This study evaluated the effect of chairside and laboratory types of surface conditioning methods on the adhesion of dual-cure resin cement with MDP functional monomer to zirconia ceramic after thermocycling. Disk-shaped (diameter: 10 mm, thickness: 2 mm) Y-TZP ceramics (Lava, 3M ESPE) were used (N=40) and finished with wet 1200-grit silicon carbide abrasive paper. Specimens were randomly divided into four experimental groups according to the following surface conditioning methods (n=10 per group): Group 1--Chairside airborne particle abrasion with 50-microm Al2O2 + Alloy Primer (Kuraray); Group 2--Airborne particle abrasion with 50-microm Al2O3 + Cesead II Opaque Primer (Kuraray); Group 3--Airborne particle abrasion with 50-microm A12O3 + Silano-Pen + silane coupling agent (Bredent); Group 4--Laboratory tribochemical silica coating (110-microm Al2O3 + 110-microm SiOx) (Rocatec) + silane coupling agent (ESPE-Sil). Adhesive cement, Panavia F 2.0 (Kuraray), was bonded incrementally to the ceramic surfaces using polyethylene molds (diameter: 3.6 mm, height: 5 mm). All specimens were thermocycled (5 and 55 degrees C, 6,000 cycles) and subjected to shear bond strength test (1 mm/min). Data were statistically analyzed (one-way ANOVA, alpha=0.05), whereby no significant differences were found among the four groups (8.43+/-1.3, 8.98+/-3.6, 12.02+/-6.7, and 8.23+/-3.8 MPa) (p=0.1357). Therefore, the performance of chairside conditioning methods used for zirconia was on par with the laboratory alternative tested.