CareerFacts

All careers › Dental Assistants › New York

Dental assistant salary in New York

Updated October 30, 2026. Based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Published by Humblebee.

$48,110median pay per year in New York, or $23.13 an hour, May 2025[1]
  1. $36,410lowest 10% earn less
  2. $44,73025th percentile
  3. $48,110median
  4. $58,63075th percentile
  5. $60,490top 10% earn more
Middle half of workers in the inner band[2]US median for this job, $48,070[3]

Dental assistants in New York earned a median of $48,110 a year in May 2025[1]. That was about the same as the US median of $48,070[3].

Jobs in NY
19,800[4]
Rank by median pay
23 of 50[5]
Compared with US median
+0.1%[6]

How much do dental assistants make in New York?

The median is the middle point. Half of dental assistants in New York earned more than $48,110 a year, or $23.13 an hour, and half earned less[1]. The average was a bit higher at $49,820 a year[7]. New York's median sat $40 above the US median of $48,070[6]. Its median annual wage ranked 23rd out of the 49 states and DC with a published median[5].

Against all jobs in the state, dental assistants earned less. The median for all occupations in New York was $59,670, so dental assistants were $11,560 below it[8][9]. The lowest-paid 10% of dental assistants earned less than $36,410 a year, and the highest-paid 10% earned more than $60,490[2]. In hourly terms, that is under $17.50 at the low end and over $29.08 at the high end[10].

Among metro areas, Elmira had the highest published median at $49,450 a year[11]. The New York-Newark-Jersey City area had a median of $48,430 and the largest count of dental assistant jobs on the list, at 20,870[12]. OEWS counts wage and salary workers, part time and full time. It leaves out the self-employed and owners of unincorporated firms. It also leaves out bonuses that are not tied to production and the cost of benefits such as health insurance[13].

New York vs US pay

Pay for dental assistants in New York next to the national figures[1][3].

NYUS
Median per year$48,110[1]$48,070[3]
Median per hour$23.13[1]$23.11[3]
Lowest 10% earn less than$36,410[2]$37,130[14]
Top 10% earn more than$60,490[2]$62,250[14]
Jobs19,800[4]387,790[3]

Pay by metro area in New York

Metro areas in New York with the most jobs for dental assistants, and the median pay in each[12]. A metro area that crosses state lines is counted as a whole.

Metro areaMedian per yearJobs
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ[12]$48,43020,870
Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY$47,6101,230
Rochester, NY$48,7801,020
Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY$48,220970
Syracuse, NY$47,370690
Kiryas Joel-Poughkeepsie-Newburgh, NY$49,120620
Binghamton, NY$44,840270
Utica-Rome, NY$46,560250

Pay in nearby states

Median pay for dental assistants in the states that border New York, highest first[15].

StateMedian per yearJobs
Massachusetts[15]$57,9809,680
Connecticut$56,8503,840
Vermont$52,760580
New Jersey$49,3909,990
Pennsylvania$47,93012,080

Median pay for dental assistants in every state

Job outlook and training

Across the US, jobs for dental assistants are projected to grow 7.4% from 2025 to 2035[16]. BLS does not publish this projection by state. The typical education for entry is: postsecondary nondegree award[17].

How to become one: steps, training and duties

Frequently asked questions

How much does a dental assistant make in New York?
The median pay for dental assistants in New York was $48,110 a year in May 2025[1]. The average was $49,820 a year[7].
How much does a dental assistant make an hour in New York?
The median hourly wage was $23.13[1]. The average hourly wage was $23.95[7].
Which city in New York pays dental assistants the most?
Of the 13 metro areas with a published median, Elmira had the highest at $49,450 a year[11].
Is New York a good state for dental assistants?
The median of $48,110[1] ranked 23rd out of the 49 states and DC with a published median[5]. It was $40 above the US median of $48,070[6].
What do you need to become a dental assistant in New York?
These are US figures, not New York ones. Across the US, the typical path into this job starts with a postsecondary nondegree award, with no related work experience and no on-the-job training listed[17].

Facts and sources

  1. BLS OEWS, May 2025: the median wage for Dental Assistants in New York was $48,110 per year and $23.13 per hour. Half of these workers earned more and half earned less. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  2. BLS OEWS, May 2025, annual wage percentiles for Dental Assistants in New York: 10th percentile $36,410, 25th percentile $44,730, 75th percentile $58,630, 90th percentile $60,490. The 10th percentile means 10% of workers earned less, the 90th means 10% earned more. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  3. BLS OEWS, May 2025: the median wage for Dental Assistants in the US as a whole was $48,070 per year and $23.11 per hour, with about 387,790 jobs nationwide. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  4. BLS OEWS, May 2025: about 19,800 people worked as Dental Assistants in New York (wage and salary jobs, not counting self-employed workers). BLS OEWS, May 2025
  5. BLS OEWS, May 2025: New York had the 23rd highest median annual wage for Dental Assistants out of the 49 states and DC with a published median. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  6. CareerFacts calculation from BLS OEWS, May 2025: the median annual wage for Dental Assistants in New York ($48,110) was $40 (0.1%) higher than the US median ($48,070). BLS OEWS, May 2025
  7. BLS OEWS, May 2025: the mean (average) wage for Dental Assistants in New York was $49,820 per year and $23.95 per hour. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  8. BLS OEWS, May 2025: the median annual wage for all occupations in New York was $59,670. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  9. CareerFacts calculation from BLS OEWS, May 2025: the median annual wage for Dental Assistants in New York was $11,560 lower than the median for all occupations in the state ($59,670). BLS OEWS, May 2025
  10. BLS OEWS, May 2025, hourly wage percentiles for Dental Assistants in New York: 10th percentile $17.50, 25th percentile $21.51, 75th percentile $28.19, 90th percentile $29.08. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  11. BLS OEWS, May 2025: of the 13 metro areas in or partly in New York with a published median for Dental Assistants, Elmira, NY had the highest median annual wage, $49,450. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  12. Metro areas with the most jobs in this occupation, with median annual wage, May 2025 (table on this page). BLS OEWS, May 2025
  13. BLS OEWS FAQ: OEWS covers part-time and full-time workers paid a wage or salary. It does not cover the self-employed, owners and partners in unincorporated firms, household workers or unpaid family workers. OEWS wages do not include nonproduction bonuses or employer costs of benefits such as health insurance or retirement contributions. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  14. BLS OEWS, May 2025, annual wage percentiles for Dental Assistants in the US: 10th percentile $37,130, 25th percentile $44,340, 75th percentile $58,090, 90th percentile $62,250. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  15. BLS OEWS, May 2025, median annual wage for Dental Assistants in states that border New York (highest first): Massachusetts $57,980; Connecticut $56,850; Vermont $52,760; New Jersey $49,390; Pennsylvania $47,930. BLS OEWS, May 2025
  16. BLS Employment Projections (US, not by state): employment of Dental Assistants is projected to grow 7.4% nationwide from 2025 to 2035, with about 53,000 openings a year on average. All occupations are projected to grow 3.5%. BLS Employment Projections
  17. BLS Employment Projections (US, not by state), typical path into Dental Assistants: education needed for entry: Postsecondary nondegree award; work experience in a related occupation: None; typical on-the-job training: None. BLS Employment Projections

State figures cover only New York. Job outlook and entry requirements are national (US) figures: BLS does not publish them by state in our sources. Figures labelled “CareerFacts calculation” are simple differences between the BLS numbers shown.