Dental hygienists

Detailed Occupation

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2021 Workforce

189k

Average Age

42.5

Average Salary

$57,829

Average Male Salary

$113,753

Average Female Salary

$54,667

About

Dental hygienists are most often employed by the Offices of dentists industry. The average yearly wage for Dental hygienists was $57,829 in 2021.

The locations that employ the most Dental hygienists are North Charleston City PUMA, SC, Prichard City, Tillmans Corner & Saraland City PUMA, AL, and Escambia County (South) PUMA, FL. The locations with a relatively high concentration of Dental hygienists are Highland, Clinton & Adams Counties PUMA, OH, Shelby City PUMA, NC, and DeKalb County PUMA, IL.

Management, business, science, & arts occupations Healthcare practitioners & technical occupations

Employment and salary information for the Dental hygienists workforce. Dental hygienists workforce in 2021 was 189,055 people, of which 94.6% were women and 5.35% were men. Dental hygienists are paid most in Chatham & Lee Counties PUMA, NC but are relatively concentrated in Highland, Clinton & Adams Counties PUMA, OH.

Employment Over Time

Metric

Grouping

10,116

Male Workforce

± 2.47k

178,939

Female Workforce

± 10.4k

The Dental hygienists workforce in 2021 was 189,055 people (94.6% women and 5.35% men). This implies an average annual growth of 5.99% between 2018 (178,366) and 2021 (189,055).

Employment by Location

Level

Metric

This map shows the states in the United States shaded by average wage for Dental hygienists.

During 2021, the states that concentrated the best average annual wage were Alaska ($127,955), Delaware ($106,656), and California ($71,843).

Yearly Wage Ranking

$57,829

AVERAGE WAGE

#226 in the ranking (2021)

$59,596

NATIONAL AVERAGE WAGE

For all occupations across the US

In 2021, Dental hygienists earned an average of $57,829, $1,767 less than the average national salary of $59,596

The graph shows the ranking of Dental hygienists in relation to all Detailed Occupation in 2021.

Wage Distribution

Gender

0.309

WAGE GINI

In 2021, Dental hygienists had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.309, which is lower than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Dental hygienists (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

The graphic shows the distribution of average salaries by buckets for Dental hygienists compared to the entire workforce in the country.

Industry

Information on the industries that employ Dental hygienists and on wages for those in the field. Offices of dentists is the industry that employs the most Dental hygienists, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Dental hygienists, by average wage, is Outpatient care centers ($95,993).

Occupations by Industries

Metric

Value

189k

2021 Workforce

± 10,668

1.2%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 7.91%

This graphic shows the share of Dental hygienists employed by various industries. Offices of dentists employs the largest share of Dental hygienists at 98.5%, followed by General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals with 0.975% and Outpatient care centers with 0.528%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Dental hygienists in the US. The workforce of Dental hygienists in 2021 was 189,055 people, with 94.6% woman, and 5.35% men. The average age of male Dental hygienists in the workforce is 42.6 and of female Dental hygienists is 42.5, and the most common race/ethnicity for Dental hygienists is White.

Gender and Age

Metric

The workforce of Dental hygienists in 2021 was 189,055 people, with 94.6% woman, and 5.35% men.

The age ranges that concentrated the largest workforce were 30 to 34 years (27,227 people), 25 to 29 years (25,454 people), and 35 to 39 years (25,218 people). Among them they concentrated 41.3% of the total workforce.

Ethnicity

Gender

In 2021, 9.76% of Dental hygienists workers were Hispanic and 90.2% non-Hispanic.

The treemap shows the distribution of Hispanic workers according to their origin, highlighting Mexican (75.6%), Puerto Rican (13.4)%, and Cuban (11.1)%

You can review this information by gender using the selectors above.

Races

In 2021, 83.4% of the Dental hygienists workforce were White, of which 96% were women and 3.99% men. Other races that concentrated a significant number of workers were Asian (5.34%) and Two or More Races (4.46%).

Education & Skills

Data on higher education choices for Dental hygienists from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Dental hygienists is Health but the most specialized major according to RCA in 2021 were Health.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

Type of Majors

Degree

The most common majors achieved by Dental hygienists in 2021 (counting all academic degrees) were Health (40,725 people), Business (5,460 people), and Biology (5,058 people).

You can review this information for different academic grades by modifying the option selected in the selector above.

Education Levels

Metric

The main educational levels achieved by the Dental hygienists workers were Associates Degree (92,469 people), Bachelors Degree (61,715 people), and Some college (17,042 people).

The graphic shows the Dental hygienists workforce by gender and educational level.