How many dental practices are there in the US and Canada? 2026 data
The US and Canada total addressable market for dental practices includes 161,817 active practices. The US accounts for 147,280; Canada makes up the remaining 14,537.
US + Canada, May 2026
91% of total
How fragmented is the US dental market?
Of the 90,842 US dental practice operators we classified, 88% run a single location. The remaining 12% operate as chains. Single-location ownership still defines the market.
| Category | Operators | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Single-location | 80,177 | 88% |
| Chain operators | 10,665 | 12% |
If you sell into dental, even the chain segment is mostly small operators. 94% of chains run 5 locations or fewer.
How big are dental chains?
Chains skew tiny. 9,990 of the 10,665 chains, or 94%, operate 2 to 5 locations. Only 20 operators run more than 100.
| Location count | Operators |
|---|---|
| 2-5 | 9,990 |
| 6-10 | 455 |
| 11-25 | 142 |
| 26-50 | 100 |
| 51-100 | 41 |
| 100+ | 20 |
Only 20 dental chain operators in the US run more than 100 locations.
Which states have the most dental practices?
California leads with 19,822. Texas follows at 13,063, then Florida (10,083) and New York (9,740). The top 10 states hold the bulk of the US count.
| State | Practices |
|---|---|
| California | 19,822 |
| Texas | 13,063 |
| Florida | 10,083 |
| New York | 9,740 |
| Illinois | 6,262 |
| Pennsylvania | 5,960 |
| New Jersey | 5,474 |
| Ohio | 4,465 |
| Georgia | 4,369 |
| Michigan | 4,346 |
California, Texas, Florida, and New York alone account for 52,708 practices, 36% of the US total.
Which states have the highest dental practice density per capita?
Raw counts favor big states. Per capita, the order changes. New Jersey leads at 58.9 practices per 100,000 residents. Connecticut, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, and New York all sit above 49.
| State | Practices per 100K |
|---|---|
| New Jersey | 58.9 |
| Connecticut | 54.0 |
| California | 50.8 |
| Massachusetts | 50.2 |
| Illinois | 49.8 |
| New York | 49.8 |
| Colorado | 46.8 |
| Maryland | 46.5 |
| Pennsylvania | 46.0 |
| Oregon | 45.8 |
| Florida | 44.6 |
| Nevada | 43.7 |
| Michigan | 43.3 |
Density matters if you run route-density or field-sales motions.
What booking software do dental practices use?
6.8% of dental practices use third-party booking software. Inside that 6.8%, Zocdoc holds 25.3% share. NexHealth holds 19.3%. The remaining 54.9% is split across smaller vendors and unknowns.
| Vendor | Share |
|---|---|
| Zocdoc | 25.3% |
| NexHealth | 19.3% |
| Others and unknown | 54.9% |
The opportunity in dental booking software is the 93.2% of practices using nothing. Zocdoc and NexHealth are the incumbents inside a small slice. The green field is everyone else.
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How many dental practices have a website?
72% of US dental practices have a website. 28% do not.
| Category | Share |
|---|---|
| Has website | 72% |
| No website | 28% |
More than 1 in 4 dental practices have no website. For anyone selling websites or reviews tooling, that is roughly 41,000 US practices.
How does dental compare to med spa and HVAC on online presence?
Dental sits behind med spa and ahead of HVAC on Google Business Profile claim rate. On website presence, dental beats HVAC. Med spa leads both.
| Vertical | GBP claimed | Has website |
|---|---|---|
| Med spa | 91% | 75% |
| Dental | 69% | 72% |
| HVAC | 84% | 40% |
A 22-point gap on Google Business Profile claim rate between med spa and dental.
How active are dental practices on Google reviews?
31.4% of dental practices have zero Google reviews. Another 22.4% have between 1 and 19. Only 8.1% have 500 or more.
| Bucket | Share |
|---|---|
| 0 | 31.4% |
| 1-19 | 22.4% |
| 20-49 | 8.3% |
| 50-99 | 6.8% |
| 100-199 | 9.2% |
| 200-499 | 13.7% |
| 500+ | 8.1% |
Almost a third of US dental practices have not collected a single Google review.
Which dental specialties get the most Google reviews?
Review counts climb sharply by specialty. General dentists average 252.9 reviews and dental clinics 250.4. Pediatric dentists and oral surgeons trail at 128.1 and 123.0.
| Specialty | Average reviews |
|---|---|
| General dentist | 252.9 |
| Dental clinic | 250.4 |
| Cosmetic dentist | 180.3 |
| Orthodontist | 169.1 |
| Pediatric dentist | 128.1 |
| Oral surgeon | 123.0 |
General dentistry and dental clinics show what is possible: averages above 250 reviews per practice.
