing is highly competitive across all three suppliers because the products are largely commoditised. The quality of own-brand PPE varies, so it's worth comparing like-for-like.

What we see: Dental Sky is most frequently the lowest-cost option on PPE, particularly for own-brand masks and bibs. Henry Schein and Kent Express are competitive but rarely the cheapest. The gap can be 15–25% on PPE.

Verdict: If your practice is buying PPE from Henry Schein or Kent Express without checking Dental Sky, you're almost certainly overpaying.

Infection Control Products

Cavicide, OptIM 33, and similar infection control products have more price stability than other categories, but differences still exist.

What we see: Kent Express is frequently the most competitive on infection control, particularly on Metrex products. Henry Schein competes closely. Dental Sky has a narrower range.

Verdict: Check Kent Express first, then Henry Schein for availability.

The Real Answer: It Depends on the Order

The honest conclusion from looking at pricing across these three suppliers is that no single supplier wins consistently across all categories. A practice that orders gloves from the cheapest, anaesthetics from the cheapest, and composite from the cheapest will consistently spend 15–20% less than one that orders everything from a single supplier out of habit.

The challenge is that checking three supplier websites manually for every order is impractical.

How to Actually Implement This

Dentago connects to your existing Henry Schein, Kent Express, and Dental Sky accounts and shows you real-time prices from all three in a single search. You don't change anything about your supplier relationships — you simply see all your prices in one place and choose the best one at the point of ordering.

It's free for UK dental practices, takes about 10 minutes to set up, and requires no technical knowledge.