Dental Hygienist salaries across 50 U.S. cities, from BLS wage data: median and 10th-90th percentiles, plus cost-of-living-adjusted real pay. Compare metros.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS) & BEA Regional Price Parities · Updated June 2026
Across the 50 U.S. metros tracked here, Dental Hygienist pay ranges from about $70,267 in Albuquerque, NM to $126,485 in San Jose, CA (median wage). The U.S. national average for this role is about $81,000.
The table below ranks every metro by median wage. “Real pay” adjusts each salary for local cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parity, U.S. = 100) so you can compare what the paycheck is actually worth. See our methodology for sources and formulas.
| City | Median | 10th %ile | 90th %ile | Cost of living (US = 100) | Real pay (COL-adjusted) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $126,485 | $81,173 | $158,202 | 110.4 | $114,546 |
| San Francisco, CA | $123,748 | $73,276 | $159,077 | 115.6 | $107,036 |
| New York, NY | $114,291 | $59,298 | $152,785 | 112.6 | $101,535 |
| Seattle, WA | $111,147 | $70,259 | $139,768 | 111.1 | $100,013 |
| Washington, DC | $104,693 | $67,192 | $130,943 | 108.9 | $96,151 |
| Austin, TX | $100,675 | $65,027 | $125,628 | 98.1 | $102,660 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $100,650 | $57,621 | $130,769 | 104.8 | $96,020 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $99,629 | $55,188 | $130,737 | 113.6 | $87,728 |
| Boston, MA | $99,187 | $64,142 | $123,718 | 108.3 | $91,614 |
| San Diego, CA | $98,322 | $58,085 | $126,487 | 111.9 | $87,876 |
| Denver, CO | $96,465 | $60,777 | $121,446 | 105.8 | $91,192 |
| Raleigh, NC | $95,340 | $49,484 | $127,439 | 98.2 | $97,130 |
| Miami, FL | $94,948 | $49,097 | $127,043 | 114.2 | $83,175 |
| Portland, OR | $93,545 | $54,877 | $120,611 | 105.4 | $88,735 |
| Dallas, TX | $93,442 | $55,087 | $120,289 | 103.1 | $90,641 |
| Atlanta, GA | $93,286 | $47,165 | $125,570 | 100.1 | $93,232 |
| Sacramento, CA | $91,498 | $55,081 | $116,989 | 106.7 | $85,777 |
| Fresno, CA | $90,632 | $54,228 | $116,114 | 102.2 | $88,717 |
| Charlotte, NC | $89,262 | $49,446 | $117,133 | 97.3 | $91,694 |
| Nashville, TN | $89,211 | $55,995 | $112,461 | 96.3 | $92,602 |
| Houston, TX | $88,310 | $55,928 | $110,976 | 98.6 | $89,538 |
| Chicago, IL | $88,072 | $51,178 | $113,897 | 103.6 | $85,016 |
| New Orleans, LA | $87,094 | $43,874 | $117,347 | 92.6 | $94,057 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $86,524 | $51,304 | $111,177 | 102.6 | $84,369 |
| Kansas City, MO | $86,335 | $51,495 | $110,722 | 92.5 | $93,292 |
| San Antonio, TX | $85,891 | $49,642 | $111,265 | 94.7 | $90,683 |
| Detroit, MI | $85,525 | $45,180 | $113,765 | 100.3 | $85,271 |
| Cleveland, OH | $84,996 | $48,235 | $110,728 | 93 | $91,349 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | $84,957 | $42,981 | $114,339 | 100.7 | $84,361 |
| Columbus, OH | $84,769 | $46,588 | $111,495 | 95.5 | $88,792 |
| Baltimore, MD | $84,744 | $47,169 | $111,045 | 104.5 | $81,105 |
| Omaha, NE | $83,886 | $49,019 | $108,292 | 91.9 | $91,269 |
| Fort Worth, TX | $83,561 | $47,420 | $108,859 | 103.1 | $81,056 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $81,559 | $44,404 | $107,567 | 99.5 | $81,982 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $81,126 | $50,772 | $102,373 | 95.7 | $84,775 |
| Arlington, TX | $80,866 | $41,504 | $108,418 | 103.1 | $78,442 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $80,820 | $48,209 | $103,647 | 103.3 | $78,226 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $79,331 | $46,166 | $102,546 | 100.2 | $79,161 |
| Tucson, AZ | $78,308 | $47,542 | $99,843 | 96.9 | $80,817 |
| Wichita, KS | $78,206 | $46,255 | $100,571 | 88.9 | $87,925 |
| Long Beach, CA | $77,639 | $39,109 | $104,609 | 113.6 | $68,365 |
| Mesa, AZ | $77,241 | $48,577 | $97,305 | 103.3 | $74,762 |
| Oakland, CA | $76,705 | $43,253 | $100,121 | 115.6 | $66,346 |
| Oklahoma City, OK | $76,656 | $40,903 | $101,682 | 90.4 | $84,789 |
| Memphis, TN | $75,393 | $44,899 | $96,738 | 92.2 | $81,790 |
| Louisville, KY | $74,811 | $37,913 | $100,638 | 93.1 | $80,378 |
| El Paso, TX | $74,758 | $39,866 | $99,182 | 89.9 | $83,146 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $74,590 | $44,027 | $95,983 | 96.9 | $76,947 |
| Tulsa, OK | $71,939 | $45,760 | $90,263 | 89.2 | $80,636 |
| Albuquerque, NM | $70,267 | $36,574 | $93,852 | 95.5 | $73,543 |
“Real pay” = average wage × 100 ÷ the metro’s Regional Price Parity — what the salary is worth in national-average dollars. A high-paying city with high costs can rank below a cheaper one on real pay.