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2026 dental access report card
From the U.S. Dental Access Report 2026 by Pete Johnson, founder of dentalist.ai. Source: federal NPPES registry (May 2026) and Census ACS 2024 estimates.
Overall access rank
10th of 51
103.9 providers per 100k people (national: 88.7)
Pediatric access rank
47th of 51
11 pediatric providers per 100k children (national: 17.3)
Pediatric desert
Illinois sits in the bottom ten states for pediatric dental access, with roughly one pediatric provider for every 9,066 children. Families here often rely on general dentists for kids' care, and the right pediatric specialist may be a city or two away.
13,211
Registered providers
9,821
Practice locations
582
Cities and towns
15.7%
Specialist share
NPI-registered specialists in Illinois, with the per-100k rate next to the national rate.
| Specialty | Providers | Per 100k | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatric dentistry | 297 | 2.3 | 3.7 |
| Orthodontics | 670 | 5.3 | 5.4 |
| Oral surgery | 514 | 4 | 4.1 |
| Endodontics | 310 | 2.4 | 2.6 |
| Periodontics | 333 | 2.6 | 2.5 |
| Prosthodontics | 81 | 0.6 | 1.3 |
| City | Providers | Pediatric |
|---|---|---|
| Chicago | 3,347 | 66 |
| Naperville | 273 | 9 |
| Rockford | 193 | 5 |
| Aurora | 173 | 3 |
| Springfield | 173 | 6 |
Illinois has 13,211 NPI-registered dental providers across 9,821 unique practice locations in 582 cities and towns, per the May 2026 federal NPPES registry. That is 103.9 providers per 100,000 residents, against a national rate of 88.7.
Illinois ranks 10th of 51 for dental providers per capita in the U.S. Dental Access Report 2026. For pediatric access it ranks 47th of 51, with 11 pediatric providers per 100,000 children.
Illinois has 297 NPI-registered pediatric dental providers, roughly one for every 9,066 children in the state. The national average is one for every 5,775 children.
Counts are NPI registrations (organizations and individuals) from the May 2026 NPPES vintage, not licensure data, and can include registrants no longer practicing. Denominators: Census ACS 2024 1-year estimates. Full methodology in the national report.
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