Oregon has the highest hourly mean wage for specialty dentists in the U.S., while Texas has the highest hourly mean wage for the profession when adjusted for cost of living, according to new data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Below are the mean annual and hourly wages for specialty dentists in 19 states, based on May 2025 salary data published by the bureau. In addition, Becker’s calculated mean hourly wages adjusted for each state’s cost of living using 2025 cost-of-living index data from World Population Review.
Across the U.S., specialty dentists earned an average annual wage of $247,930.
The agency updated salary data May 15 to reflect 2025 information, the latest available.
Note: Compensation data was not available for every state.
| State | Annual Wage | Hourly Wage | Cost of living index (2025) | Hourly Wage, adjusted by COLI |
| Arizona | $266,340 | $128.05 | 110.7 | $115.67 |
| Arkansas | $228,240 | $109.73 | 89.6 | $122.47 |
| California | $218,050 | $104.83 | 142.3 | $73.67 |
| Colorado | $195,020 | $93.76 | 102.7 | $91.30 |
| Connecticut | $179,460 | $86.28 | 112.7 | $76.56 |
| Illinois | $242,070 | $116.38 | 94.7 | $122.89 |
| Maryland | $201,410 | $96.83 | 115.4 | $83.91 |
| Michigan | $247,360 | $118.92 | 90.1 | $131.99 |
| Missouri | $228,260 | $109.74 | 89 | $123.30 |
| Nebraska | $239,620 | $115.20 | 92.6 | $124.41 |
| New Jersey | $282,180 | $135.67 | 115.1 | $117.87 |
| North Carolina | $213,660 | $102.72 | 97.8 | $105.03 |
| Ohio | $186,660 | $89.74 | 94.3 | $95.16 |
| Oklahoma | $219,100 | $105.34 | 86 | $122.49 |
| Oregon | $285,900 | $137.45 | 111.8 | $122.94 |
| Pennsylvania | $203,900 | $98.03 | 97.2 | $100.85 |
| South Carolina | $242,930 | $116.79 | 94.7 | $123.33 |
| Texas | $280,030 | $134.63 | 92.1 | $146.18 |
| West Virginia | $213,550 | $102.67 | 88.3 | $116.27 |
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