Both sit on Nobel Biocare internal conical connection and can be restored with the same component family, but NobelReplace CC is catalogued with the older TiUnite surface where NobelActive is offered with TiUltra. The name NobelReplace is the bigger source of confusion here, because it has been used across two entirely different connections.
Side by side
Rows appear only where at least one side has data. Where a value is not verified we say
so rather than leaving it blank.
Attribute
NobelActive
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Current status
Current. NobelActive is listed in the Nobel Biocare implant catalogue with 56 options.Manufacturer-reported[1][2]
Current. NobelReplace CC is listed in the Nobel Biocare implant catalogue with 45 options.Manufacturer-reported[1]
Body geometry
Expanding tapered body which Nobel Biocare states condenses bone gradually during insertion, with reverse cutting blades that allow the implant position to be adjusted during placement.Manufacturer-reported[2]
Offered in a standard version and a Partially Machined Collar (PMC) version, which is supplied with a cover screw included.Manufacturer-reported[4]
Material
Commercially pure titanium grade 4. The instructions for use give the composition as titanium balanced with max. 0.50 wt.% iron, max. 0.40 wt.% oxygen, max. 0.08 wt.% carbon, max. 0.05 wt.% nitrogen and max. 0.015 wt.% hydrogen, and state that the TiUltra variant is additionally layered with a water-soluble salt mixture of sodium dihydrogen phosphate and magnesium chloride. The co-packed cover screw is Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy.Manufacturer-reported[3]
Manufacturer documentation not located
Surface
TiUltra, introduced in 2019; also offered historically with the TiUnite surface.Manufacturer-reported[2]
Internal conical connection. Nobel Biocare groups NobelActive under the "Internal Conical Connection" filter in its implant catalogue.Manufacturer-reported[1][4]
Internal conical connection, catalogued alongside NobelActive and NobelParallel CC.Manufacturer-reported[4][1]
Platform switching
Nobel Biocare describes "enhanced platform shifting" for the NobelActive S variant but publishes no dimension for it on the pages reviewed.Manufacturer-reported[2]
Manufacturer documentation not located
Available diameters
NobelActive TiUltra is catalogued in ∅ 3.0, 3.5, 4.3, 5.0 and 5.5 mm.Manufacturer-reported[4]
∅ 3.5, 4.3 and 5.0 mm, in both the standard and PMC versions.Manufacturer-reported[4]
Available lengths
∅ 3.0 mm: 10–13 mm. ∅ 3.5, 4.3 and 5.0 mm: 8.5–18 mm. ∅ 5.5 mm: 7–15 mm. Nobel Biocare notes that the actual implant length is 0.5 mm shorter than the length in the product name.Manufacturer-reported[4]
8, 10, 11.5, 13 and 16 mm. Nobel Biocare notes that the actual implant length is 0.6 mm longer than the length in the product name.Manufacturer-reported[4]
Current status
NobelActive
Current. NobelActive is listed in the Nobel Biocare implant catalogue with 56 options.Manufacturer-reported[1][2]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Current. NobelReplace CC is listed in the Nobel Biocare implant catalogue with 45 options.Manufacturer-reported[1]
Body geometry
NobelActive
Expanding tapered body which Nobel Biocare states condenses bone gradually during insertion, with reverse cutting blades that allow the implant position to be adjusted during placement.Manufacturer-reported[2]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Offered in a standard version and a Partially Machined Collar (PMC) version, which is supplied with a cover screw included.Manufacturer-reported[4]
Material
NobelActive
Commercially pure titanium grade 4. The instructions for use give the composition as titanium balanced with max. 0.50 wt.% iron, max. 0.40 wt.% oxygen, max. 0.08 wt.% carbon, max. 0.05 wt.% nitrogen and max. 0.015 wt.% hydrogen, and state that the TiUltra variant is additionally layered with a water-soluble salt mixture of sodium dihydrogen phosphate and magnesium chloride. The co-packed cover screw is Ti-6Al-4V ELI alloy.Manufacturer-reported[3]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Manufacturer documentation not located
Surface
NobelActive
TiUltra, introduced in 2019; also offered historically with the TiUnite surface.Manufacturer-reported[2]
Internal conical connection. Nobel Biocare groups NobelActive under the "Internal Conical Connection" filter in its implant catalogue.Manufacturer-reported[1][4]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Internal conical connection, catalogued alongside NobelActive and NobelParallel CC.Manufacturer-reported[4][1]
