Dentistry is an excellent profession that should allow dentists to earn an income that supports a comfortable family lifestyle while still providing sufficient savings to achieve financial independence or retire by a desired age. Unfortunately, the retirement age for dentists is rising.

Twenty years ago, most dentists retired at around age 62. Today, Levin Group surveys show the average dentist is retiring closer to age 71, while the ADA Health Policy Institute reports an average retirement age of approximately 69. If these trends continue, dentists may eventually be working until age 75 or older to accumulate sufficient savings for financial independence. Dentists need to ask themselves: What can I do to accumulate wealth and achieve financial independence earlier?

The trajectory of a dentist’s financial career

Debt is a major factor in wealth accumulation, and student loans are often the first significant debt many dentists take on. The average dentist graduates with approximately $300,000 or more in student loan debt, while specialists often have more than $500,000. After graduation or residency, many dentists must decide whether to remain employees, purchase or start a practice, or work as employees before eventually becoming owners.

The reality is that dentists who remain employees can earn a solid income, but they generally have fewer opportunities to accumulate wealth than practice owners. Owning a practice creates an asset that can be appreciated over time and ultimately be sold, helping dentists achieve financial independence or significantly increase their wealth.

The second level of debt occurs when dentists buy into or purchase a practice, which is almost always financed through a bank loan. Like student loan debt, practice debt is an investment in a dentist's career that can generate an excellent return if the practice is effectively managed and continues to grow over time.

For young dentists, operating a successful practice means systemizing it for maximum production and profitability as early as possible while continually implementing strategies that support annual growth. Thousands of practices accomplish this every year, and those dentists are positioned for outstanding careers. They may still be on track to retire around age 72, but by maximizing their practice's potential, they may be able to retire as much as 10 years earlier.

How do you accumulate wealth?

Here are several suggestions that can benefit any dentist willing to follow them. Levin Group has worked with more than 30,000 doctors, giving us extensive experience with what works, what doesn't, and what consistently creates success. Here are some key recommendations:

Understand your debt level and create a plan to pay it off. It is not always prudent to pay off debt as quickly as possible, particularly when it involves business investments such as a dental practice or lower-interest student loans. Work with an experienced certified public accountant (CPA) who understands the dental industry and can advise you on debt reduction strategies, which are just as important as wealth accumulation strategies.

Develop a financial plan. Even if you're carrying debt and have limited savings, developing a financial plan is a smart decision. Consider the following sports analogy:

A person who is 30 pounds overweight and doesn't exercise commits to running a marathon 12 months from now. They do not wait until they've lost the weight and are already running 10 miles a day before creating a training plan. Instead, they develop a plan from the very beginning, steadily preparing over the course of the year. Their chances of successfully completing the marathon are much higher because they started with a plan.

The same principle applies to financial planning.

Many dentists have told me they don't need a financial plan because they don't have enough money yet. That is the wrong way to think about it. Develop a plan for the next 30 or 40 years and benchmark your progress annually. Naturally, you'll adjust the plan based on each year's results, but you should always know where you stand, how much income you'll need, how much you should be saving, and how your investments are contributing to your long-term wealth.

Set a specific savings target. If your goal is to own several homes on the Riviera and keep 10 Ferraris in your garage, you probably chose the wrong profession. Dentistry can provide an exceptional lifestyle, but every profession has a compensation range, and dentistry generally doesn't produce private jets, sprawling estates, or fleets of exotic cars.

What it can provide is an outstanding quality of life—if you manage your career well.

My advice to most dentists is to accumulate wealth slowly. Most dentists enjoy careers lasting 35 to 40 years. The earlier you begin saving, the greater the benefit of compound growth. Each year, more of your income will come from money you've already invested rather than from your daily work. That's passive income.

When your passive income is sufficient to support your lifestyle, you have achieved financial independence. Saving consistently isn't always easy, especially while carrying debt. However, establishing a specific annual savings goal as part of your financial plan will help you build wealth and retire at a reasonable age.

Don't get sucked into an "incredible opportunity." Throughout your career, you'll hear about countless investment opportunities that promise extraordinary returns. Some may indeed be worthwhile. However, many dentists invest in "can't miss" opportunities that fail, setting them back five years or more. In some cases, dentists have even been forced into bankruptcy.

For the most part, the old saying still applies: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.

Keep in mind that dentists are often targeted by people seeking investment capital. Before making any significant investment, have trusted advisors carefully evaluate the opportunity and provide objective feedback.

Continually build your practice. For most dentists, most of their lifetime income will come from the practice. That means your focus should always be on making your practice as productive, efficient, and profitable as possible.

Implement excellent systems, strengthen referral marketing, and continually train your team. These efforts help drive annual growth and increase profitability.

If your practice goes more than two years without increasing income, consider seeking professional advice. Stagnant revenue often signals a plateau that should be addressed. Flat income effectively becomes declining income because overhead continues to rise each year, making it more difficult to contribute to your annual savings goals.

Sell your practice for maximum value. We've seen too many dentists allow their practices to decline during the final years before retirement, significantly reducing the eventual sale price. Buyers and practice valuations typically examine the previous three years of performance when determining value.

We encourage every dentist to begin planning several years before retirement to ensure the practice remains strong. While exceptional growth is ideal, demonstrating consistent growth is often enough to maximize value.

Remember, your practice is an asset you've spent decades building. Protecting its value will make a meaningful contribution to your retirement savings.

Editor's note: This article appeared in the September 2026 print edition of Dental Economics magazine. Dentists in North America are eligible for a complimentary print subscription. Sign up here.

References:

1. American Dental Association Health Policy Institute. The U.S. Dentist Workforce: 2025 Update. American Dental Association; 2025. https://www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/files/resources/research/hpi/us_dentist_workforce_2025.pdf 
2. American Dental Education Association. Dentists of Tomorrow 2025. American Dental Education Association; 2025. https://www.adea.org/home/publications/research-and-data/graduating-oral-health-students/dentists-of-tomorrow-2025 
3. Hanson M. Average Dental School Debt. EducationData.org. February 27, 2026. https://educationdata.org/average-dental-school-debt