Dentist Salary in Florida: What Dentists Earn in 2026
25th percentile
$128,440
Median (50th)
$174,900
75th percentile
$229,990
National median
$170,950
BLS OEWS (SOC 29-1021), May 2025
The median salary of a dentist in Florida is $174,900 a year, or $84.09 an hour, in the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 2025 wage estimates for general dentists (SOC 29-1021).
The middle half of Florida dentists earn $128,440 to $229,990, and the mean is $195,930.
The top tenth earn over $314,860, and pay varies by city, from a $130,560 median in Naples to $241,850 in North Port.
What does a dentist make in Florida?
The median dentist in Florida earns $174,900 a year ($84.09 an hour), which is $3,950 above the national median of $170,950, but less than in nearby Georgia ($206,760). The mean is $195,930.
That ranks 20th of the 47 states where BLS publishes a dentist median.
Entry-level vs top earners in Florida
Annual pay for general dentists (SOC 29-1021) at each BLS percentile, May 2025. The 10th percentile is the pay 10% of dentists earn less than; the 90th is the pay only 10% earn more than. Percentiles rank all dentists in the survey, not years of experience.
The middle half of Florida dentists earn $128,440 to $229,990. The lowest-paid tenth earn under $98,680, $12,430 above the national 10th percentile. The top tenth earn over $314,860, $4,770 below the national 90th percentile.
How far the pay goes in Florida
The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts Florida's 2024 price level at 103.4 (U.S. = 100): prices overall run 3.4% above the national average, and housing (index 122.1) runs 22.1% above.
Converted to national average prices, the $174,900 median is worth about $169,130 — $1,820 below the national median of $170,950.
How many dentists work in Florida
BLS counts about 9,320 dentist jobs in Florida, 7.5% of the 124,390 nationwide, or 0.939 per 1,000 jobs in the state. Dentists hold a 17% larger share of local jobs than nationally (location quotient 1.17).
Dentist Salary by City in Florida
Across the 21 Florida metro areas where BLS publishes a dentist median, pay runs from $130,560 in Naples to $241,850 in North Port, a spread of $111,290.
All dental roles by metro: Cape Coral · Deltona · Jacksonville · Lakeland · Miami · Naples · North Port · Orlando · Port St. Lucie · Punta Gorda · Sebastian · Tallahassee · Wildwood
How much does a dentist make in Miami?
BLS's May 2025 median for general dentists in the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach metro area is $172,210 a year ($82.80 an hour), $2,690 below the Florida median.
The mean is $183,450, and the middle half of the metro's dentists earn $117,580 to $257,420.
The metro ranks 9th of the 21 Florida metros where BLS publishes a dentist median.
BLS counts about 3,270 dentist jobs there, about 35% of the 9,320 statewide.
Living costs run higher in South Florida.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis puts the Miami metro's 2024 price level at 114.2 (U.S. = 100), against 103.4 for Florida as a whole, and its housing index at 155.6.
The Miami dental salary page compares every dental role in the metro.
Median vs. mean dentist salary in Florida
BLS publishes two averages for Florida dentists: a median of $174,900 and a mean of $195,930.
The median is the middle dentist, with half earning more and half earning less, so it's the better read of typical pay.
The mean runs $21,030 higher because the top earners pull it up.
The 90th percentile ($314,860) sits $139,960 above the median, while the 10th percentile ($98,680) sits $76,220 below it.
Pay stretches further at the top than at the bottom, which lifts the mean without moving the median.
Which dentists these Florida salary figures cover
These are BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) estimates for general dentists (SOC 29-1021, "Dentists, General") across all industries in Florida.
OEWS surveys employers, so it measures wage and salary pay, and self-employed practice owners aren't in it.
Specialists are counted under their own occupation codes, so orthodontists and oral surgeons aren't in these salaries.
BLS's May 2025 median for oral surgeons in Florida is $233,050, but BLS rates that estimate at ±20.5% and published no employment count behind it, so read it as a rough signal.
The release has no Florida estimate for orthodontists, so the national orthodontist salary page is the closest source.
BLS also doesn't split out associate dentists, or dentists at private practices versus dental service organizations (DSOs).
