The pandemic reshaped the dental hygiene profession, leaving lasting marks on pay, benefits, and workplace dynamics. Staffing shortages gave hygienists the opportunity to ask for raises and benefits that many felt had been long overdue.

At the same time, many dental practices felt pressure from soaring operational costs, inflation, and fluctuating patient volumes, and found meeting new wage demands challenging. The result? Tensions flared between dentists and hygienists.

To understand how the community feels about compensation today, we turn to the DentalPost State of the Industry Report. Conducted from October to November 2024, Alatus Solutions and Endeavor Business Media together conducted the survey, gathering responses from 2,230 practicing dental hygienists.

In 2019, many survey respondents perceived that the job market was oversaturated with new graduates, suppressing wage increases. They found their pay tended to stagnate after five years, with some having not received compensation increases in over a decade.¹

Respondents were very concerned with a lack of benefits, especially health care, paid time off, and retirement plans.

Highlights from the 2025 DentalPost/RDH Salary Survey

Many also expressed frustration that practices were using part-time employment to avoid paying benefits, and that the industry as a whole was far behind in what it offered to its members. Forty-three percent said they didn’t feel valued or respected, and would be seeking out a new job next year.

In 2020, income dissatisfaction increased 10.2%, and yet respondents were less likely to leave their jobs than the year before. Changing work conditions and pandemic demands weighed on hygienists, and many were evaluating how they contributed to the practice, and if they were being compensated and treated fairly.²

Rising PPE costs and decreased patient demand in 2020 meant that many practices couldn’t compensate staff to make up for the increased workload. That year, 75% of hygienists reported making the same as they had prepandemic.

In 2021, we begin to see things change; satisfaction with total compensation increases notably. Total income satisfaction rises noticeably, and fewer hygienists are dissatisfied. However, those who were dissatisfied weren’t just the lowest paid; among those who reported being dissatisfied that year, the median income was $64,000.³

In 2022, income satisfaction peaked but raises weren’t keeping pace with inflation. RDH incomes grew by 5% that year among respondents, but the current national inflation rate for the 12 months ending in November 2022 was 7.1%. More RDHs also began receiving benefits that year.⁴

However, after that high point, feelings about compensation in the industry soured, perhaps as the realization of the increased cost of living set in. In 2023, the number of respondents happy with their income dropped by 12%, and dissatisfaction increased by 12%; the number of hygienists who were neutral on income stayed about the same.⁵

The numbers from the newest State of the Industry Report show that income satisfaction has only rebounded slightly from last year.⁶ When it comes to feelings about income, not much has changed for hygienists in the past 12 months. While they’ve received raises in the past few years, for many, the increases haven’t kept pace with inflation.

RDH Dental Hygienists Receiving Benefits 2025

RDH Dental Hygienist Benefit Satisfaction 2025

A promising trend in benefits

Although many respondents may not be thrilled with their salary, the trends with benefits are worth noting. The number of RDHs receiving benefits has grown 49.7% since 2022. Compared to 2023 sentiment, this year’s respondents are 3.3% more likely to be satisfied with benefits, and 4% less likely to be dissatisfied. Although benefits may not directly grow your checking account, they’re very important to long-term financial goals, and for overall well-being.

RDH Dental Hygienist Part Time vs. Full Time 2025

2019 vs. 2024

When we look back to 2019 sentiments, we can see a lot has changed. Hygienists are no longer concerned about an oversaturated job market, and more and more of them are receiving benefits, which was a major complaint prepandemic.

In his presentation at the November 2024 Dental Trade Alliance Meeting, ADA Health Policy Institute Chief Economist and Vice President Marko Vujicic, PhD, reported that inflation-adjusted real wages have fallen among dental team members over the past few years. This means that even though dental professionals are earning more than they were a few years ago, it’s not kept pace with inflation. Vujicic says this is due to flat reimbursements and rising costs squeezing the industry.

So, if you feel like your raises haven’t added up to much in the end—you’re not imagining things. The initial excitement hygienists felt when receiving long overdue increases faded.

However, when we compare 2019 responses to 2024, we do see a notable positive trend. Income satisfaction has increased 9.8%, and dissatisfaction has fallen 11.0%. Far more hygienists are receiving benefits now than before.

Check out some other interesting highlights from the 2025 report, and make the best choices for whatever lies ahead in your career by downloading the 2025 DentalPost State of the Industry Report today. Find it at dentalpost.net/salary-survey.