Dental Assistant salary in Rockford
Rockford, IL
The verified BLS median dental assistant in the Rockford metro earns $45,970 ($22.10/hr). Rockford pays roughly 4% below the national median of $48,070.
Dental Assistant pay in Rockford: the analysis
At a verified median of $45,970, dental assistants in Rockford earn modestly below the U.S. median of $48,070 — a gap of about 4%. Among the 377 metro areas where the BLS reports dental assistant pay, Rockford ranks 250th.
Compared with Illinois as a whole (median $48,610), Rockford pays dental assistants about 5% less than the statewide median. Local demand, cost of labor, and the mix of practices drive most of that difference.
The pay range is wide: the lowest-paid tenth of dental assistants in this metro area earn around $36,460, while the top tenth earn $58,560 or more — a spread of about $22,100. That gap reflects experience, practice setting, and local demand more than any single factor, so an individual offer can sit well above or below the midpoint.
The BLS counts roughly 530 dental assistants employed in Rockford — a measure of how deep the local job market is for the role.
Within Rockford, a dental assistant earns about 4.7× less than a general dentist and about 1.9× less than a dental hygienist ($214,670, $86,120 respectively) — a quick way to see where the role sits in the local dental pay ladder.
Dental Assistant pay distribution — Rockford (verified)
Inner percentiles marked “est.” are interpolated between published anchors.
| Percentile | Annual pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentilei | $36,460 | $17.53/hr |
| 25th percentilei | $37,710 | $18.13/hr |
| Median (50th)i | $45,970 | $22.10/hr |
| 75th percentilei | $47,320 | $22.75/hr |
| 90th percentilei | $58,560 | $28.15/hr |
| Mean (average)i | $45,660 | $21.95/hr |
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Submit your salary →Frequently asked questions
How much does a dental assistant make in Rockford?
The verified BLS OEWS median dental assistant in the Rockford metro earns about $45,970 ($22.10/hr), from the official May 2025 metropolitan wage survey.
How does Rockford dental assistant pay compare to Illinois overall?
The verified BLS OEWS Rockford metro median is about $45,970, versus the verified BLS OEWS Illinois statewide median of about $48,610.
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