An even better question would be “How often do you floss”? 
I flossed 1-2x/week before my SO caught me in the act of skipping it. Now I’m a 6-7/week girl, and I can’t say I notice a difference, but it helps keep my in-between staining at bay. My enamel is amazing, but if I look at a cup of coffee, I get staining.
All the damn time. Right now I’m getting two crowns done. After that, I’ll get a cleaning, then wait for the next emergency. If none happen by the end of the year (fat chance) I get a crown on a tooth I broke a few months ago.
My teeth suck.
After going 7 or 8 years without a single dental visit, I got back into the every-6-month rotation. Luckily, I have good genetics, teeth-wise. I had one small cavity during my long haitus.
Never. I brush once a day, before I go to bed. I also chew sugar-free gum most days.
I did go 3 or 4 years ago because of some persistent tooth soreness, but they x-rayed me and told me I had a sinus infection.
I go twice a year for cleanings. I’ve had one cavity in my life so I’m lucky. Some of my friends have had terrible trouble with their teeth and jeez it sounds painful and expensive.
I hate to floss and my dentist would get on me for not doing it enough. Not anymore! I have been using my Water Pik Ultra for a few years now and my dentist tells me that my gums look great. She can’t believe that I never floss and that the water pik does that good of a job.
If you hate flossing it is well worth the money.
In the U.S., the family (me, wife, kids) went twice a year for cleaning and checkups, and once a year x-rays. The dental insurance covered it, so why not? We moved to Israel, and the dentist says once a year checkups are the norm - but we still go twice a year to the hygienist. Everyone seems to be fine - we don’t have fluoridated water here, but my kids are old enough that it shouldn’t affect them. (I should add that on my first visit to the dentist here, he discovered a small cavity - my first filling in over twenty five years!)
Once a year. Like lindsaybluth, I have good enamel. My dentist is a pain to get into on the weekend, too. Insurance covers it every six months, but it doesn’t cover the hassle of actually going and taking the time off of work and crap. I’ve never had a cavity; I only had to go once for a not-cleaning, and that was when I thought I had a toothache. Turns out, I’d lacerated my gum on some ice.
Twice a year - generally it’s just a cleaning so it’s quick and uneventful. My insurance covers 70%, so it’s only $30 or $40 a visit, and then they’re nice and clean.
Like some others here, I was blessed with good teeth. I’m not under any false illusions that this is due to anything I did, I imagine it’s just genetics, flouride, and limited sugary stuff as a child. I do brush and floss, but I have friends who are much more careful with their teeth and yet always need work done.
I never had a cavity as a child - I was arrogantly convinced that I would never get one, but I finally had my first (tiny) cavity at 28. I will tell you, I lost my shit at that point. I was sure getting it filled would be agony and that it would never be the same. So, in answer to your question - it’s nice not to have cavities, it’s certainly cheaper, but in my case I blew it’s importance way out of proportion.
Did you have teeth pulled for other reasons that crowding? How did you end up with only 5?
When my Dad was still a practicing dentist, I went twice a year. When he retired, I didn’t go for ten years! I still brushed and flossed well. I went again finally, and aside from just a bit more tartar than is good for you, I was in good shape. I’ve been twice a year since, and apart from one little cavity which I had filled, all is well.
Its honestly genetic. All of my grandparents had their teeth and I think 2 fillings between all four of them by the time they passed away (and my only living grandparent has no cavities. Pretty remarkable). I speak from both experience and the study I’m doing research on at a dental school. There are some people who come for cleanings once ever bazillion years and have no fillings, and honestly say they brush once a day. Of course, fluoride water helps substantially, but in the US unless you’re drinking bottled or well water for the most part, everyone’s on the same playing field in that regard.
My poor SO has terrible genetics on both sides, his teeth are a mess. He has good dental insurance, but I shudder to think what it’ll be like in grad school if he can’t stay on his mom’s plan. But he takes amazing care of them - brush 3x/day, floss daily, gargle constantly, and soon he’ll use the water pik as well. He swears his will all be pulled in the end, but I think they’ll just all be root canals.
Once a year on checkups. I brush twice a day and floss at least once a day.
I had cavities already as a child and the old fillings are causing most of the problems. I have bad genetics when it comes to teeth.