How much does a Dentist make in Virginia?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $182,570 for Dentists in Virginia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $119,990 and the 75th-percentile is $215,100.

How many Dentists does Virginia employ?

BLS OES counts 3,890 Dentists employed in Virginia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.

Why is the BEA RPP for Virginia different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Virginia's overall index of 101.3 reflects rents 105.6, services 92.4, and goods 101.1.

Where does Virginia rank for Dentist pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Virginia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

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

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

What are the limits of these Dentist salary numbers?

BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

Dentist Salary in Virginia (2026): $183K Median, BEA RPP-Adjusted

TL;DR

Dentists in Virginia earn a BLS median of $182,570, with real take-home of $180,172 after BEA RPP adjustment.
BEA RPP near 100 means nominal pay translates almost 1:1 into real take-home.
Mid-band breakdown: P25 $119,990, P50 $182,570, P75 $215,100. Tail percentiles withheld by BLS — common when tech-sector wages exceed the OES survey cap.
State ranks #15 nationally on nominal wage, #26 on real (RPP-adjusted) wage.

Wage breakdown — Virginia

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$89,940	$88,759
P25 (lower quartile)	$119,990	$118,414
P50 (median)	$182,570	$180,172
P75 (upper quartile)	$215,100	$212,275
P90 (top tier)
Mean	$192,880	$190,346
Employment	3,890 Dentists in Virginia

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Virginia index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	101.3
Goods	101.1
Services	92.4
Rents	105.6

Virginia's overall RPP (101.3) is close to the national 100 baseline; nominal and real wage move roughly together.

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (Dentist)	$182,570	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$32,635	17.9% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$9,752	2–5.75% (graduated)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$13,967	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$126,217	69.1% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$124,559	÷ (101.3 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Mid-band state-tax burden at 5.3% effective. Combined with federal and FICA, take-home is $126,217 (69.1% of gross). After the 101.3 RPP, real take-home is $124,559.

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. Virginia sits at #15 on nominal pay and #26 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Virginia falls 11 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a Dentist make in Virginia?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $182,570 for Dentists in Virginia as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $119,990 and the 75th-percentile is $215,100.
How many Dentists does Virginia employ?: BLS OES counts 3,890 Dentists employed in Virginia in the most recent release. Employment density relative to population determines whether wage tiers reflect a robust competitive market or a thinner labor pool.
Why is the BEA RPP for Virginia different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Virginia's overall index of 101.3 reflects rents 105.6, services 92.4, and goods 101.1.
Where does Virginia rank for Dentist pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Virginia ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
Is Virginia a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for Dentists?: No — Virginia's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
What are the limits of these Dentist salary numbers?: BLS OES is an employer survey of W-2 wages — it excludes contractor pay, bonuses outside the base wage definition, equity compensation, and tip income. Self-employed practitioners and gig workers are not represented. For occupations with significant non-W-2 income, the BLS figure is a floor, not a complete picture.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

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 Virginia 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.