How much does a a Dental Hygienist make a year?

The U.S. median annual wage is $98,100: half of the people in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less. Source: BLS OES May 2025.

What do the highest- and lowest-paid Dental Hygienists earn?

Nationally, the top 10% earn more than $126,050 a year, and the bottom 10% earn less than $74,880. The middle half sit between $83,570 and $108,480.

Which state has the highest median wage for Dental Hygienists?

District of Columbia (DC) has the highest published median, $137,220 — about 40% above the national median. 52 of the 54 areas in the survey publish a figure for this occupation.

How many Dental Hygienists work in the United States?

222,740 people worked in this occupation in the May 2025 BLS OES survey.

What education do Dental Hygienists need?

O*NET rates the education this occupation requires as: Associate's (2-year). That is a rating of the job, not a survey of what the people doing it studied. O*NET also places the occupation in Job Zone 3 (Some preparation).

What is the hourly pay for Dental Hygienists?

The national median is $47.16 an hour, or $98,100 a year. That is the national figure — we have not loaded BLS's state-level hourly wages.

Dental Hygienist Salary by State

How much does a a Dental Hygienist make?

U.S. median, per year: $98,100
Middle 50% of workers: $83,570 to $108,480
Employed in the U.S.: 222,740 people
Hourly median: $47.16 an hour
Range of state medians: $59,320 to $137,220

Source: BLS OES May 2025 · retrieved 2026-09-15

The full pay ladder

Percentiles split the people doing this job into ten equal groups. P10 is the point that the lowest-paid 10% fall below; P90 is the point only the top 10% rise above. These are national figures, published by BLS.

	Annual	Hourly
P10 — bottom 10%	$74,880	$36.00
P25 — bottom quarter	$83,570	$40.18
Median (P50)	$98,100	$47.16
P75 — top quarter	$108,480	$52.16
P90 — top 10%	$126,050	$60.60
Average (mean)	$98,990	$47.59

P90 is about 1.7 times P10. That is a ratio between two points on the distribution, not between two groups of people.

The state table below is annual: we downloaded only the annual figures for the states. BLS also publishes state hourly wages, and we have not loaded those yet.

Dental Hygienist pay across the 54 areas in the BLS survey

All 54 areas in the BLS survey, ranked by median annual wage. 52 publish a figure for this occupation.

District of Columbia (DC)$137,220
+40%#1Employed: 320
Alaska (AK)$132,690
+35%#2Employed: 790
Washington (WA)$131,160
+34%#3Employed: 6,330
California (CA)$124,930
+27%#4Employed: 24,500
Oregon (OR)$122,080
+24%#5Employed: 3,600
Nevada (NV)$115,290
+18%#6Employed: 1,510
Colorado (CO)$109,580
+12%#7Employed: 4,270
Maryland (MD)$107,830
+10%#8Employed: 3,500
New Jersey (NJ)$107,040
+9%#9Employed: 7,230
New York (NY)$106,130
+8%#10Employed: 13,660
Minnesota (MN)$103,970
+6%#11Employed: 4,110
Virginia (VA)$102,950
+5%#12Employed: 3,770
New Hampshire (NH)$101,250
+3%#13Employed: 1,360
Arizona (AZ)$101,010
+3%#14Employed: 4,530
Connecticut (CT)$100,690
+3%#15Employed: 3,240
Massachusetts (MA)$100,640
+3%#16Employed: 6,850
Texas (TX)$99,240
+1%#17Employed: 16,380
Delaware (DE)$98,910
+1%#18Employed: 750
Montana (MT)$98,440
level with the U.S.#19Employed: 860
North Carolina (NC)$97,850
level with the U.S.#20Employed: 6,690
Maine (ME)$97,680
level with the U.S.#21Employed: 1,060
Oklahoma (OK)$97,580
−1%#22Employed: 2,860
Hawaii (HI)$97,570
−1%#23Employed: 830
Vermont (VT)$97,470
−1%#24Employed: 560
Illinois (IL)$96,670
−1%#25Employed: 8,970
Wisconsin (WI)$96,540
−2%#26Employed: 5,080
New Mexico (NM)$95,940
−2%#27Employed: 1,420
Georgia (GA)$95,490
−3%#28Employed: 7,440
Idaho (ID)$94,650
−4%#29Employed: 2,060
Missouri (MO)$92,750
−5%#30Employed: 3,810
Nebraska (NE)$92,580
−6%#31Employed: 1,280
Indiana (IN)$92,330
−6%#32Employed: 5,020
South Dakota (SD)$92,210
−6%#33Employed: 630
Florida (FL)$91,980
−6%#34Employed: 11,980
Utah (UT)$91,120
−7%#35Employed: 3,780
North Dakota (ND)$90,530
−8%#36Employed: 660
Ohio (OH)$88,990
−9%#37Employed: 8,630
Rhode Island (RI)$86,910
−11%#38Employed: 770
Arkansas (AR)$86,760
−12%#39Employed: 1,740
Louisiana (LA)$85,240
−13%#40Employed: 2,690
Wyoming (WY)$85,130
−13%#41Employed: 500
Tennessee (TN)$84,640
−14%#42Employed: 4,570
South Carolina (SC)$84,340
−14%#43Employed: 3,160
Iowa (IA)$84,010
−14%#44Employed: 2,440
Michigan (MI)$83,790
−15%#45Employed: 8,640
Pennsylvania (PA)$80,610
−18%#46Employed: 7,970
Kentucky (KY)$78,830
−20%#47Employed: 2,070
West Virginia (WV)$73,840
−25%#48Employed: 1,250
Mississippi (MS)$67,280
−31%#49Employed: 1,140
Guam (GU)$62,970
−36%#50Employed: 40
Alabama (AL)$61,160
−38%#51Employed: 3,170
Puerto Rico (PR)$59,320
−40%#52Employed: —
Kansas (KS)Not published
—Employed: —
Virgin Islands (VI)Not published
—Employed: —