When were most dental practices founded?
31.8% of dental practices were founded between 2010 and 2019. That is the largest cohort in any decade. 23.1% were founded between 2000 and 2009. 22.5% between 1980 and 1999. Only 5.5% predate 1960.
| Decade | Share |
|---|---|
| Before 1960 | 5.5% |
| 1960-1979 | 9.7% |
| 1980-1999 | 22.5% |
| 2000-2009 | 23.1% |
| 2010-2019 | 31.8% |
| 2020-2029 | 7.4% |
The 2010s produced more dental practice openings than any prior decade we tracked.
Top 10 most reviewed dental practices in the US
The most reviewed practice in the US is Abra Dental in Newark, NJ, with 7,511 Google reviews. Abra Dental holds positions 1 and 2. The rest of the top 10 spans NY, SC, FL, IL, MO, NC, CA, and TX.
| Practice | Reviews |
|---|---|
| Abra Dental - Somme St, Newark, NJ | 7,511 |
| Abra Dental - Elizabeth, Elizabeth, NJ | 6,995 |
| The Smile Lodge Pediatric, Clifton Park, NY | 6,369 |
| Solomon Family Dentistry, Summerville, SC | 5,813 |
| Dental Design Smile, Miami, FL | 5,423 |
| Precision Dental Care W Diversey, Chicago, IL | 5,325 |
| Innovative Dental of Springfield, Springfield, MO | 5,012 |
| Charlotte Dentistry, Charlotte, NC | 4,731 |
| The Super Dentists, Chula Vista, CA | 4,451 |
| La Prada Family Dentistry, Garland, TX | 4,358 |
Two Abra Dental locations in northern New Jersey top the list, both above 6,900 reviews.
Frequently asked questions
How many dental practices are there in the US in 2026?
147,280 active dental practices in the US as of May 2026. Including Canada, the North American total is 161,817.
What percentage of US dental practices are independently owned versus part of a chain or DSO?
88% of US dental practice operators run a single location. 12% are chains. Of the chains, 94% operate 2 to 5 locations. Only 20 operators run more than 100.
Which US state has the most dentists per capita?
New Jersey has the highest density at 58.9 dental practices per 100,000 residents. Connecticut (54.0), California (50.8), and Massachusetts (50.2) follow.
What booking software do dental offices use?
6.8% of US dental practices use third-party booking software. Among those, Zocdoc holds 25.3% share and NexHealth holds 19.3%. The remaining 54.9% is split across smaller vendors and unknowns.
How many US dental practices do not have a website?
28% of US dental practices have no website. Applied to the 147,280 US total, that is roughly 41,000 practices.
What is dental practice management software?
Dental practice management software is the core system dental offices use to run scheduling, patient charting, billing, insurance verification, and reporting. It is separate from patient-facing booking tools like Zocdoc or NexHealth.
How many dentists are there in the US?
Orbital tracks dental practices, not individual dentists. There are 147,280 active dental practices in the US as of May 2026. Some practices employ a single dentist, others employ several, so the total dentist count is higher than the practice count.
When were most US dental practices founded?
31.8% of US dental practices were founded between 2010 and 2019, the largest cohort of any decade. 23.1% were founded between 2000 and 2009, and 22.5% between 1980 and 1999. Only 5.5% predate 1960.
Which dental specialty gets the most patient reviews?
General dentists average 252.9 Google reviews per practice, and dental clinics average 250.4. Cosmetic dentists trail at 180.3, orthodontists at 169.1, pediatric dentists at 128.1, and oral surgeons at 123.0.
Methodology
The figures on this page come from Orbital's business database, which tracks active dental practices across the US and Canada. Each practice is identified and categorized using a combination of business name, registered address, and business activity, then matched to the dental market.
Website presence, Google review counts, software detection, and patient review estimates are drawn from publicly observable signals: practice websites, Google Business Profiles, and the technologies running on each site. A practice is counted as having a website only when a live practice site is detected. The dataset is refreshed regularly to reflect new practices, closures, and changes in online presence.
What's the social media presence of dental practices?
34.1% of dental practices have no social media presence at all. LinkedIn is the most common platform at 63.9%, then Facebook (32.6%) and Twitter (14.9%). Practices can appear on multiple platforms, so the platform shares overlap. The 34.1% with no presence is a discrete group.
The 34.1% with no presence at all works out to roughly 50,000 US practices that are invisible on social.