The present study aimed at the determination of changes of tooth-colored cervical restorations in vivo using an optical 3-dimensional laser scanning device. The study was performed on 197 cervical restorations placed on incisors, canines, and premolars. Four different tooth-colored restoration materials, a composite, a polyacid-modified resin composite, and two resin-modified glass ionomer cements, were used for the restoration of the lesions. For the determination of changes, images were taken at baseline and 15, 24 and 36 months after the placement of the fillings using a 3D-laser scanning device. The images were superimposed automatically, and digital subtraction was made by a specially developed image analysis software. The total substance loss on the entire filling surface at 36 months for the resin-modified glass ionomer Photac-Fil was 44 (+/-23) microm, for Fuji II LC 45 (+/-26) microm, for Dyract 71 (+/-47) microm and for Tetric 18 (+/-12) microm. Differentiating between the class of lesion, a higher wear rate was observed at 36 months on restorations which had been placed in erosion/non-carious cervical cavities (66 (+/-33) microm). In conclusion, the composite material demonstrated a distinctly lower surface wear rate over time in comparison to the resin-modified glass ionomer cements and the polyacid-modified resin composite.