How to remove stains between teeth
Stains between teeth may need interdental cleaning, professional polishing, or treatment of decay, depending on their colour and surface.
The short answer
Stains between teeth may need interdental cleaning, professional polishing, or treatment of decay, depending on their colour and surface. A dark mark that does not wipe away should be examined before using whitening products.
Why do stains collect between the teeth?
The contact area between teeth traps plaque and pigments from food, drinks, or tobacco. Brown or black areas can also be calculus or caries, while a grey change may reflect a filling, trauma, or internal tooth discoloration rather than a surface stain.
How can you clean between stained teeth?
Clean between the teeth with floss, tape, or an interdental brush that fits without force, and brush the outer and inner surfaces with fluoride toothpaste. A dental professional can remove calculus and polish external stain; whitening changes tooth colour but does not remove decay or calculus.
When should a mark between teeth be examined?
Book an examination for a rough, sticky, painful, or enlarging mark, bleeding around one contact, or sensitivity to cold or sweets. Prompt care is important if the area is a hole, the tooth is fractured, or swelling develops.
What could a dark mark between teeth mean?
Ask whether the mark is external stain, calculus, decay, or internal discoloration and whether an image is needed. Ask which interdental size fits and whether cleaning, filling, polishing, or whitening addresses the actual cause.
Frequently asked questions
Can floss remove a black stain?
Floss may remove trapped debris, but a fixed dark mark may be calculus or decay and needs examination.
Are stains between teeth always cavities?
No. They can be pigment, calculus, or debris, but only an examination can distinguish these from caries.
Keep reading
Who wrote this page
This library is published by Dental Nation, a licensed dental group practising in the United Arab Emirates. Pages are written and overseen by the same clinical team that treats patients in our clinics, and are held to a fixed editorial standard for safety and accuracy.
This page is patient education, not medical advice, and cannot replace an examination. Anything urgent — facial swelling, trauma, uncontrolled bleeding or severe pain — needs a dentist or emergency care now.