Median pay for dental assistants reaches $48K: State-by-state breakdown
By Cameron Cortigiano
Originally at beckersdental.com
Summary & scoring by The Bell Brief (Dr. Jennifer Bell) using the Drill-Down Protocol (Drill-Down Score) — not the original publisher.
Why it matters for dental
Practice owners and DSOs should benchmark their dental-assistant wages against state medians—now $48 K nationally and above $60 K in three states—to stay competitive in recruitment and avoid turnover-driven revenue loss.
Key points
- Minnesota leads the nation with the highest median annual wage for dental assistants; three states exceed $60 K.
- Data cover 49 states plus Washington, D.C., drawn from the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics release.
- National median wage has risen to $48 K, providing a concrete benchmark for salary planning and budget forecasting.
- Practices in low-wage states may face out-migration of assistants to higher-paying neighboring states.
Who should care
Read the original on Becker's Dental + DSO Review
Full reporting and any paywall content live on beckersdental.com. We summarize and score; we do not republish.
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