State Of The Industry

New ADA report finds dentists feeling squeezed

The ADA’s latest State of the U.S. Dental Economy report is out, and it paints a picture of a dental market that’s not giving clinic owners much to grin about.

What the report found: The data points to a sluggish market where revenue is being supported by price hikes, not growing demand from patients. 

• Most dentists are raising fees. 65.8% of dentists say they’ve raised fees this year. Among those, the average fee hike was 6.7%.

• Patient spending is up a touch, but volume is flat: Patient spending is up around 4% so far in 2025 (and 10% above pre-pandemic levels), but 35% of dentists say they’re not busy enough, up from 27% in the previous quarter. New patient wait times are also the shortest in over three years, another sign of slack in the system.
  

• Dental insurance reimbursement rates aren’t keeping up with inflation: Supply, equipment, and wage costs are rising faster than inflation, creating a “fiscal squeeze” on margins.
  

• Hiring remains a challenge: About 1 in 3 dentists are hiring, but 90% can’t find hygienists easily (20% of hygienist jobs stayed open more than 6 months).
  

• Dentists are dropping out of insurance networks: 25% of dentists say they’re dropping out of some insurance networks due to reimbursement rates that haven’t kept pace with costs.
  

• Practices are investing in tech: About 20% of owners have already installed new software or digital systems this year. 

Why it matters: Dentistry is experiencing a sluggish market that’s propped up by price increases, not true growth. Patient demand is essentially flat, so practices can’t simply rely on more visits to boost revenue. Instead, dentists are driving revenue from higher charges per visit (hence that uptick in spending alongside shrinking wait times) and efficiency gains, through investments in upgraded tech.

What’s next: Feeling the squeeze? You don’t have to just accept shrinking margins. Here are some ideas to consider to get your practice onto a profitable growth path: 

• Focus on same-store growth and diversifying services into specialty care to capture higher-margin revenue and new patient segments.
  

• Tighten the operational screws to protect EBITDA by centralizing functions, renegotiating supplier contracts, and doubling down on tech-driven efficiencies.
  

• Focus on improving retention to avoid falling into a costly cycle of constantly needing to recruit—take a real look at your organization’s culture and what you offer in terms of professional growth and financial upside. 

Bottom line: A year ago, many expected pent-up post-pandemic demand to keep dentistry booming. Now we’re looking at an environment of flat demand and tighter margins that rewards efficiency and dialed-in operations.