State or territory	Median annual wage	vs U.S. median	Employed	Rank
District of Columbia (DC)	$137,220	+40%	320	1
Alaska (AK)	$132,690	+35%	790	2
Washington (WA)	$131,160	+34%	6,330	3
California (CA)	$124,930	+27%	24,500	4
Oregon (OR)	$122,080	+24%	3,600	5
Nevada (NV)	$115,290	+18%	1,510	6
Colorado (CO)	$109,580	+12%	4,270	7
Maryland (MD)	$107,830	+10%	3,500	8
New Jersey (NJ)	$107,040	+9%	7,230	9
New York (NY)	$106,130	+8%	13,660	10
Minnesota (MN)	$103,970	+6%	4,110	11
Virginia (VA)	$102,950	+5%	3,770	12
New Hampshire (NH)	$101,250	+3%	1,360	13
Arizona (AZ)	$101,010	+3%	4,530	14
Connecticut (CT)	$100,690	+3%	3,240	15
Massachusetts (MA)	$100,640	+3%	6,850	16
Texas (TX)	$99,240	+1%	16,380	17
Delaware (DE)	$98,910	+1%	750	18
Montana (MT)	$98,440	level with the U.S.	860	19
North Carolina (NC)	$97,850	level with the U.S.	6,690	20
Maine (ME)	$97,680	level with the U.S.	1,060	21
Oklahoma (OK)	$97,580	−1%	2,860	22
Hawaii (HI)	$97,570	−1%	830	23
Vermont (VT)	$97,470	−1%	560	24
Illinois (IL)	$96,670	−1%	8,970	25
Wisconsin (WI)	$96,540	−2%	5,080	26
New Mexico (NM)	$95,940	−2%	1,420	27
Georgia (GA)	$95,490	−3%	7,440	28
Idaho (ID)	$94,650	−4%	2,060	29
Missouri (MO)	$92,750	−5%	3,810	30
Nebraska (NE)	$92,580	−6%	1,280	31
Indiana (IN)	$92,330	−6%	5,020	32
South Dakota (SD)	$92,210	−6%	630	33
Florida (FL)	$91,980	−6%	11,980	34
Utah (UT)	$91,120	−7%	3,780	35
North Dakota (ND)	$90,530	−8%	660	36
Ohio (OH)	$88,990	−9%	8,630	37
Rhode Island (RI)	$86,910	−11%	770	38
Arkansas (AR)	$86,760	−12%	1,740	39
Louisiana (LA)	$85,240	−13%	2,690	40
Wyoming (WY)	$85,130	−13%	500	41
Tennessee (TN)	$84,640	−14%	4,570	42
South Carolina (SC)	$84,340	−14%	3,160	43
Iowa (IA)	$84,010	−14%	2,440	44
Michigan (MI)	$83,790	−15%	8,640	45
Pennsylvania (PA)	$80,610	−18%	7,970	46
Kentucky (KY)	$78,830	−20%	2,070	47
West Virginia (WV)	$73,840	−25%	1,250	48
Mississippi (MS)	$67,280	−31%	1,140	49
Guam (GU)	$62,970	−36%	40	50
Alabama (AL)	$61,160	−38%	3,170	51
Puerto Rico (PR)	$59,320	−40%	—	52
Kansas (KS)	Not published	—	—	—
Virgin Islands (VI)	Not published	—	—	—

Highest: District of Columbia (DC) at $137,220. Lowest: Puerto Rico (PR) at $59,320.

