How do you calculate remake rate?

Divide remakes by completed cases and multiply by 100. With 8 remakes on 250 completed cases, the remake rate is 3.2%.

What is a good remake rate for a dental lab?

Top labs run roughly 2-3%, solid labs 3-5%, and anything consistently above 5-7% signals a workflow problem. The 3.2% in this example sits in the strong range.

What does the gap to target mean here?

It's your target minus the actual rate. The example reads -0.2 because a 3.2% remake rate sits just over the 3% goal. Enter the target as a remake-rate goal, not a pass rate.

Should dentist-caused remakes count?

Track them separately. A shade change the dentist requested is not the same as a crown that doesn't fit, and lumping them together hides where your process actually needs fixing.

How is remake rate different from first-time-fit yield?

They're complements: a 3.2% remake rate roughly corresponds to a 96.8% first-time success rate. Labs often report one or the other depending on whether they emphasize failures or wins.

Does a low remake rate guarantee profitability?

No, but high remake rates almost guarantee margin erosion. Each remake doubles material and labor on that case, so cutting remakes from 5% to 3% directly recovers rework cost and protects accounts.

Dental, Orthodontic & Prosthetics Manufacturing calculator

Remake Rate Calculator

Remake rate is the percentage of completed dental cases that have to be redone, a crown that won't seat, a denture with a bad bite, an aligner that doesn't track. It is the single most-watched quality metric in a dental lab because every remake is double the material, double the labor, and a frustrated dentist. Lab owners and QC leads track it by case type and by technician to find where the workflow breaks down. A low, stable remake rate is the clearest signal that scanning, design, and finishing are all under control.

What this calculator does

Measure remake rate for dental, orthodontic, or prosthetic cases so labs can estimate hidden cost, identify quality drivers, and prioritize corrective action.
Use it when remake rate in dental, orthodontic and prosthetics manufacturing needs a clean rate and gap-to-target you can put on a tier board.
It computes the actual remake rate as a percentage of completed cases and the gap between that rate and your target.

Formula used

Actual remake rate = remake cases or units ÷ completed cases or units × 100
Remake rate gap to target = target remake rate − actual remake rate (positive = below target)

Inputs explained

Remake cases or units:
Completed cases or units:
Target remake rate:

How to use the result

Use it for monthly quality reviews, technician scorecards, or when investigating a spike in returns from a particular account.
A raw rate doesn't distinguish lab-caused remakes from dentist-driven changes or bad impressions; categorize the cause before acting on the number.

Current U.S. benchmarks

U.S. manufacturing runs at 76.0% of capacity with new factory orders at $657B per month (Federal Reserve and Census, Jun 2026).
The U.S. has 8,825 medical equipment and supplies establishments employing about 308,388 workers (Census County Business Patterns, 2023).

Common questions

How do you calculate remake rate? Divide remakes by completed cases and multiply by 100. With 8 remakes on 250 completed cases, the remake rate is 3.2%.
What is a good remake rate for a dental lab? Top labs run roughly 2-3%, solid labs 3-5%, and anything consistently above 5-7% signals a workflow problem. The 3.2% in this example sits in the strong range.
What does the gap to target mean here? It's your target minus the actual rate. The example reads -0.2 because a 3.2% remake rate sits just over the 3% goal. Enter the target as a remake-rate goal, not a pass rate.
Should dentist-caused remakes count? Track them separately. A shade change the dentist requested is not the same as a crown that doesn't fit, and lumping them together hides where your process actually needs fixing.
How is remake rate different from first-time-fit yield? They're complements: a 3.2% remake rate roughly corresponds to a 96.8% first-time success rate. Labs often report one or the other depending on whether they emphasize failures or wins.

Last reviewed 2026-08-12.