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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
28th of 51
81.9 providers per 100k people (national: 88.7)
Pediatric access rank
42nd of 51
12.4 pediatric providers per 100k children (national: 17.3)
Pediatric desert
South Dakota sits in the bottom ten states for pediatric dental access, with roughly one pediatric provider for every 8,057 children. Families here often rely on general dentists for kids' care, and the right pediatric specialist may be a city or two away.
757
Registered providers
556
Practice locations
87
Cities and towns
17.7%
Specialist share
NPI-registered specialists in South Dakota, with the per-100k rate next to the national rate.
| Specialty | Providers | Per 100k | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatric dentistry | 27 | 2.9 | 3.7 |
| Orthodontics | 40 | 4.3 | 5.4 |
| Oral surgery | 28 | 3 | 4.1 |
| Endodontics | 24 | 2.6 | 2.6 |
| Periodontics | 16 | 1.7 | 2.5 |
| Prosthodontics | 1 | 0.1 | 1.3 |
| City | Providers | Pediatric |
|---|---|---|
| Sioux Falls | 185 | 11 |
| Rapid City | 156 | 8 |
| Aberdeen | 39 | 0 |
| Watertown | 36 | 2 |
| Brookings | 23 | 0 |
South Dakota has 757 NPI-registered dental providers across 556 unique practice locations in 87 cities and towns, per the May 2026 federal NPPES registry. That is 81.9 providers per 100,000 residents, against a national rate of 88.7.
South Dakota ranks 28th of 51 for dental providers per capita in the U.S. Dental Access Report 2026. For pediatric access it ranks 42nd of 51, with 12.4 pediatric providers per 100,000 children.
South Dakota has 27 NPI-registered pediatric dental providers, roughly one for every 8,057 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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Match with a dentist in South Dakota
Dee reads verified specialty registrations across 556 South Dakota practice locations and matches you to the one that fits.