2 of the 54 areas have no published median for this occupation, and BLS published no footnote for them. We leave the gap empty rather than estimate a number.

These are survey estimates, not counts: two neighbouring ranks are not necessarily a real difference. No median or percentile figure on this page carries a relative standard error — the OES data we download has no such field for them — and the state-level relative standard errors are not downloaded either. BLS measures the reliability of an estimate with the relative standard error; its own definition: “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.”

Nominal wages, with no adjustment for cost of living. A higher state median does not mean a higher standard of living, and it is not a forecast of what any one person would earn.

What the job usually takes

O*NET's preparation level for this occupation, its rated education requirement, and what the people in the occupation reported. These describe the typical route in — they are not requirements you have to meet.

Preparation level (O*NET Job Zone): Zone 3 — Some preparation
A vocational certificate or associate's degree, or equivalent experience (electricians, accounting).
Rated education requirement: Associate's (2-year)

31.0 · rated by people doing the job · 19 respondents · collected 08/2021

What people in this occupation reported

Associate's (2-year) — 75.2%
Professional degree (JD / MD, etc.) — 12.7%

Its Holland code is SRI

O*NET gives every occupation an interest code: the RIASEC directions its work draws on most. This one is SRI — Social · Realistic · Investigative.

SSocial
RRealistic
IInvestigative

An occupation's code and a person's code are not the same measurement. The questionnaire asks how much you like an activity; the occupation profile describes how much of that interest area the work contains. No equivalence study links the two, so a match is a starting point for research, not a verdict that this job suits you.

More occupations whose code starts with SRI

Find your own code

O*NET's own relatedness ranking for this occupation: the occupations it judges similar in what workers do, know and are called. It is not a record of who moved where.

Dental AssistantsConventional · Realistic · Social
Surgical AssistantsRealistic · Conventional · Social
Medical AssistantsConventional · Social · Realistic
Veterinary Technologists and TechniciansRealistic · Investigative · Conventional
Ophthalmic Medical TechniciansRealistic · Investigative · Social

Names are O*NET's official occupation titles — the ones used in U.S. labour-market data.

Common questions

How much does a a Dental Hygienist make a year?: The U.S. median annual wage is $98,100: half of the people in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less. Source: BLS OES May 2025.
What do the highest- and lowest-paid Dental Hygienists earn?: Nationally, the top 10% earn more than $126,050 a year, and the bottom 10% earn less than $74,880. The middle half sit between $83,570 and $108,480.
Which state has the highest median wage for Dental Hygienists?: District of Columbia (DC) has the highest published median, $137,220 — about 40% above the national median. 52 of the 54 areas in the survey publish a figure for this occupation.
How many Dental Hygienists work in the United States?: 222,740 people worked in this occupation in the May 2025 BLS OES survey.
What education do Dental Hygienists need?: O*NET rates the education this occupation requires as: Associate's (2-year). That is a rating of the job, not a survey of what the people doing it studied. O*NET also places the occupation in Job Zone 3 (Some preparation).
What is the hourly pay for Dental Hygienists?: The national median is $47.16 an hour, or $98,100 a year. That is the national figure — we have not loaded BLS's state-level hourly wages.

Where these numbers come from

O*NET Database 31.0 (CC BY 4.0) — occupation names, interest (Holland) codes, Job Zone and the rated education requirement. Retrieved 2026-09-15.
BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), May 2025 release — every wage and employment figure on this page. Retrieved 2026-09-15. Public domain. OES does not include self-employed workers, and annual figures are hourly figures multiplied by 2,080 hours where hourly ones are published.
For these figures, BLS publishes a relative standard error:
- U.S. employment: 222,740 — BLS relative standard error 1.6%
- National average annual wage (mean): $98,990 — BLS relative standard error 1.0%
This is BLS's own definition: “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.”A relative standard error belongs to the figure it is listed against, and to that figure only. The median and the percentile figures on this page have none — the OES data we download carries no relative standard error for them — and the state-level relative standard errors are not downloaded, so no state figure carries one.
O*NET and BLS both use the same SOC occupation code, so the join here is exact: BLS publishes this occupation's wages under 29-1292.

How to cite this page

Dental Hygienists salary data, Career Interest Test, from O*NET 31.0 and BLS OES May 2025, exported 2026-09-16.

We are not licensed career counselors. The figures on this page are occupation-level statistics published by the U.S. government: they describe what people in this job earn, not what any one person would earn.

Dental Hygienists