In the ADA Health Policy Institute's Q3 2026 State of the U.S. Dental Economy report, published in October 2026, only about 26% of dentists said they were confident in the U.S. economy, and nearly two in five said they were not busy enough. That is the backdrop for every budget, hiring and marketing decision a private practice makes this quarter.
Most dental statistics pages recycle undated numbers from aggregator sites. I wanted one I could hand to a practice owner without caveats, so every figure below comes from the publisher's own page or PDF, with its data year next to it. Each section ends with what the number means for one private practice, because an average only helps if it changes a decision.
US dental spending reached $189.2 billion in 2024, but consumer dental spending in August 2026 was 0.9% below a year earlier. There were 205,088 active dentists in 2025, general dentists averaged $215,320 in income, two in three adults had a dental exam or cleaning, and most practices still find hygienists very hard to hire.
- Spending: Americans spent $189.2 billion on dental services in 2024, up 6.6% before inflation (CMS National Health Expenditure data).
- Busyness: nearly two in five dentists said they were not busy enough in Q3 2026, up from around one quarter in Q2 (ADA HPI).
- Margins: over five years, general dentists' inflation-adjusted revenue rose 1.4% while expenses rose 4.9% (ADA HPI, 2026).
- Hiring: 88.3% of dentists recruiting hygienists in Q3 2026 called it very or extremely challenging (ADA HPI).
- Patients: 47% of US consumers will not use a local business with fewer than 20 reviews (BrightLocal, 2026, all industries).
How big is US dental spending, and is it still growing?
It is large and growing over the long run, but it slowed in 2026. Americans spent $189.2 billion on dental services in 2024, up 6.6% from 2023 before inflation, according to the CMS National Health Expenditure highlights for 2024, released in January 2026. Total US health spending rose 7.2% to $5.3 trillion.
The ADA Health Policy Institute's analysis of the same data puts dental at 3.6% of all health spending, unchanged from 2023. After inflation, dental spending grew 4%, against 4.6% for health care overall. Government programs grew 9%, largely because of Medicare, while private dental insurance grew 2.3% and out-of-pocket spending 3.3%.
The newer signal is weaker. In the HPI's Q3 2026 report, which uses Bureau of Economic Analysis data, consumer dental spending in August 2026 was down 0.9% from a year earlier and down 2.4% year to date. Over ten years it rose 20%, while spending on physician services rose 51%.
How many dentists are there, and how is the workforce changing?
There were 205,088 professionally active dentists in the US in 2025, or 60.0 per 100,000 people, according to the ADA HPI dentist workforce data. The ratio has barely moved in a decade: it was 61.0 in 2015, per HPI's U.S. Dentist Workforce report (August 2025).
Who the dentists are is changing faster than how many there are. Women made up 39.4% of dentists in 2025, up from 19.9% in 2005. The average retirement age was 68.7 in 2024, up from 64.7 in 2001, and HPI expects most baby boomer dentists to leave the workforce by the late 2020s. Ownership is falling too: 73% of dentists owned their practice in 2023, against 85% in 2005.
| Measure | Figure | Data year |
|---|---|---|
| Professionally active dentists | 205,088 | 2025 |
| Dentists per 100,000 people | 60.0 | 2025 |
| Share who are women | 39.4% (19.9% in 2005) | 2025 |
| Share with a recognized specialty | 21.2% | 2025 |
| Share aged 65 or older | 15.2% | 2025 |
| Average retirement age | 68.7 (64.7 in 2001) | 2024 |
| Share who own their practice | 73% (85% in 2005) | 2023 |
How confident are dentists right now?
Less confident than in the first half of the year, and confidence in the US economy is at its lowest in several years. In the HPI's Q3 2026 report, 26.4% of dentists were somewhat or very confident in the US economy, 40.9% in the dental care sector and 50.4% in their own practice. The panel invited 2,422 dentists on 14 September 2026; 750 responded, 704 of them in private practice.
