Dental Hygienist Salary in North Carolina: What Dental Hygienists Earn in 2026
25th percentile
$84,150
Median (50th)
$97,850
75th percentile
$100,930
National median
$98,100
BLS OEWS (SOC 29-1292), May 2025
What does a dental hygienist make in North Carolina?
The median dental hygienist in North Carolina earns $97,850 a year ($47.04 an hour), which is $250 below the national median of $98,100, and more than in nearby Georgia ($95,490) and Tennessee ($84,640) but less than in Virginia ($102,950). The mean is $93,640.
That ranks 20th of the 49 states plus DC where BLS publishes a dental hygienist median.
Entry-level vs top earners in North Carolina
The middle half of North Carolina dental hygienists earn $84,150 to $100,930. The lowest-paid tenth earn under $77,270, $2,390 above the national 10th percentile. The top tenth earn over $103,850, $22,200 below the national 90th percentile.
How far the pay goes in North Carolina
The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts North Carolina's 2024 price level at 94.3 (U.S. = 100): prices overall run 5.7% below the national average, and housing (index 81.4) runs 18.6% below.
Converted to national average prices, the $97,850 median is worth about $103,740 — $5,640 above the national median of $98,100.
How many dental hygienists work in North Carolina
BLS counts about 6,690 dental hygienist jobs in North Carolina, 3.0% of the 222,740 nationwide, or 1.354 per 1,000 jobs in the state. Dental hygienists hold a 5% smaller share of local jobs than nationally (location quotient 0.95).
Dental Hygienist Salary by City in North Carolina
Across the 15 North Carolina metro areas where BLS publishes a dental hygienist median, pay runs from $82,380 in Jacksonville to $101,460 in Durham, a spread of $19,080.
All dental roles by metro: Asheville · Burlington · Charlotte · Durham · Fayetteville · Greensboro · Greenville · Hickory · Raleigh · Rocky Mount · Winston
Who's hiring dental hygienists in North Carolina now
DentistryHires has 118 open dental hygienist listings in North Carolina from 50 employers, the most of them in Charlotte (17).
56 post hourly pay, from $30 to $99 an hour; 1 posts a salary from $68,734 to $79,707 a year. These are employers' posted ranges, not survey figures.
Dental Hygienist Regulatory Context in North Carolina
Dental hygienist practice in North Carolina is regulated by the North Carolina State Board of Dental Examiners.
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 North Carolina Compares
Other dental salaries in North Carolina
- Dentist salary in North Carolina: median $207,000, $109,150 above the dental hygienist median
- Dental Assistant salary in North Carolina: median $50,380, $47,470 below the dental hygienist median
- Dental Lab Technician salary in North Carolina: median $49,700, $48,150 below the dental hygienist median
- Orthodontist salary in North Carolina: median $224,990
- Oral Surgeon salary in North Carolina: median $224,040
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.