Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2011

29-1021 Dentists, General

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 "Prosthodontists" (29-1024), "Orthodontists" (29-1023), "Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons" (29-1022) and "Dentists, All Other Specialists" (29-1029).


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation: Top

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
90,950 2.1 % $77.76 $161,750 1.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $35.81 $49.08 $68.62 (5) (5)
Annual Wage (2) $74,490 $102,090 $142,740 (5) (5)


Industry profile for this occupation: Top

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Dentists 81,910 9.80 $79.22 $164,780
Offices of Physicians 3,060 0.13 $66.51 $138,330
State Government (OES Designation) 1,300 0.06 $70.84 $147,340
Outpatient Care Centers 1,120 0.18 $66.11 $137,500
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 1,050 0.02 $51.97 $108,100

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Dentists 81,910 9.80 $79.22 $164,780
Outpatient Care Centers 1,120 0.18 $66.11 $137,500
Offices of Physicians 3,060 0.13 $66.51 $138,330
State Government (OES Designation) 1,300 0.06 $70.84 $147,340
Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals 120 0.05 $65.54 $136,330

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Offices of Dentists 81,910 9.80 $79.22 $164,780
Offices of Other Health Practitioners 300 0.04 $76.74 $159,620
Employment Services 340 0.01 $71.50 $148,710
State Government (OES Designation) 1,300 0.06 $70.84 $147,340
Other Ambulatory Health Care Services 80 0.03 $70.58 $146,810


Geographic profile for this occupation: Top

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.





States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 11,520 0.82 1.16 $71.20 $148,100
New York 6,510 0.77 1.09 $73.01 $151,860
Texas 5,840 0.57 0.80 $82.37 $171,330
Florida 5,130 0.72 1.01 $70.44 $146,520
Illinois 5,000 0.90 1.26 $58.48 $121,650




States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Nevada 1,140 1.02 1.44 $75.99 $158,050
Utah 1,170 1.01 1.42 $60.35 $125,540
Maryland 2,510 1.01 1.43 $72.20 $150,180
Massachusetts 3,060 0.97 1.37 $86.64 $180,210
Michigan 3,560 0.93 1.31 $77.98 $162,200




Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New Hampshire 300 0.49 0.70 $114.15 $237,430
Delaware 270 0.67 0.94 $101.17 $210,440
Maine 410 0.71 1.00 $100.03 $208,060
North Dakota 130 0.35 0.49 $98.92 $205,760
Alabama 820 0.45 0.64 $98.62 $205,130





Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-White Plains-Wayne, NY-NJ Metropolitan Division 4,650 0.92 1.29 $66.79 $138,930
Chicago-Joliet-Naperville, IL Metropolitan Division 3,530 0.99 1.39 $59.60 $123,970
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, CA Metropolitan Division 3,510 0.92 1.29 $63.44 $131,960
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Division 1,980 0.86 1.21 $88.19 $183,440
Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division 1,900 1.13 1.60 $84.70 $176,170
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA 1,600 0.72 1.01 $98.25 $204,360
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX 1,520 0.59 0.84 $70.87 $147,410
Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, AZ 1,430 0.84 1.19 $89.20 $185,540
Warren-Troy-Farmington Hills, MI Metropolitan Division 1,400 1.35 1.90 $61.28 $127,460
Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, CA Metropolitan Division 1,340 0.97 1.36 $56.38 $117,270




Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, MA NECTA Division 160 1.86 2.62 $84.79 $176,370
North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL 430 1.84 2.60 $68.71 $142,920
Hot Springs, AR 60 1.81 2.55 $65.92 $137,110
Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA 70 1.78 2.51 $64.84 $134,870
Lake County-Kenosha County, IL-WI Metropolitan Division 610 1.68 2.36 $41.46 $86,230
Idaho Falls, ID 80 1.68 2.37 $102.36 $212,900
Dubuque, IA 90 1.66 2.35 $108.59 $225,870
Hanford-Corcoran, CA 60 1.65 2.33 $102.00 $212,170
Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA 280 1.62 2.29 $61.19 $127,280
Flint, MI 200 1.60 2.25 $93.01 $193,460




Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Manchester, NH (8) (8) (8) (5) (5)
Tyler, TX 40 0.44 0.62 (5) (5)
Rocky Mount, NC (8) (8) (8) (5) (5)
Abilene, TX (8) (8) (8) (5) (5)
Asheville, NC 140 0.85 1.19 $119.49 $248,530
Odessa, TX (8) (8) (8) $116.20 $241,700
Montgomery, AL (8) (8) (8) $115.35 $239,920
Chico, CA 70 0.99 1.40 $114.36 $237,860
Reno-Sparks, NV 90 0.49 0.70 $113.77 $236,640
Coeur d'Alene, ID 80 1.48 2.09 $113.10 $235,250

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Balance of Lower Peninsula of Michigan nonmetropolitan area 220 0.80 1.12 $91.33 $189,960
Other Ohio nonmetropolitan area 180 0.66 0.93 $87.95 $182,930
Western Central North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 170 0.71 1.00 $89.36 $185,870
Eastern Texas nonmetropolitan area 170 0.62 0.87 $30.09 $62,590
Southeastern Oklahoma nonmetropolitan area 160 1.02 1.44 $72.77 $151,360

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
South Western Utah nonmetropolitan area 40 2.07 2.92 (8) (8)
Northern Utah nonmetropolitan area 40 2.01 2.83 $36.79 $76,520
West Central Utah nonmetropolitan area 30 1.75 2.47 $59.05 $122,820
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area 120 1.23 1.74 $87.20 $181,370
Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 70 1.21 1.71 $59.62 $124,000

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area 30 0.77 1.09 (5) (5)
South Georgia nonmetropolitan area 70 0.39 0.55 (5) (5)
Southwest Alabama nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) (5) (5)
East Central Illinois nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) $120.33 $250,280
Southwestern Virginia nonmetropolitan area 80 0.62 0.88 $118.46 $246,400


About May 2011 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly mean wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(5) This wage is equal to or greater than $90.00 per hour or $187,199 per year.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

May 2011 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2011 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

List of Occupations in SOC Code Number Order

List of Occupations in Alphabetical Order

Download May 2011 Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates in Zipped XLS files

Technical Notes

 

Last Modified Date: March 27, 2012