Dental Assistant Salary in Mississippi: What Dental Assistants Earn in 2026
25th percentile
$36,240
Median (50th)
$39,160
75th percentile
$47,450
National median
$48,070
BLS OEWS (SOC 31-9091), May 2025
What does a dental assistant make in Mississippi?
The median dental assistant in Mississippi earns $39,160 a year ($18.83 an hour), which is $8,910 below the national median of $48,070, but less than in nearby Tennessee ($46,720), Louisiana ($44,090) and Arkansas ($42,830). The mean is $42,910.
That ranks 47th of the 49 states plus DC where BLS publishes a dental assistant median.
Entry-level vs top earners in Mississippi
The middle half of Mississippi dental assistants earn $36,240 to $47,450. The lowest-paid tenth earn under $30,650, $6,480 below the national 10th percentile. The top tenth earn over $58,620, $3,630 below the national 90th percentile.
How far the pay goes in Mississippi
The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts Mississippi's 2024 price level at 87.0 (U.S. = 100): prices overall run 13.0% below the national average, and housing (index 56.5) runs 43.5% below.
Converted to national average prices, the $39,160 median is worth about $45,040 — $3,030 below the national median of $48,070.
How many dental assistants work in Mississippi
BLS counts about 3,080 dental assistant jobs in Mississippi, 0.8% of the 387,790 nationwide, or 2.651 per 1,000 jobs in the state. Dental assistants hold a 6% larger share of local jobs than nationally (location quotient 1.06).
Dental Assistant Salary by City in Mississippi
Across the 3 Mississippi metro areas where BLS publishes a dental assistant median, pay runs from $38,190 in Hattiesburg to $46,910 in Jackson, a spread of $8,720.
All dental roles by metro: Hattiesburg · Jackson
Who's hiring dental assistants in Mississippi now
DentistryHires has 10 open dental assistant listings in Mississippi from 5 employers, the most of them in Gulfport (2).
6 post hourly pay, from $14 to $25 an hour. These are employers' posted ranges, not survey figures.
Dental Assistant Regulatory Context in Mississippi
Dental assistant practice in Mississippi is regulated by the Mississippi State Board of Dental Examiners.
Scope of practice — what a dental assistant may do, and under what level of supervision — is set by state law and changes over time, so verify current rules with the board before relying on them.
How Mississippi Compares
Other dental salaries in Mississippi
- Dentist salary in Mississippi: median $143,660, $104,500 above the dental assistant median
- Dental Hygienist salary in Mississippi: median $67,280, $28,120 above the dental assistant median
- Dental Lab Technician salary in Mississippi: median $47,770, $8,610 above the dental assistant median
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (state and national estimates, all industries); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024. Price-adjusted pay divides the median by the price level. Listing counts and posted pay are live DentistryHires listings, refreshed hourly. A dash means BLS did not publish that figure; nothing is estimated.