2026 metro dental report
Dental care in Phoenix, by the numbers
How many dentists the 5,186,958 people of the Phoenix metro have, where they cluster, which specialties run thin, and who is joining the workforce.
Part of the Metro Dental Reports 2026 by Pete Johnson, founder of dentalist.ai. Sources: federal NPPES registry, CMS Open Payments and U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Dentist access
35th of 50
74.3 dentists per 100k residents (U.S.: 80.2)
Pediatric access
29th of 50
15 pediatric dentists per 100k children (U.S.: 14.9)
3,854
Registered dentists
3,320
Practice addresses
19%
Specialists
2
Counties
Key findings
- Phoenix has 3,854 registered dentists for 5,186,958 residents: 74.3 per 100,000 people, 7% below the national rate of 80.2. That ranks 35th of the 50 largest U.S. metros.
- Where you live inside the metro matters. Maricopa County has 78.6 dentists per 100,000 residents; Pinal County has 35.4. That is a 2.2x gap within one metro area.
- There is one pediatric dentist for every 6,646 children here (15 per 100,000 kids, in line with the national rate).
- 282 dentists now practicing here received their NPI in 2023 to 2025, 5.4 per 100,000 residents (national: 6).
- 30.4% of Phoenix's registered dentists are women, against 35.8% nationally.
- In 2025, 47.1% of the metro's dentists received at least one payment from a drug, device or dental supply company, $1.9 million in total. For most it was small: 62% received nothing but meals, and the typical recipient got $94 for the year. The top 10% of recipients took 89% of the money.
Dentists per person, county by county
Every county in the metro, largest first. Rates for counties under 50,000 people swing on a handful of dentists, so read those loosely.
| County | Population | Dentists | Per 100k | Pediatric per 100k kids |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maricopa County | 4,673,096 | 3,672 | 78.6 | 15.3 |
| Pinal County | 513,862 | 182 | 35.4 | 12.9 |
Specialists
Dentists whose primary registered specialty is one of the six below, with the national rate for comparison.
| Specialty | Dentists | Phoenix rate | U.S. rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatric dentists | 169 | 15 per 100k children | 14.9 |
| Orthodontists | 194 | 3.7 per 100k residents | 4 |
| Oral surgeons | 125 | 2.4 per 100k residents | 2.7 |
| Periodontists | 86 | 1.7 per 100k residents | 1.9 |
| Endodontists | 110 | 2.1 per 100k residents | 2 |
| Prosthodontists | 50 | 1 per 100k residents | 1.1 |
Who is practicing
30.4%
Women (U.S.: 35.8%)
282
New NPIs, 2023 to 2025
7.3%
Share of all dentists (U.S.: 7.5%)
A dentist keeps one NPI for life, so most new NPIs belong to dentists early in their careers. By that measure Phoenix ranks 38th of the 50 largest metros for new dentists per resident.
Industry payments to dentists
Drug, device and dental supply companies must report what they pay dentists to CMS Open Payments. In 2025, 1,814 Phoenix dentists (47.1%) received at least one payment, $1,866,890 in all. 62% of them received only meals; the top 10% of recipients took 89% of the dollars. A payment does not mean anything improper, and you can look up your own dentist at openpaymentsdata.cms.gov.
| Company | Paid to Phoenix dentists, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Envista Holdings | $837,056 |
| Align Technology | $126,395 |
| Straumann USA | $123,693 |
| Dentsply Sirona | $119,744 |
| Hiossen | $77,242 |
Where Phoenix's dentists practice
The cities in the metro with the most registered dentists. Each links to the practices there.
- Phoenix1,092 dentists
- Scottsdale487 dentists
- Mesa481 dentists
- Glendale303 dentists
- Chandler242 dentists
- Gilbert225 dentists
- Peoria158 dentists
- Tempe148 dentists
- Surprise101 dentists
- Goodyear72 dentists
Frequently asked questions
How many dentists are in the Phoenix area?
The Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ metro area has 3,854 dentists registered in the federal NPI registry, about 74.3 per 100,000 residents, or one for every 1,346 people. The U.S. rate is 80.2 per 100,000.
Which part of Phoenix has the fewest dentists per person?
Among counties with at least 50,000 residents, Pinal County has the fewest: 35.4 dentists per 100,000 people. Maricopa County has the most, at 78.6.
How many pediatric dentists does Phoenix have?
169 dentists in the metro register pediatric dentistry as their primary specialty, roughly one for every 6,646 children. Nationally the figure is one for every 6,705 children.
Do dentists in Phoenix get paid by dental companies?
Federal Open Payments data shows 47.1% of Phoenix's registered dentists received at least one payment from a drug, device or dental supply company in 2025, $1.9 million in total. 62% of those recipients received only meals. You can look up any individual dentist at openpaymentsdata.cms.gov.
Metro = the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ metropolitan statistical area (OMB 2023 delineation). Dentists are individual NPI registrations with a dental taxonomy in the NPPES registry (October 2026), with deactivated NPIs removed; counts are registry-based, not licensure-based, and can include dentists who have retired. Practices are placed in a county by ZIP code. Population: Census Vintage 2024 estimates. Industry payments: CMS Open Payments, general payments, program year 2025. Full methodology on the report index.
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