2026 dental access report card
Dental access in California
From the U.S. Dental Access Report 2026 by Pete Johnson, founder of dentalist.ai. Source: federal NPPES registry (October 2026) and Census Vintage 2024 estimates. Updated October 21, 2026.
Overall access rank
4th of 51
100.8 dentists per 100k people (national: 80.2)
Pediatric access rank
16th of 51
16 pediatric dentists per 100k children (national: 14.9)
39,756
Registered dentists
31,255
Practice addresses
849
Cities and towns
16.9%
Specialist share
Specialty coverage
Dentists in California by primary registered specialty, with the per-100k rate next to the national rate.
| Specialty | Dentists | Per 100k | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatric dentistry | 1,346 | 3.4 | 3.2 |
| Orthodontics | 1,884 | 4.8 | 4 |
| Oral surgery | 1,051 | 2.7 | 2.7 |
| Endodontics | 1,019 | 2.6 | 2 |
| Periodontics | 928 | 2.4 | 1.9 |
| Prosthodontics | 476 | 1.2 | 1.1 |
Where California's dentists concentrate
| City | Dentists | Pediatric |
|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles | 2,288 | 107 |
| San Diego | 1,562 | 70 |
| San Francisco | 1,520 | 61 |
| San Jose | 1,164 | 21 |
| Sacramento | 845 | 18 |
frequently asked questions
How many dentists are in California?
California has 39,756 NPI-registered dentists practicing at 31,255 addresses in 849 cities and towns, per the federal NPPES registry (October 2026). That is 100.8 dentists per 100,000 residents, against a national rate of 80.2.
How does California rank for dental access?
California ranks 4th of 51 for dentists per capita in the U.S. Dental Access Report 2026. For pediatric access it ranks 16th of 51, with 16 pediatric dentists per 100,000 children.
How many pediatric dentists does California have?
California has 1,346 NPI-registered pediatric dentists, roughly one for every 6,254 children in the state. The national average is one for every 6,705 children.
Counts are individual dentists' NPI registrations from the federal NPPES registry (October 2026), with deactivated registrations removed; they are not licensure data and can include dentists who have retired. Denominators: Census Vintage 2024 estimates. Full methodology in the national report.
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