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 | $126485 | $81173 | $158202 | 110.4 | $114546 |
| San Francisco, CA | $123748 | $73276 | $159077 | 115.6 | $107036 |
| New York, NY | $114291 | $59298 | $152785 | 112.6 | $101535 |
| Seattle, WA | $111147 | $70259 | $139768 | 111.1 | $100013 |
| Washington, DC | $104693 | $67192 | $130943 | 108.9 | $96151 |
| Austin, TX | $100675 | $65027 | $125628 | 98.1 | $102660 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $100650 | $57621 | $130769 | 104.8 | $96020 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $99629 | $55188 | $130737 | 113.6 | $87728 |
| Boston, MA | $99187 | $64142 | $123718 | 108.3 | $91614 |
| San Diego, CA | $98322 | $58085 | $126487 | 111.9 | $87876 |
| Denver, CO | $96465 | $60777 | $121446 | 105.8 | $91192 |
| Raleigh, NC | $95340 | $49484 | $127439 | 98.2 | $97130 |
| Miami, FL | $94948 | $49097 | $127043 | 114.2 | $83175 |
| Portland, OR | $93545 | $54877 | $120611 | 105.4 | $88735 |
| Dallas, TX | $93442 | $55087 | $120289 | 103.1 | $90641 |
| Atlanta, GA | $93286 | $47165 | $125570 | 100.1 | $93232 |
| Sacramento, CA | $91498 | $55081 | $116989 | 106.7 | $85777 |
| Fresno, CA | $90632 | $54228 | $116114 | 102.2 | $88717 |
| Charlotte, NC | $89262 | $49446 | $117133 | 97.3 | $91694 |
| Nashville, TN | $89211 | $55995 | $112461 | 96.3 | $92602 |
| Houston, TX | $88310 | $55928 | $110976 | 98.6 | $89538 |
| Chicago, IL | $88072 | $51178 | $113897 | 103.6 | $85016 |
| New Orleans, LA | $87094 | $43874 | $117347 | 92.6 | $94057 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $86524 | $51304 | $111177 | 102.6 | $84369 |
| Kansas City, MO | $86335 | $51495 | $110722 | 92.5 | $93292 |
| San Antonio, TX | $85891 | $49642 | $111265 | 94.7 | $90683 |
| Detroit, MI | $85525 | $45180 | $113765 | 100.3 | $85271 |
| Cleveland, OH | $84996 | $48235 | $110728 | 93 | $91349 |
| Colorado Springs, CO | $84957 | $42981 | $114339 | 100.7 | $84361 |
| Columbus, OH | $84769 | $46588 | $111495 | 95.5 | $88792 |
| Baltimore, MD | $84744 | $47169 | $111045 | 104.5 | $81105 |
| Omaha, NE | $83886 | $49019 | $108292 | 91.9 | $91269 |
| Fort Worth, TX | $83561 | $47420 | $108859 | 103.1 | $81056 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $81559 | $44404 | $107567 | 99.5 | $81982 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $81126 | $50772 | $102373 | 95.7 | $84775 |
| Arlington, TX | $80866 | $41504 | $108418 | 103.1 | $78442 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $80820 | $48209 | $103647 | 103.3 | $78226 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $79331 | $46166 | $102546 | 100.2 | $79161 |
| Tucson, AZ | $78308 | $47542 | $99843 | 96.9 | $80817 |
| Wichita, KS | $78206 | $46255 | $100571 | 88.9 | $87925 |
| Long Beach, CA | $77639 | $39109 | $104609 | 113.6 | $68365 |
| Mesa, AZ | $77241 | $48577 | $97305 | 103.3 | $74762 |
| Oakland, CA | $76705 | $43253 | $100121 | 115.6 | $66346 |
| Oklahoma City, OK | $76656 | $40903 | $101682 | 90.4 | $84789 |
| Memphis, TN | $75393 | $44899 | $96738 | 92.2 | $81790 |
| Louisville, KY | $74811 | $37913 | $100638 | 93.1 | $80378 |
| El Paso, TX | $74758 | $39866 | $99182 | 89.9 | $83146 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $74590 | $44027 | $95983 | 96.9 | $76947 |
| Tulsa, OK | $71939 | $45760 | $90263 | 89.2 | $80636 |
| Albuquerque, NM | $70267 | $36574 | $93852 | 95.5 | $73543 |
“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.