Occupation salary profile

Dentists, General

SOC 29-1021 BLS OEWS May 2025 H-1B LCAs, last 12 months

Examine, diagnose, and treat diseases, injuries, and malformations of teeth and gums. May treat diseases of nerve, pulp, and other dental tissues affecting oral hygiene and retention of teeth. May fit dental appliances or provide preventive care. Excludes “Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons” (29-1022), “Orthodontists” (29-1023), “Prosthodontists” (29-1024), and “Dentists, All Other Specialists” (29-1029).

National median · BLS
$170,950
▼ -1.06% YoY
H-1B sponsor median
$180,000
▲ +5.88% YoY · 843 LCAs
Average salary · BLS
$191,350
Mean annual wage
U.S. employment
124,390
Jobs (BLS)
Highest-paying state (cost-adjusted) Loading…
Most jobs Loading…
Highest-paying metro (cost-adjusted) Loading…

Check your salary

Enter your pay and a location to see where you stand against BLS and H-1B pay, your estimated take-home pay, and your purchasing power.

Pay range for Dentists, General

Annual base pay at each percentile. BLS covers all U.S. workers in this occupation; H-1B covers 843 certified Labor Condition Applications filed by sponsoring employers in the last 12 months.

Percentile All U.S. workers (BLS) H-1B sponsored
10th — entry pay$86,250$116,059
25th$125,710$150,000
Median (50th)$170,950$180,000
75th$224,040$208,000
90th — top pay$319,630$241,600
H-1B sponsors pay a median of $180,000 for Dentists, General — 5.3% above the BLS national median of $170,950.

Hourly ⇄ annual pay

Type in either box; the other updates instantly.

Monthly—
Every 2 weeks—
Weekly—
Daily—
Based on hrs/week × weeks/year = 2,080 hrs
Projections 2025–2035

Job outlook for Dentists, General

BLS projects employment of dentists, general to grow 5.7% from 2025 to 2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations. About 4,200 openings are projected each year, on average, from new jobs and from replacing workers who retire or move to other occupations.

Jobs 2025 → 2035
141,900 → 150,000
+8,100 jobs
Projected change
+5.7%
All occupations: +3.5%
Openings per year
4,200
Average, 2025–2035
Typical entry education
Doctoral or professional degree
No related experience required
Self-employed
12.4% of workers (2025)
Preparation needed (O*NET Job Zone 5)
Extensive Preparation Needed. Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).
Fastest-growing jobs → Best-paying jobs that need a doctoral or professional degree →

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–2035 · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook →

H-1B sponsored pay

Pay by H-1B wage level

Employers assign every H-1B filing a Department of Labor prevailing-wage level, from Level I (entry) to Level IV (fully competent). Pay rises steeply with level.

H-1B median $180,000
Change vs prior year +5.88%
After inflation (CPI-U) +2.67%
Wage level LCAs Share P25 Median P75
Level I 292 34.6% $114,300 $150,000 $181,372
Level II 347 41.2% $159,474 $180,000 $200,000
Level III 134 15.9% $187,650 $203,029 $220,000
Level IV 63 7.5% $229,549 $250,000 $290,000
H-1B job titles

Salaries by job title in Dentists, General

The 7 most-filed job titles inside SOC 29-1021, from 843 H-1B filings. Seniority words and level numbers are grouped (“Senior Data Engineer II” counts as Data Engineer). Tap a title for its full range, wage levels and the exact titles employers used.

Job title LCAs Share P25 Median P75 YoY
Dentist 488 57.89% $158,893 $182,000 $208,000 +4%
General Dentist 131 15.54% $136,417 $170,000 $200,000 +13.33%
Associate Dentist 96 11.39% $152,566 $180,000 $208,874 +2.04%
Dental Director 12 1.42% $147,742 $182,500 $206,149 +11.02%
Managing Dentist 11 1.3% $208,239 $217,152 $246,501 —
Clinical Assistant Professor 10 1.19% $125,000 $128,926 $143,520 -12.81%
Staff Dentist 10 1.19% $182,688 $190,000 $192,371 —

Titles are cleaned from the employer's own LCA text (codes and typos removed, nothing invented). Rows need 10+ filings in this SOC.

Skills & tools

Skills needed for Dentists, General

How important each skill and knowledge area is for this job, rated by O*NET on a 1–5 scale from surveys of workers and occupational analysts.

Top skills
  • Critical Thinking4.1
  • Judgment and Decision Making4.1
  • Active Learning4.0
  • Active Listening4.0
  • Monitoring4.0
  • Reading Comprehension4.0
  • Service Orientation4.0
  • Social Perceptiveness4.0
  • Speaking4.0
  • Complex Problem Solving3.9
Top knowledge areas
  • Medicine and Dentistry5.0
  • Customer and Personal Service4.3
  • Biology4.2
  • Administration and Management3.8
  • English Language3.6
  • Chemistry3.5
  • Psychology3.4
  • Personnel and Human Resources3.4
Software and technology used
eClinicalWorks EHR softwareHenry Schein DentrixMicrosoft ExcelMicrosoft Office softwareABELSoft ABELDentACE DentalAlphaDentAltaPoint Data Systems AltaPoint DentalData Team DDSDental charting softwareDental clinical records softwareDental digital radiology softwareDental imaging softwareDental intra-oral imaging softwareDentiMaxDSN Software Dental-ExecDSN Software Oral Surgery-ExecDSN Software Perio-Exec

Highlighted = in demand: frequently listed in employer job postings for this occupation (O*NET).

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.

About the job

What dentists, general do

  • Use masks, gloves, and safety glasses to protect patients and self from infectious diseases.
  • Administer anesthetics to limit the amount of pain experienced by patients during procedures.
  • Examine teeth, gums, and related tissues, using dental instruments, x-rays, or other diagnostic equipment, to evaluate dental health, diagnose diseases or abnormalities, and plan appropriate treatments.
  • Formulate plan of treatment for patient's teeth and mouth tissue.
  • Use dental air turbines, hand instruments, dental appliances, or surgical implements.
  • Design, make, or fit prosthodontic appliances, such as space maintainers, bridges, or dentures, or write fabrication instructions or prescriptions for denturists or dental technicians.
  • Advise or instruct patients regarding preventive dental care, the causes and treatment of dental problems, or oral health care services.
  • Diagnose and treat diseases, injuries, or malformations of teeth, gums, or related oral structures and provide preventive or corrective services.
Also called
DDS (Dental Surgery Doctor)DentistFamily DentistGeneral DentistDMD (Dental Medicine Doctor)EndodontistPediatric DentistPedodontistPeriodontist
More job titles for this occupation (2)
Dental OfficerPublic Health Dentist

Source: O*NET 31.0 (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0). These are general job titles, not H-1B filings; for titles employers actually filed, see “Job titles” above.