How much does a Dentist make in Arizona?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $206,660 for Dentists in Arizona as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $135,200 and the 75th-percentile is $232,860.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) Dentist salary in Arizona?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 100.7 for Arizona), the real-wage equivalent is $205,138 — what the $206,660 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $134,204 to $231,145.

How are Arizona Dentist salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

How many Dentists does Arizona employ?

BLS OES counts 2,930 Dentists employed in Arizona in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Is Arizona a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Dentists?

No — Arizona's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Arizona?

The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Arizona.

Does the BLS dentist median capture practice-owner income in Arizona?

Partially. BLS OEWS reports W-2 earnings, which captures dentist-owners who pay themselves a salary through the practice but excludes pass-through profit distributions (Schedule K-1 from S-corp or partnership), which can be the larger income component for established practice owners. In Arizona, this typically means the BLS-reported median understates total earnings for solo or small-group practice owners by 20-50% once distributions are netted in. Associate dentists employed by DSOs or owner-dentists are accurately represented by the BLS figure.

How Much Do Dentists Make in Arizona? $207K (2026 BLS + BEA)

TL;DR

$206,660 is the BLS median wage for Dentists in Arizona; $205,138 is the BEA-adjusted purchasing-power equivalent.
BLS percentiles available for this state: P25 $135,200, P50 $206,660, P75 $232,860. P10 or P90 is suppressed by BLS for this occupation-state cell.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #8 of 51; nominal rank is #6.

Wage breakdown — Arizona

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$59,990	$59,548
P25 (lower quartile)	$135,200	$134,204
P50 (median)	$206,660	$205,138
P75 (upper quartile)	$232,860	$231,145
P90 (top tier)
Mean	$201,240	$199,758
Employment	2,930 Dentists in Arizona

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Arizona index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	100.7
Goods	97.9
Services	83.3
Rents	108.6

Arizona's overall RPP (100.7) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

After-tax take-home — Arizona (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Dentist)	$206,660	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$38,416	18.6% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$4,773	2.5% flat (2026)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$14,440	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$149,031	72.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$147,933	÷ (100.7 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Arizona state-tax burden means for Dentist take-home

Arizona's state tax is light at this income tier (~2.3% effective). The bigger compensation lever is the cost-of-living premium (RPP 100.7), which still erodes real take-home despite the low state tax — net real after-tax $147,933.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $172,790 for Dentists with mean pay of $196,100 and total employment of 113,490. Arizona sits at #6 on nominal pay and #8 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Arizona falls 2 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Dentist make in Arizona?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $206,660 for Dentists in Arizona as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $135,200 and the 75th-percentile is $232,860.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) Dentist salary in Arizona?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 100.7 for Arizona), the real-wage equivalent is $205,138 — what the $206,660 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $134,204 to $231,145.
How are Arizona Dentist salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
How many Dentists does Arizona employ?: BLS OES counts 2,930 Dentists employed in Arizona in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Is Arizona a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Dentists?: No — Arizona's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
Should I negotiate based on the BLS median for Arizona?: The BLS median is a calibration anchor, not a ceiling. Use it to validate that an offer is in-band — anything well below the P25 in this state is a flag, anything above the P75 typically requires demonstrable specialty depth, niche credentials, or a high-COL metro within Arizona.
Does the BLS dentist median capture practice-owner income in Arizona?: Partially. BLS OEWS reports W-2 earnings, which captures dentist-owners who pay themselves a salary through the practice but excludes pass-through profit distributions (Schedule K-1 from S-corp or partnership), which can be the larger income component for established practice owners. In Arizona, this typically means the BLS-reported median understates total earnings for solo or small-group practice owners by 20-50% once distributions are netted in. Associate dentists employed by DSOs or owner-dentists are accurately represented by the BLS figure.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 29-1021, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-07.

Cross-comparison: see how Arizona Dentist pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.