Although the supply of dentists in the U.S. has increased by 24% since 2001, that growth has slowed in recent years due to an increase in retirement, according to data from the American Dental Association.
The ADA recently released new data on the dentist workforce, including demographics, workplaces and retirement trends.
The ADA noted that there is now a larger supply of younger dentists and that a considerable share of dentists ages 60 and older have left the workforce since 2017.
The current average retirement age is 68, up from 64 in 2001, according to the ADA’s report.
Here is the supply of dentists in the U.S. each year since 2001:
2001: 163,409
2002: 165,659
2003: 167,528
2004: 169,765
2005: 171,586
2006: 172,638
2007: 176,121
2008: 178,399
2009: 181,388
2010: 183,212
2011: 186,099
2012: 188,884
2013: 191,389
2014: 192,271
2015: 195,770
2016: 196,468
2017: 198,517
2018: 199,486
2019: 200,419
2020: 201,117
2021: 201,927
2022: 202,536
2023: 202,304
2024: 202,485
