A prosthodontist is a dentist who completed a CODA-accredited residency of at least 34 months to specialize in restoring missing or deficient teeth and oral tissues with biocompatible substitutes; a general dentist needs no additional training after dental school, per BLS — though a state's licensure route can require a residency year.
The split runs on complexity: routine restorative work stays with the general dentist; complex full-mouth and implant prosthetic rehabilitation is the specialty's defined territory — where each case falls is a judgment call, not a rule.
On pay, the federal medians for May 2025 diverge: $311,180 for prosthodontists against $170,950 for general dentists, employees only.
The short answer
A general dentist's training is broad: BLS lists no additional training after dental school for general dentists, and the typical duties it lists for dentists run from removing decay and filling cavities to repairing or removing damaged teeth and making models and measurements for dental appliances such as dentures.
A prosthodontist is a specialist who completed an additional CODA-accredited residency focused specifically on missing or deficient teeth and the prosthetics that replace them — the federal SOC definition of the occupation describes dentists who diagnose, treat, rehabilitate, and design and fit prostheses that maintain oral function, health, and appearance.
Nothing in that split reserves routine restorative work for the specialist: the restorative duties BLS lists for dentists are general-practice work, with no additional training required after dental school.
Where the difference shows up is complexity — full-mouth reconstruction, multi-implant prosthetics, and maxillofacial cases are the territory the specialty's recognized definition covers.
What each one does
A general dentist's work spans the typical duties BLS lists for dentists: removing decay and filling cavities, repairing or removing damaged teeth, placing sealants, administering anesthetics, examining x-rays, and making models and measurements for dental appliances such as dentures.
Tooth replacement is one item on that list, not the whole job.
A prosthodontist focuses on missing or deficient teeth and, where needed, oral or maxillofacial tissues, using biocompatible substitutes to restore function, comfort, appearance, and health, per the NCRDSCB's definition of the specialty.
That rehabilitation runs to complex work — full-mouth reconstruction and implant-supported restorations among it — and, for a prosthodontist who completes a further 12-month program (one CODA says must be preceded by an accredited prosthodontics program), prosthetic rehabilitation of missing or defective oral and facial structures.
| Comparison | General dentist | Prosthodontist |
|---|---|---|
| Where the work sits | BLS's typical dentist duties — fillings, damaged-tooth repair, denture models and measurements | Rehabilitation of missing or deficient teeth and tissues with prosthetics (the specialty's definition) |
| Training beyond dental school | None required, per BLS — a state's licensure route can require a residency year | CODA-accredited residency, 34-month minimum (45 with integrated maxillofacial training) |
| Board certification | — | American Board of Prosthodontics (ABP) — voluntary |
| Median pay, May 2025 (employees) | $170,950 | $311,180 |
What the prosthodontics residency adds
Both start the same way: dental school for a DDS or DMD, then licensure.
From there, BLS says general dentists need no additional training, so a general dentist can begin practicing restorative dentistry — though a state's licensure route can require a residency year.
A prosthodontist continues into a CODA-accredited residency in prosthodontics — a minimum of 34 months, or 45 months for a program with integrated maxillofacial training.
See what the prosthodontics residency requires for the full accreditation detail.
After residency, some prosthodontists pursue certification from the American Board of Prosthodontics — voluntary, and not required to practice.
See how ABP certification works for what the credential involves.
Which restorative and prosthetic cases a GP refers
There's no published rule for where a general dentist's restorative work ends and a prosthodontist's begins — it moves with each dentist's training, comfort, and equipment.
What the sources do fix is each side's territory: the NCRDSCB defines prosthodontics as covering "rehabilitation and maintenance of the oral function, comfort, appearance and health of patients with clinical conditions associated with missing or deficient teeth and/or oral and maxillofacial tissues using biocompatible substitutes," while the routine side sits with general practice — BLS's typical dentist duties run from fillings and damaged-tooth repair to models and measurements for dentures.
The complex end is the specialty's defined territory: rehabilitation of patients with missing or deficient teeth, with full-mouth and multi-implant prosthetic work among it — and, for a prosthodontist who has completed the additional 12-month maxillofacial prosthetics program (one CODA says must be preceded by an accredited prosthodontics program), rehabilitation of missing or defective oral and facial structures.
Which individual cases move across the line is the treating dentist's judgment call, not a published list.
The referral relationship, and the lab in between
When a general dentist sends a complex case out, it goes for what the specialty's definition covers: diagnosis, treatment planning, rehabilitation, and maintenance for patients with missing or deficient teeth and oral or maxillofacial tissues.
How most prosthodontic cases actually reach a specialist — referral versus direct booking — isn't published data, so this page reports the mechanism without numbers.
See general dentist vs. specialist for how referral decisions work across the dental specialties — endodontics included — not just this one.
Neither role builds the prosthetic alone.
The federal SOC definition has the prosthodontist designing and fitting prostheses, and BLS describes dental lab technicians fabricating crowns and bridges and creating appliances and restorations.
So once the prosthodontist — or the general dentist, for a routine case — specifies the crown, bridge, denture, or implant restoration, a dental lab technician fabricates the physical piece to that specification: the dentist plans and fits the case; the lab builds it.
How prosthodontist and general dentist pay compare
On the like-for-like federal numbers, yes.
Both roles are tracked in the same Bureau of Labor Statistics wage release (OEWS, May 2025) under separate codes: prosthodontists (SOC 29-1024) had a median of $311,180 a year, or $149.61 an hour, against $170,950, or $82.19 an hour, for general dentists (SOC 29-1021).
Same source, same release, so the comparison is apples to apples.
The middle halves of the two distributions don't overlap at all: the 25th-percentile prosthodontist wage ($252,050) sits above the 75th-percentile general dentist wage ($224,040), with the 75th-percentile prosthodontist figure at $333,480.
The edges do meet, though — a prosthodontist at the 10th percentile ($103,510) earns below the general dentist median, while a general dentist at the 90th percentile ($319,630) is above the prosthodontist median.
Three caveats keep the comparison honest.
Both series count employees only — the survey excludes the self-employed, owners, and partners in unincorporated firms, so owner earnings sit outside both figures.
The prosthodontist sample is small: BLS counted 870 prosthodontist jobs against 124,390 general dentist jobs, so the specialty estimate can move between releases.
And the prosthodontist mean ($268,630) sits below its median, a sign the distribution skews low rather than being lifted by top earners.
The full percentile tables, hourly rates, and the four-specialty ranking are in the prosthodontist salary guide, which puts the prosthodontist series next to the general dentist figure; for the whole set of specialty codes, see which dental specialty pays the most.
This article is general career information, not clinical, legal, or financial advice. Referral patterns, training requirements, and scope of practice vary by dentist, region, and practice.