For anyone watching a gum line
Are your gums actually receding?
Four photos a month, the same way every time. A GumScout stage from 0 to 4 with an honest range, a Gum Score for each zone, one of four verdicts, and a one-page report to bring to your dentist. Read the trend, not the mirror.
Free toolsNo sign-upNothing uploadedSources on every page
Move over a tooth. Scroll, and the gum pulls back.
- Front
- Left
- Right
- Lower
Medium confidence. A thin band of root on 31 and 41.
- Upper front92same
- Lower front78worse
- Left88same
- Right86same
The gum meets the enamel edge and nothing has moved since your baseline. Keep the monthly habit so there is always something to compare.
Some root is showing, a small triangle or a notch. Worth a photo every four weeks in the same light; the 3-month comparison says more than any one check-in.
More root than an earlier check-in, in the same zone, in photos that line up. Book a dentist in the next few weeks and bring the photos.
A bump or pus on the gum, swelling with bleeding, a loose tooth, pain or a change within weeks. That needs a dentist soon, not another photo.
Free tools
Four free tools for the bathroom-mirror question
The same stage, zones and verdicts the GumScout app uses, written out so you can check by eye with a mirror and good light. Nothing is uploaded, and every result says what to do next.
Start hereGum recession stage checker
Seven questions about where root shows, how many teeth, triangles, notches, sensitivity and bleeding. Ends in a GumScout stage from 0 to 4, what a dentist might call it, and the one next step.
Find your stage
2 minutesReceding gums or normal?
Some teeth are simply long, and some gum lines are naturally scalloped or uneven. Six questions sort recession from a tall tooth or normal gum shape, with the reasons.
Take the check
CausesWhy are my gums receding?
Brushing pressure, a hard brush, grinding, signs of gum disease, braces, a piercing, smoking, thin gums. Ranks the likely causes for you and what to change for each.
Find the likely causes
PrintableDentist visit prep
How to take the four photos so months compare fairly, the questions worth asking, and a one-page checklist you can print and bring.
Get ready for the visitHow the app works
Four photos a month. One honest read.
- 1
Take the four photos
Front with the lips pulled back, left side, right side, and the lower front teeth close up. A faint ghost of last month's photo sits over the camera so the angle matches.
- 2
Add what you noticed
Bleeding when you brush: never, sometimes or often. Sensitivity to cold. Your brush, whether you grind, and when you last saw a dentist.
- 3
Get the read
A GumScout stage from 0 to 4 as a range with a confidence level, a Gum Score for each zone, the signs the AI can actually see, and one of four verdicts with the reason.
- 4
Compare month to month
Every check-in stays on your phone. Compare any two months, read the 3-month trend, and bring a one-page report to your dentist.
What the read looks at
Six things, one honest range
The read scores each zone from 0 to 100, where 100 is a gum line sitting at the enamel edge, and compares it with your earlier photos. Direction over 3 months matters more than any single number.
The gum line against the enamel edge
On a healthy tooth the gum covers the line where the shiny enamel crown meets the root. Where the gum has moved away from that edge, recession has started.
Root showing a yellower, duller band
Root is slightly yellower and less shiny than enamel. A band of it above the gum, often on a lower front tooth or a canine, is the main thing the stage counts.
Triangles between teeth
Small dark gaps where the gum between two teeth used to fill the space. They tend to come later than root on the front of a tooth.
Notches at the gum line a wedge cut into the tooth
A groove or wedge worn into the tooth right at the gum. It often goes with hard brushing or grinding, and it is worth showing a dentist.
Redness and swelling
Healthy gums are pink and firm. Red, puffy, shiny or bleeding edges are signs of inflammation, which a dentist or hygienist can treat at its cause.
How it compares with last month what actually matters
One month is light, angle and how far the lip is pulled back. The same direction for 3 months, or a full stage up against your baseline, is a change.
From the guides
Plain answers for the late-night search
Every guide ends the same way: what it can mean, what to watch over 3 months, and when it is a dentist visit.
New guides are on the way: what each stage means, why gums recede, and what to ask at the dentist. Until then, the four free tools above answer the first question.
The honest bit
GumScout is not a dentist. GumScout gives an AI estimate from photos. It is not a dental exam and cannot diagnose gum disease. A photo cannot measure pocket depth the way a dentist's probe does, cannot see bone, and cannot tell why a gum has moved. Gums do not grow back on their own, and nothing on this site or in the app can change that; a dentist or periodontist is who treats recession, and GumScout never recommends a treatment. Every page names its dental sources, we never invent ratings or user counts, we never name a brand or a dose, and every page answers the same question plainly: when should I see my dentist?
Questions
Good questions, straight answers
Are my gums receding?
Look at one lower front tooth in good light with the lip pulled down. If you can see a band of yellower, duller root between the shiny crown and the pink gum, the gum has moved down from the enamel edge, which is recession. A tooth that has always looked long, with the gum still meeting the enamel edge, usually is not. The receding gums or normal check walks through the signs, and a dentist can measure it in one visit.
Can receding gums grow back?
No. Gum tissue that has moved away from the tooth does not grow back by itself, whatever a product says. What you can usually do is stop it getting worse: brush gently with a soft brush, clean between the teeth, and have a dentist treat any gum inflammation. Where a lot of root is showing, a dentist or periodontist may talk about a gum graft. That is their call, not an app's.
What stage of gum recession am I?
The GumScout stage runs from 0 (no root showing) to 4 (long roots on many teeth, the gum between teeth gone). Stage 1 is a thin band of root on one or two teeth, often a lower front tooth or a canine. Dentists use other scales, such as Miller or Cairo, which also need a probe and an X-ray. The stage checker gives you a stage and what a dentist might call it, in plain words.
When should I see a dentist about receding gums?
Soon, if your gums bleed on their own, there is pus or a bump on the gum, a gum is swollen, a tooth feels loose, there is pain, or a tooth looks longer within weeks. Book in the next few weeks if root is showing on several teeth, your monthly photos show it moving, or it has been over a year since your last checkup. If none of that applies, mention it at your next routine visit and keep the monthly photos.
Is a GumScout read a diagnosis?
No. GumScout gives an AI estimate from photos. It is not a dental exam and cannot diagnose gum disease. It cannot measure pockets, see bone, or find the cause. It is a consistent pair of eyes that remembers what your gum line looked like 3 and 6 months ago, and a dentist can confirm what it suggests.
Is GumScout free?
The four tools and every guide on this site are free, with no account and nothing uploaded. The GumScout app is free for 2 check-ins (a baseline and one comparison), the timeline and the guide. GumScout Pro adds unlimited monthly check-ins, Gum Score trends, compare any two months, and the one-page dentist report.
What happens to my photos in the app?
Your photos are sent to Google Gemini, an AI service, only to be read, and are not stored on our servers. Your timeline, photos and results stay on your phone. There is no account and no login, and you can delete everything from the app at any time.