Find a Job You Really Want In
Dental Assistants are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as dental assistants in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since dental assistants are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where dental assistants have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for dental assistants.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s dental assistants:
So there you have it — Dental Assistants is the best of the best when it comes to being a dental assistant.
How did Dental Assistants end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for dental assistants and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
- Best Companies To Work For In Seattle, WA
- These Are The 10 Companies That Are Hiring The Most In Seattle
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Seattle
How we determined the best states to be a dental assistant
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for dental assistants in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well dental assistants get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for dental assistants in California is $41,030 and the average salary in Illinois is $39,370, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for dental assistants in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for dental assistants.
1. Washington
Total Jobs: 10,510
Average Annual Salary: $43,680
Average Entry Level Salary: $31,960
Average Experienced Salary: $59,620
Location Quotient: 1.37
2. Minnesota
Total Jobs: 5,730
Average Annual Salary: $49,880
Average Entry Level Salary: $38,460
Average Experienced Salary: $62,620
Location Quotient: 0.85
3. North Carolina
Total Jobs: 9,420
Average Annual Salary: $41,790
Average Entry Level Salary: $30,600
Average Experienced Salary: $54,420
Location Quotient: 0.91
4. Michigan
Total Jobs: 9,960
Average Annual Salary: $37,140
Average Entry Level Salary: $27,010
Average Experienced Salary: $49,870
Location Quotient: 0.98
5. Indiana
Total Jobs: 6,090
Average Annual Salary: $40,790
Average Entry Level Salary: $28,530
Average Experienced Salary: $55,740
Location Quotient: 0.85
6. North Dakota
Total Jobs: 780
Average Annual Salary: $46,640
Average Entry Level Salary: $33,920
Average Experienced Salary: $64,800
Location Quotient: 0.79
7. Virginia
Total Jobs: 8,520
Average Annual Salary: $44,640
Average Entry Level Salary: $28,900
Average Experienced Salary: $63,500
Location Quotient: 0.94
8. Iowa
Total Jobs: 3,040
Average Annual Salary: $41,100
Average Entry Level Salary: $32,130
Average Experienced Salary: $52,050
Location Quotient: 0.84
9. Oklahoma
Total Jobs: 4,020
Average Annual Salary: $36,550
Average Entry Level Salary: $26,750
Average Experienced Salary: $48,970
Location Quotient: 1.07
10. Texas
Total Jobs: 30,290
Average Annual Salary: $36,820
Average Entry Level Salary: $25,980
Average Experienced Salary: $50,060
Location Quotient: 1.06
There You Have It – The Best States To Be A Dental Assistant
If you’re looking to start out your career as a dental assistant these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be a dental assistant in America:
For more reading, check out:
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Washington
- These Are The 100 Largest Companies In Washington
Detailed List Of The Best States For dental assistants
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $43,680 |
| 2 | Minnesota | $49,880 |
| 3 | North Carolina | $41,790 |
| 4 | Michigan | $37,140 |
| 5 | Indiana | $40,790 |
| 6 | North Dakota | $46,640 |
| 7 | Virginia | $44,640 |
| 8 | Iowa | $41,100 |
| 9 | Oklahoma | $36,550 |
| 10 | Texas | $36,820 |
| 11 | Arizona | $40,680 |
| 12 | New Hampshire | $48,760 |
| 13 | Kansas | $37,040 |
| 14 | Missouri | $38,350 |
| 15 | Nebraska | $36,860 |
| 16 | Illinois | $39,370 |
| 17 | Kentucky | $36,060 |
| 18 | Ohio | $38,960 |
| 19 | Florida | $39,590 |
| 20 | Tennessee | $37,610 |
| 21 | South Carolina | $39,750 |
| 22 | Idaho | $34,800 |
| 23 | Colorado | $40,390 |
| 24 | Arkansas | $34,080 |
| 25 | Wisconsin | $38,630 |
| 26 | Wyoming | $35,220 |
| 27 | New Mexico | $34,870 |
| 28 | Montana | $37,310 |
| 29 | Oregon | $43,440 |
| 30 | Georgia | $36,710 |
| 31 | Delaware | $41,060 |
| 32 | Alaska | $47,330 |
| 33 | Maine | $42,250 |
| 34 | New Jersey | $43,110 |
| 35 | Mississippi | $32,900 |
| 36 | Pennsylvania | $39,200 |
| 37 | South Dakota | $37,820 |
| 38 | Connecticut | $44,520 |
| 39 | Nevada | $38,240 |
| 40 | Utah | $31,280 |
| 41 | Massachusetts | $46,070 |
| 42 | Rhode Island | $43,710 |
| 43 | California | $41,030 |
| 44 | Louisiana | $32,340 |
| 45 | Alabama | $33,650 |
| 46 | Maryland | $42,080 |
| 47 | Hawaii | $38,860 |
| 48 | Vermont | $42,640 |
| 49 | New York | $39,130 |
| 50 | West Virginia | $31,410 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