The drop followed two quarters of improvement. Confidence in their own practice had reached 60.6% in Q2 2026, so it fell about ten points in one quarter.
| Confident in... | Q3 2025 | Q4 2025 | Q1 2026 | Q2 2026 | Q3 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Their own practice | 53.7% | 53.4% | 55.1% | 60.6% | 50.4% |
| The dental care sector | 44.5% | 41.1% | 44.4% | 50.2% | 40.9% |
| The US economy | 33.4% | 32.7% | 32.5% | 39.7% | 26.4% |
Busyness tells the same story. Nearly two in five dentists said they were not busy enough in Q3 2026, up from around one quarter in Q2. The average wait for a new patient appointment fell to 12 days, a new low in HPI's series, from 12.4 days in Q3 2025 and 14.3 days in Q3 2024.
What do dentists earn, and is revenue keeping up with expenses?
Revenue is not keeping up. General dentists' average income was $215,320 in 2025, flat after inflation and lower than 15 years ago, according to the HPI's Trends in dentists' income, revenue and hours worked (June 2026, Survey of Dental Practice data). HPI calls the cause a fiscal squeeze: expenses rising faster than revenue.
The slide deck puts numbers on it, in 2025 dollars. Comparing the 2016 to 2020 average with 2021 to 2025, revenue per general dentist rose 1.4% to $804,144, expenses rose 4.9% to $552,909, and income fell 8.1% to $244,729. Owners took the hit: owner general dentists' incomes fell $23,000 between 2011 to 2015 and 2021 to 2025, while non-owner incomes were essentially unchanged.
For a wider comparison, the Bureau of Labor Statistics puts median pay for all dentists at $176,110 in May 2025. That figure mixes employees and owners, so the HPI numbers are the better benchmark if you own the practice.
How hard is it to hire hygienists and assistants?
Still very hard. In the HPI's Q3 2026 panel, around one third of dentists were recruiting hygienists, and 88.3% of them called it very or extremely challenging. About a third were recruiting assistants, and 76.8% said the same. The report's own summary is that staffing shortages have not eased much in the past year.
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook shows why. Hygienist jobs are projected to grow 8% from 2025 to 2035, much faster than average, with about 15,000 openings a year. Dental assistant jobs are projected to grow 7%, with about 53,000 openings a year.
| Role | Median pay, May 2025 | Jobs, 2025 | Projected growth, 2025 to 2035 | Openings per year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dentists | $176,110 | 161,400 | 6% | about 4,800 |
| Dental hygienists | $98,100 | 225,300 | 8% | about 15,000 |
| Dental assistants | $48,070 | 388,600 | 7% | about 53,000 |
Vacancies stay open a long time. Among dentists who filled a hygienist position, 21.2% said it had been open for more than six months, and only 9.6% filled it in under two weeks.
How many adults actually see a dentist?
About two in three. 66.7% of US adults had a dental exam or cleaning in the past 12 months in 2025, according to CDC NCHS FastStats, which uses the early-release 2025 National Health Interview Survey estimates. The final 2025 figure in the NHIS adult summary statistics is 66.4%, up from 63.0% in 2020.
The Delta Dental Plans Association's 2026 State of America's Oral Health and Wellness Report gives a lower figure: 57% of adults said they visited a dentist in 2025. Delta Dental is a dental insurer; it commissioned Material Holdings to survey 1,000 adults and 1,000 parents through an online opt-in panel from 5 to 15 January 2026, with a margin of error of plus or minus 3%.
Among adults who went, 89% had a preventive visit, up from 84% in 2024. Rural adults lagged: 44% visited, against 59% of urban adults. The gap with the CDC comes from different questions, samples and methods, so use the CDC figure as the national baseline and Delta Dental for attitudes.
How do patients choose and judge a practice online?
They read reviews and set thresholds before they call. BrightLocal, which sells review and local SEO software, surveyed 1,002 US adults through a SurveyMonkey panel for its Local Consumer Review Survey, published 11 February 2026. It covers all local businesses, not dental. 97% read online reviews, 68% will only use a business rated 4.0 or higher, and 47% will not use one with fewer than 20 reviews.
Healthcare data points the same way. Tebra, which sells practice management and patient engagement software, surveyed 3,964 US adults online on 29 June 2025 for its sixth annual Patient Perspectives report. 79% read reviews before choosing a provider, 53% will not consider one rated under 4 stars, 56% start their research on Google, and 70% said a reply to a negative review improved their opinion.
