Dental Hygienist Salary in Louisiana: What Dental Hygienists Earn in 2026
25th percentile
$79,550
Median (50th)
$85,240
75th percentile
$96,010
National median
$98,100
BLS OEWS (SOC 29-1292), May 2025
What does a dental hygienist make in Louisiana?
The median dental hygienist in Louisiana earns $85,240 a year ($40.98 an hour), which is $12,860 below the national median of $98,100, and more than in nearby Mississippi ($67,280) but less than in Texas ($99,240) and Arkansas ($86,760). The mean is $83,160.
That ranks 40th of the 49 states plus DC where BLS publishes a dental hygienist median.
Entry-level vs top earners in Louisiana
The middle half of Louisiana dental hygienists earn $79,550 to $96,010. The lowest-paid tenth earn under $49,900, $24,980 below the national 10th percentile. The top tenth earn over $98,330, $27,720 below the national 90th percentile.
How far the pay goes in Louisiana
The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts Louisiana's 2024 price level at 88.2 (U.S. = 100): prices overall run 11.8% below the national average, and housing (index 63.1) runs 36.9% below.
Converted to national average prices, the $85,240 median is worth about $96,640 — $1,460 below the national median of $98,100.
How many dental hygienists work in Louisiana
BLS counts about 2,690 dental hygienist jobs in Louisiana, 1.2% of the 222,740 nationwide, or 1.389 per 1,000 jobs in the state. Dental hygienists hold a 3% smaller share of local jobs than nationally (location quotient 0.97).
Dental Hygienist Salary by City in Louisiana
Across the 10 Louisiana metro areas where BLS publishes a dental hygienist median, pay runs from $79,530 in Monroe to $93,650 in New Orleans, a spread of $14,120.
All dental roles by metro: Baton Rouge · Lafayette · Lake Charles · Monroe · New Orleans · Shreveport · Slidell
Who's hiring dental hygienists in Louisiana now
DentistryHires has 19 open dental hygienist listings in Louisiana from 11 employers, the most of them in New Orleans (3).
15 post hourly pay, from $35 to $62 an hour; 1 posts a salary from $75,000 to $80,000 a year. These are employers' posted ranges, not survey figures.
Dental Hygienist Regulatory Context in Louisiana
Dental hygienist practice in Louisiana is regulated by the Louisiana State Board of Dentistry.
Scope of practice — what a dental hygienist 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 Louisiana Compares
Other dental salaries in Louisiana
- Dentist salary in Louisiana: median $170,750, $85,510 above the dental hygienist median
- Dental Assistant salary in Louisiana: median $44,090, $41,150 below the dental hygienist median
- Dental Lab Technician salary in Louisiana: median $38,490, $46,750 below the dental hygienist 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.