Dental Assistant salary in Trenton
Trenton–Princeton, NJ
The verified BLS median dental assistant in the Trenton metro earns $57,400 ($27.60/hr). Trenton pays roughly 19% above the national median of $48,070.
Dental Assistant pay in Trenton: the analysis
At a verified median of $57,400, dental assistants in Trenton earn notably above the U.S. median of $48,070 — a gap of about 19%. Among the 377 metro areas where the BLS reports dental assistant pay, Trenton ranks 31st.
Compared with New Jersey as a whole (median $49,390), Trenton pays dental assistants about 16% more — notably above the statewide figure. 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 $38,520, while the top tenth earn $63,010 or more — a spread of about $24,490. 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 470 dental assistants employed in Trenton — a measure of how deep the local job market is for the role.
Within Trenton, a dental assistant earns about 3.8× less than a general dentist and about 1.8× less than a dental hygienist ($216,750, $100,920 respectively) — a quick way to see where the role sits in the local dental pay ladder.
Dental Assistant pay distribution — Trenton (verified)
Inner percentiles marked “est.” are interpolated between published anchors.
| Percentile | Annual pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentilei | $38,520 | $18.52/hr |
| 25th percentilei | $46,160 | $22.19/hr |
| Median (50th)i | $57,400 | $27.60/hr |
| 75th percentilei | $60,730 | $29.20/hr |
| 90th percentilei | $63,010 | $30.29/hr |
| Mean (average)i | $53,420 | $25.68/hr |
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How much does a dental assistant make in Trenton?
The verified BLS OEWS median dental assistant in the Trenton metro earns about $57,400 ($27.60/hr), from the official May 2025 metropolitan wage survey.
How does Trenton dental assistant pay compare to New Jersey overall?
The verified BLS OEWS Trenton metro median is about $57,400, versus the verified BLS OEWS New Jersey statewide median of about $49,390.
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