Tooth Number 3: Upper Right First Molar

Sealants and cavities on tooth 3

First molars come in around age 6 and are a common place for cavities. A review of 66 studies from Asia, Europe, Africa and Latin America found decay in the first molars of about 1 in 3 young people aged 6 to 18.

Sealants. The CDC reports that children aged 6–11 without sealants have almost 3 times as many first-molar cavities as children with them. A Cochrane review estimated that if 40 in 100 unsealed first-molar surfaces decayed over 2 years, sealing would cut that to about 6 in 100.

Weak enamel (MIH). About 1 in 7 children (13.5% in a review of 116 studies) have molar-incisor hypomineralization, a defect in which the enamel of one or more first molars forms with too little mineral. In about a third of these children (36.6%), front teeth are affected too.

Coming in tilted. In up to 3% of children, a first molar comes in at an angle and gets caught under the back of the baby second molar. It is more common in the upper jaw, and about 71% free themselves by age 9; the rest may need treatment.

If it can't be saved. When a child's first molar is too damaged to keep, a review found the best time to remove it is when the roots of the second molar behind it are just starting to divide, so that tooth can move forward and close the gap.

Replacing a lost molar. An implant is one option. A review of 18 studies found that 96.4% of implants were still in place after 10 years.

The same tooth on the left side, tooth 14, has its own section on root canals and crowns.

Where is tooth 3?

Tooth 3 is in your upper jaw on your right side. It is the sixth tooth from the middle: start at the gap between the two top front teeth and count 6 teeth toward the back on your right side.

In a mirror, tooth 3 shows on the right side of your reflection. Someone looking into your mouth sees it on their left.

In front of it (toward the middle) is tooth 4, the upper right second premolar. Behind it is tooth 2, the upper right second molar. When it first comes in at about age 6, the tooth in front of it is usually still the baby second molar (tooth A), which the second premolar replaces years later.

Its mirror twin on the left side is tooth 14. The tooth in the same spot in the lower jaw is tooth 30, the lower right first molar.

Dental charts show the patient's right side on the left, so tooth 3 sits on the left half of the top row. Universal numbers start here: upper right teeth run from 1 (the wisdom tooth) to 8 (the front tooth).

When does tooth 3 come in?

The upper first molars usually come in at 6–7 years according to the ADA chart. The AAPD chart gives 5.5–7 years.

In the ADA chart, they are among the first to come in, along with the lower first molars and the lower central incisors. In the AAPD's 13-step order, from the first molars (step 1) to the wisdom teeth (step 13), they are step 1.

Under the gum, according to the AAPD chart, it starts to harden (calcify) around birth, has a finished crown by 30–36 months and has a finished root by about 9–10 years, a few years after it comes into the mouth.

What does the upper first molar do?

Molars do the heavy grinding. Cleveland Clinic notes that about 90% of chewing happens on the molars. Molars have broad, flat chewing surfaces with 4–5 cusps (points) and the largest crowns of any teeth.

It is also called the "6-year molar". First molars are named for the age they usually arrive, about 6 years.

Adult molars don't replace any baby tooth. They come in behind the baby teeth as the jaw grows.

How many roots does tooth 3 have?

3 roots: two on the cheek side and one, usually the longest, on the palate side.

Common problems with upper first molars

• Treatment. Small cavities are fixed with a filling. If decay or an injury reaches the nerve, root canal treatment can save the tooth, often followed by a crown.

If tooth 3 hurts, feels loose, or the gum around it swells, the Dental Emergency Checker can help you decide how soon to see a dentist. Swelling that spreads to the eye or neck, or makes it hard to breathe or swallow, is an emergency: call 911. These are typical problems for this kind of tooth, not a diagnosis.

Tooth 3 in FDI and Palmer notation

A lone "3" can only be Universal. FDI codes always have two digits, so 3 on its own is never an FDI number.

On a US chart, "16" is a different tooth. Universal 16 is the upper left wisdom tooth (tooth 16), so "tooth 16" only means this tooth when the chart uses FDI.

Palmer needs the bracket. Every quarter of the mouth has a tooth 6 in Palmer notation; only the ┘ (or the letters UR) makes it this one.

All adult teeth in the upper right quarter

From the front of the mouth to the back:

The Tooth Number Chart & Converter converts any tooth between the three systems.

Tools for tooth 3

• Adult Teeth Predictor: likely dates for your child's adult teeth.
• Dental Emergency Checker: how soon to see a dentist if it hurts or breaks.
• Dental Numbness Calculator: how long numbness lasts after a filling.
• Dental Insurance Calculator: what your plan may pay for a crown or root canal.
• How Long Does Dental Work Last?: how long fillings, crowns, veneers and implants usually last, from long-term studies.
• Dental Treatment Plan Decoder: plain English for treatment-plan shorthand like "#30 MOD comp".

Frequently asked questions

Sources

1. American Dental Association (MouthHealthy). Permanent Tooth Development (eruption chart). 2012. Accessed October 26, 2026.
2. American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Dental Growth and Development (chronology after Logan & Kronfeld 1933, adapted 2003). Accessed October 26, 2026.
3. American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. Management of the Developing Dentition and Occlusion in Pediatric Dentistry (Reference Manual of Pediatric Dentistry). latest revision 2024. Accessed October 26, 2026.
4. World Health Organization. Oral health surveys: basic methods, 5th edition (tooth notation after ISO 3950). 2013. Accessed October 26, 2026.
5. Nelson SJ. Elsevier. Wheeler's Dental Anatomy, Physiology and Occlusion, 11th edition. 2019.
6. American Dental Association. ADA Dental Claim Form (tooth designation systems). Accessed October 26, 2026.
7. Dentalcare.com (continuing education course CE500). An Overview of Dental Anatomy: Types of Teeth and their Functions. Accessed October 26, 2026.
8. Dentalcare.com (continuing education course CE500). An Overview of Dental Anatomy: Permanent Dentition. Accessed October 26, 2026.
9. Cleveland Clinic. Teeth: Anatomy, Types, Function & Care. last updated January 26, 2023. Accessed October 26, 2026.
10. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dental Sealant Facts. May 15, 2024. Accessed October 26, 2026.
11. Howe MS, Keys W, Richards D. Journal of Dentistry 84:9–21. Long-term (10-year) dental implant survival: A systematic review and sensitivity meta-analysis. 2019. Accessed October 26, 2026.
12. He M, Zhu P, Wei Y, Qian W, Wang L. BMC Oral Health 26:647. The prevalence of dental caries in the first permanent molars among individuals aged 6-18 years: a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies from Asia, Europe, Africa, and Latin America. 2026. Accessed October 26, 2026.
13. Ahovuo-Saloranta A et al. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, CD001830. Pit and fissure sealants for preventing dental decay in permanent teeth. 2017. Accessed October 26, 2026.
14. Lopes LB, Machado V, Mascarenhas P, Mendes JJ, Botelho J. Scientific Reports 11:22405. The prevalence of molar-incisor hypomineralization: a systematic review and meta-analysis. 2021. Accessed October 26, 2026.
15. Saber AM et al. BMC Oral Health 18:59. Consequences of early extraction of compromised first permanent molar: a systematic review. 2018. Accessed October 26, 2026.

Last reviewed October 26, 2026 by the Dental Health Time editorial team, against the sources above. How we review.