What is the Salary of a Dentist?

I titled this post "Salary of a Dentist" because many people use their search engines to answer that question. I have a problem with the question itself. Most Dentists do not make a "salary". They are self-employed. What you really need to ask is what is the net income. That is income after paying overhead expenses. Well, from what I can tell that varies greatly with each individual and with any given point in a career. Generally, you will eventually be in the top 10% of income earners in the U.S. I am writing this for the aspiring dentists out there. Just remember, nothing comes without hard work and a love for what you do.

Well, how much does a dentist make? If you want reasonably accurate statistics, go to the ADA web site. They have reports (which you may have to pay a small fee to get) that report gross income, net income, etc. for various dental specialties. I have to say that most of these studies are a couple years old. The sample size is quite small for specialties as there are just not many of us. In addition, many of us, myself included, do not have enough time to fill out rather long survey forms from the ADA. Therefore, data may not reflect reality, but what they have is probably the best available data out there. Other sources might be government agencies (census, hhs, etc.) Cnn/Money lists "Dentist" in the top ten highest paying careers and Oral Surgeon as number three. Although their numbers are not quite accurate as I have explained here (I actually think their numbers are a little low), you get the idea. One might say I shouldn't talk about salaries this way. All I know is that I want my neurosurgeon, my airline pilot and my dentist to be the most skilled caring professionals out there and I want them to be happy and well compensated.

Update June 2011: An ADA survey (2009)related that general practitioners earned an average of $207,210 and specialists at $342,270.

Here is what I have observed:

1. Dentists in general and dental specialists in particular spend lots of time getting their education. That means while their peers are already earning an income, dentists are still in school. In fact that education is quite costly. Most dentists end up with $100,000 or more in debt upon graduation. Ouch!

2. Once a dentist graduates college (assuming 4 years there), he/she has four years of dental school followed by a minimum of two years of specialty residency. If someone is 18 upon entering college, that figures out to being around a minimum of 28 years old when you are ready to earn an income. I have noticed that many are much older than that.

3. If you do the math, it's going to take a lot of income to make up for lost time (income), lost investments, and to pay off all that debt.

4. Once you start "practice", you will fall into one of a few categories: private practitioner (and owner of a business, your practice), salaried employee or associate, or a salaried employee in an academic institution (or the military).

-If you are salaried as an employee or an associate, the "salary" term is more appropriate. You will make a good living. I am guessing in the more than $100k range. The U.S. government list the median at $130,000. (Update 2011: Salary listed as $142,000)  It will not change much over time if you remain an employee dentist. In Pediatric Dentistry in particular, I have noticed that starting "salaries" have been going up in the past few years as the demand for pediatric specialists is increasing.

-If you start out on your own, you will initially not make the same income as your peers. In fact just starting a business means you will likely have a negative income for the first few years! As time goes on, and if you do the right things, you will eventually "make" more than salaried employees, but again you start out very slowly. You have to use your "income" to pay off school debt, pay off business loans, invest in dental equipment, and of course pay lots of taxes. Eventually however, some of the top professionals earn several hundred thousand per year. That is, probably $400 to $600k/yr or more. Oh, when you have increasing income you will discover the bite of higher tax rates. So, you really have to earn a lot more to realize any real increase. Also, as a business owner you will spend a lot more time on business issues (after hours and weekends).

-The best arrangement, I think is to start out as an associate of another dentist or dentists with a "salary" leading to a transitional stage where you earn more as you work more, followed by "buying into" a practice, thus becoming an owner or part owner. That will allow you to earn a reasonable income the first few years, pay off debt, learn more about the profession and patient care, and then transition into being an owner where you will do quite well. All this takes time.

5. It does not hold that any one specialty (or general dentistry) is more lucrative than another. Some specialties from time to time are in more demand and therefore will get more income. Pediatric Dentistry in particular right now is in great demand with limited supply. It has more to do with the business situation you are in and what you do with it. Your academic credentials help you make a good income but it's being in business that makes the largest incomes. Your interpersonal people skills can make all the difference as well. If you are a crummy dentist with poor people skills who doesn't care about your patients, you will not do very well. In fact you need to find another line of work. Our patients deserve only the best.

6. Once you start doing well, you must invest any savings wisely because many dentist do not work till age 65 and are prone to health problems like back trouble that might cut a career short. However, a dentist who has the ability and desire, can work well into his 70's or beyond. One more thing, you will do a lot better than most physicians.

* Update June. link-->  2012 highest paid professions-again goofy statistics here, but still dentists are #2 here.

In summary, if you are a young dentist, you will earn less than an older more experienced dentist. Being a great dentist and business owner with good people skills is more critical to long-term income than is your specialty, but specialists generally receive higher incomes. You usually start out with debt and a low or even negative income. Eventually, you will do quite well and make up for all the "sacrifice" over the years. It is a blessing to be in a country (The United States of America) that will allow a reasonable reward for your education and all that hard work (and it is hard work). If you love your profession, love your patients, are skilled and compassionate, have high ethical standards, have good business skills and good people skills, and work hard, dentistry is a financially rewarding profession.