An associate role, working in a practice someone else owns, is the usual first job after dental school, and associate pay is often a percentage of production or collections, a daily guarantee or a base plus bonus.
The associate dentist career guide explains those models, and associate dentist jobs show what employers post now.
What affects a dentist's salary in Florida
Location is the one pay factor BLS measures inside Florida: metro medians differ by more than $100,000, as the city table above shows.
Orlando's median ($212,300) is $46,950 above Jacksonville's ($165,350).
BLS doesn't publish Florida dentist pay by years of experience, specialty training or practice setting, so this page puts no numbers on those.
They still shape an individual offer: specialists are paid under separate occupations, owners earn from the practice rather than a wage, and associate pay often tracks the dentist's own production.
To test a specific offer, set it against the percentile table above and the posted pay in current dentist jobs in Florida.
Dental schools and licensing in Florida
Florida has four CODA-accredited predoctoral dental programs, in Bradenton, Fort Lauderdale, Gainesville and Miami, and the Florida dental schools page lists each one.
Dentist practice in the state is regulated by the Florida Board of Dentistry, and the Florida dentist licensure guide walks through its requirements.
The Florida Dental Association, the state's professional association for dentists, is another reference for practicing in Florida.
Licensing rules change, so verify them with the Florida Board of Dentistry before you apply.
Who's hiring dentists in Florida now
DentistryHires has 78 open dentist listings in Florida from 5 employers, the most of them in Jacksonville (4).
1 posts a salary from $250,000 to $350,000 a year. These are employers' posted ranges, not survey figures.
Dentist Regulatory Context in Florida
Dentist practice in Florida is regulated by the Florida Board of Dentistry.
Scope of practice — what a dentist 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 Florida Compares
In BLS's May 2025 estimates for general dentists, Florida pays less than Georgia ($206,760), North Carolina ($207,000) and New York ($183,060), and more than California ($165,950) and Texas ($162,360).
Georgia and North Carolina both sit about $32,000 above the Florida median, while Texas sits $12,540 below it.
Prices differ between states too, and each state's salary page converts its median to national average prices.
For dentist salary by state, including the highest-paying states, see the dentist salary guide, which lists every state where BLS publishes a median.
Other dental salaries in Florida
- Dental Hygienist salary in Florida: median $91,980, $82,920 below the dentist median
- Dental Assistant salary in Florida: median $47,620, $127,280 below the dentist median
- Dental Lab Technician salary in Florida: median $59,790, $115,110 below the dentist median
- Oral Surgeon salary in Florida: median $233,050
Dentist Salary FAQs
What is the starting salary for a dentist in Florida?
BLS doesn't publish dentist pay by years of experience, so there's no official starting salary for Florida.
The closest proxy is the low end of the pay distribution: the 10th percentile is $98,680 and the 25th percentile is $128,440 (BLS OEWS, SOC 29-1021, May 2025).
Percentiles rank every dentist in the survey, whatever their experience, so treat these as a floor for comparison rather than a new-graduate salary.
How much does a dentist make in Orlando?
BLS's May 2025 median for general dentists in the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford metro area is $212,300 a year, or $102.07 an hour, which is $37,400 above the Florida median.
The mean is $198,180, and the middle half of Orlando-area dentists earn $131,610 to $269,110 (BLS OEWS, SOC 29-1021).
BLS counts about 1,320 dentist jobs in the metro.
How much does a dentist make in Jacksonville?
BLS's May 2025 median for general dentists in the Jacksonville metro area is $165,350 a year, or $79.50 an hour, which is $9,550 below the Florida median.
The mean is $195,840, and the middle half of Jacksonville-area dentists earn $137,000 to $229,990 (BLS OEWS, SOC 29-1021).
BLS counts about 640 dentist jobs in the metro.
Do these salaries include dentists who own their practice?
No. BLS's Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey asks employers what they pay, so it covers dentists who are paid a wage or salary by an employer.
Self-employed dentists, including practice owners, aren't in it.
That's why these figures describe employed dentists in Florida, not what a practice owner takes home.
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.
This page is general information, not legal or medical advice. Verify licensing questions with the Florida Board of Dentistry.