Platform switching
NobelActive
Nobel Biocare describes "enhanced platform shifting" for the NobelActive S variant but publishes no dimension for it on the pages reviewed.Manufacturer-reported[2]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
Manufacturer documentation not located
Available diameters
NobelActive
NobelActive TiUltra is catalogued in ∅ 3.0, 3.5, 4.3, 5.0 and 5.5 mm.Manufacturer-reported[4]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
∅ 3.5, 4.3 and 5.0 mm, in both the standard and PMC versions.Manufacturer-reported[4]
Available lengths
NobelActive
∅ 3.0 mm: 10–13 mm. ∅ 3.5, 4.3 and 5.0 mm: 8.5–18 mm. ∅ 5.5 mm: 7–15 mm. Nobel Biocare notes that the actual implant length is 0.5 mm shorter than the length in the product name.Manufacturer-reported[4]
NobelReplace Conical Connection
8, 10, 11.5, 13 and 16 mm. Nobel Biocare notes that the actual implant length is 0.6 mm longer than the length in the product name.Manufacturer-reported[4]
The biggest differences
NobelActive is an expanding tapered implant with a double-lead thread and apical cutting blades. NobelReplace Conical Connection is offered in a standard version and a Partially Machined Collar version, the latter leaving the coronal collar smooth rather than textured and supplied with a cover screw. The surfaces differ as catalogued: TiUltra on NobelActive, TiUnite on NobelReplace CC.
Design
NobelReplace CC is catalogued at 3.5, 4.3 and 5.0 mm in both standard and PMC versions, with lengths of 8, 10, 11.5, 13 and 16 mm. NobelActive spans 3.0 to 5.5 mm and reaches 18 mm. There is also a length-labelling difference between the two that is easy to miss: the NobelReplace CC implant is 0.6 mm longer than the length in its name, while NobelActive is 0.5 mm shorter than its name.
Prosthetic ecosystem
The connection is the same, so components cross between them. The trap is upstream of that: NobelReplace as a name also covers NobelReplace Tapered and Replace Select implants placed before the move to the conical connection, and those carry the internal tri-channel interface instead. A patient record saying only 'NobelReplace' does not identify which, and radiographic confirmation or the original surgical record is usually needed.
What may influence clinical selection
Where NobelReplace CC is chosen it is often for the partially machined collar option, which some clinicians prefer where the collar may end up exposed. NobelActive is the choice where the site is soft or fresh and stability has to be generated during placement. Neither is a successor to the other; both are current entries in the same catalogue.
Important limitations
Our NobelReplace CC record leaves thread, apex, material, level and platform switching unknown, because the manufacturer pages we reviewed do not state them. That makes for a sparse table on that side, and the sparseness reflects available documentation rather than a simpler product.
So which is better?
Neither is universally better, and any page telling you otherwise is selling something.
These are different designs with different trade-offs, and the right choice depends on the
bone available, the position in the mouth, the planned restoration, and what the treating
clinician is equipped and experienced to place and to service years from now.
That last point is easy to overlook and matters more than most specification
differences: components need to remain obtainable for as long as the implant is in place.
Regulatory record
US FDA 510(k) clearances held by each side, retrieved from the FDA's own database.
Clearances are held at brand level, so every system from the same brand shares this record.
NobelActive
via Nobel Biocare
6
FDA 510(k) clearances
1991 – 2026
Filed by Nobel Biocare AB
NobelReplace Conical Connection
via Nobel Biocare
6
FDA 510(k) clearances
1991 – 2026
Filed by Nobel Biocare AB
A clearance count is not a quality ranking, and the
larger number is not the better implant. A brand with more clearances usually
has a longer history or a broader component range. FDA "clearance" also is not FDA
"approval" — it means the device was accepted as substantially equivalent to one already
on the market, generally without a clinical trial. A blank here means we could not match
a filing with confidence, not that the brand lacks authorisation.
What these actually mean →
Sources
Numbers match the citations beside each claim above.