How are patients using AI for health questions and local recommendations?
A growing minority use it, and the share depends on what is being asked. Four recent surveys measure different things, so read them side by side rather than as one number.
| Survey (who ran it) | Sample and dates | Headline finding |
|---|---|---|
| Pew Research Center, Americans and AI 2026 | 5,119 adults, 17 to 23 Feb 2026, ±1.6 points | 20% use chatbots for medical advice |
| KFF Tracking Poll on Health Information and Trust | 1,343 adults, 24 Feb to 2 Mar 2026, ±3 points | 32% used AI chatbots for health information in the past year |
| West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America | 5,660 adults, 27 Oct to 22 Dec 2025, ±2.1 points | 25% have used AI for health information or advice; 14% of recent users skipped a visit |
| BrightLocal Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (vendor) | 1,002 adults, SurveyMonkey panel, published 11 Feb 2026 | 45% used ChatGPT or other AI for local recommendations, up from 6% |
Pew Research Center surveyed 5,119 US adults on its American Trends Panel from 17 to 23 February 2026, with a margin of error of plus or minus 1.6 points. About half (49%) use AI chatbots, and 20% use them for medical advice. Use falls with age: 61% of adults aged 18 to 29 use ChatGPT, against 19% of those 65 and older.
KFF found that 32% of adults used AI chatbots for health information in the past year, and 77% worry about the privacy of medical information shared with AI (1,343 adults, 24 February to 2 March 2026, plus or minus 3 points). The West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America, a partnership with West Health, a nonprofit funded by philanthropists Gary and Mary West, found that 25% of adults have used AI for health information or advice. 14% of recent users said it led them to skip a visit (5,660 adults, 27 October to 22 December 2025, plus or minus 2.1 points).
Side evidence from outside dentistry, from my own client work: for ITCE, a B2B IT training company in Sofia, visits from AI assistants rose from 8 to 77 in 90 days, and those visitors converted at 10.4% against 10.6% for Google organic visitors (GA4, 19 June to 16 September 2026 against the previous 90 days). The numbers are small, but the AI visitors were not lower quality.
Why do your own numbers matter more than any national average?
Because none of the figures above tells you whether your marketing works. I have not found a primary-source national benchmark for new patients per month; the "20 to 40 a month" figures that circulate trace back to agency and vendor blogs. The only number you can trust is the one counted in your own accounts.
When I started with a private fee for service practice in the Maryland/DC area in May 2025, nothing was installed to count calls, forms or bookings. The honest answer to "does the website produce patients" was "unknown". Here is what 15 months of tracking showed.
No national average could have told the practice that. The same holds at a smaller scale: Kraja & Sidhu Dental in Silver Spring, MD went from 23 tracked patient inquiries in its first year with me to 140 in the second, counted as GA4 key events.
Worksheet: your practice against the national numbers
Fill in the third column from your own systems. Most of it takes an afternoon with your practice management software, payroll records and Google Business Profile. The last row has no national figure, and it is the one that matters most.
| Measure | National figure (data year) | Your practice | Where to find yours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Days to the next new patient appointment | 12 days average wait (Q3 2026) | ________ | Scheduling software: first open new patient slot |
| Schedule fill rate | Nearly 2 in 5 dentists not busy enough (Q3 2026) | ________ | Hygiene and doctor schedules, last 4 weeks |
| Revenue growth vs expense growth, 5 years | +1.4% vs +4.9% (2021 to 2025 vs 2016 to 2020) | ________ | Your accountant's P&L for the same periods |
| General dentist average income | $215,320 (2025) | ________ | Owner's pay plus practice profit |
| Hygienist pay | $98,100 median (May 2025) | ________ | Payroll; compare with BLS pay for your metro area |
| Assistant pay | $48,070 median (May 2025) | ________ | Payroll |
| Adults with a dental exam or cleaning in 12 months | 66.7% (2025) | ________ | Share of active patients seen in the last 12 months (PMS report) |
| Google star rating | 31% of consumers require 4.5 or higher (2026) | ________ | Google Business Profile |
| Reviews in the last 3 months | 74% only consider reviews from the last 3 months (2026) | ________ | Google Business Profile, sorted by newest |
| Tracked new patient inquiries per month | No reliable national figure | ________ | GA4 key events plus call tracking |
If that last row is blank, start there. The tracking guide shows how to count calls, forms and bookings with free tools in about two hours. Setting this up is also part of what I sell; if you would rather not do it yourself, book a free 30 minute call and I will tell you what your market should produce.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a national benchmark for new patients per month?
Do these national numbers apply to my state or city?
Are vendor surveys like BrightLocal and Tebra worth using?
Which of these numbers should I check first?
Where do the ADA figures come from?
How often will this page be updated?
References
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Health Expenditure Highlights, 2024 data (released January 2026). www.cms.gov/files/document/highlights.pdf. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Health Expenditure Data: Historical, page modified 14 January 2026. www.cms.gov/Research-Statistics-Data-and-systems/Statistic…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, National Dental Expenditures, 2024 (analysis of CMS data released January 2026). ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dental-…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy (quarterly reports page). www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/den…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy, Q3 2026 report (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy, Q2 2026 report (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy, Q1 2026 report (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy, Q4 2025 report (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, State of the U.S. Dental Economy, Q3 2025 report (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, Dentist workforce (2025 update). www.ada.org/en/resources/research/health-policy-institute/…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, The U.S. Dentist Workforce, August 2025 (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, Trends in dentists' income, revenue and hours worked (2025 data). www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/den…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA Health Policy Institute, Trends in dentists' income, revenue and hours worked, 2026 slide deck (PDF). www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/f…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- ADA News, HPI: Dental practice expenses outpace revenue for general dentist owners, 6 October 2026. adanews.ada.org/new-dentist/2026/august/hpi-dental-practic…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Dentists (modified 27 August 2026). www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dentists.htm. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Dental Hygienists (modified 27 August 2026). www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dental-hygienists.htm. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Dental Assistants (modified 27 August 2026). www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/dental-assistants.htm. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- CDC National Center for Health Statistics, FastStats: Oral and Dental Health (last reviewed 12 June 2026). www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/dental.htm. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- CDC National Center for Health Statistics, Early Release of Selected Estimates Based on Data From the 2025 National Health Interview Survey (PDF). www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/nhis/earlyrelease/Early-Release-of-S…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- CDC National Center for Health Statistics, NHIS Adult Summary Health Statistics: dental exam or cleaning. wwwn.cdc.gov/NHISDataQueryTool/SHS_adult/index.html. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Delta Dental Plans Association, 2026 State of America's Oral Health and Wellness Report (PDF). deltadentaltn.com/hubfs/DDPA%202026%20State%20of%20America…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026, published 11 February 2026. www.brightlocal.com/research/local-consumer-review-survey/. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Tebra, Patient Perspectives survey (6th annual), fielded 29 June 2025, updated 14 October 2025. www.tebra.com/theintake/patient-experience/tips-and-trends…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Pew Research Center, Americans and AI 2026: Chatbots, Smart Devices and Views on Impact, 17 June 2026 (PDF). www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2026/06/PI…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Pew Research Center, How opinions and use of AI differ by age, June 2026. www.pewresearch.org/internet/2026/06/17/how-opinions-and-u…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Pew Research Center, ChatGPT tops the list of chatbots Americans use, across age groups (chart), 17 June 2026. www.pewresearch.org/chart/chatgpt-tops-the-list-of-chatbot…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- KFF, Poll: 1 in 3 adults are turning to AI chatbots for health information, 25 March 2026. www.kff.org/health-information-trust/poll-1-in-3-adults-ar…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- Gallup, West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America, Americans turning to AI to supplement healthcare visits, 14 April 2026. news.gallup.com/poll/707789/americans-turning-supplement-h…. Accessed 20 October 2026.
- West Health, Millions of Americans now consult AI before, after and sometimes instead of seeing a doctor, 15 April 2026. westhealth.org/news/millions-of-americans-now-consult-ai-b…. Accessed 20 October 2026.