Dental Assistant salary in Watertown
Watertown–Fort Drum, NY
The verified BLS median dental assistant in the Watertown metro earns $43,010 ($20.68/hr). Watertown pays roughly 11% below the national median of $48,070.
Dental Assistant pay in Watertown: the analysis
At a verified median of $43,010, dental assistants in Watertown earn modestly below the U.S. median of $48,070 — a gap of about 11%. Among the 377 metro areas where the BLS reports dental assistant pay, Watertown ranks 330th.
Compared with New York as a whole (median $48,110), Watertown pays dental assistants about 11% 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 $36,920, while the top tenth earn $49,440 or more — a spread of about $12,520. 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 110 dental assistants employed in Watertown — a measure of how deep the local job market is for the role.
Within Watertown, a dental assistant earns about 3.4× less than a general dentist and about 1.9× less than a dental hygienist ($147,190, $81,170 respectively) — a quick way to see where the role sits in the local dental pay ladder.
Dental Assistant pay distribution — Watertown (verified)
Inner percentiles marked “est.” are interpolated between published anchors.
| Percentile | Annual pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentilei | $36,920 | $17.75/hr |
| 25th percentilei | $38,660 | $18.59/hr |
| Median (50th)i | $43,010 | $20.68/hr |
| 75th percentilei | $45,520 | $21.88/hr |
| 90th percentilei | $49,440 | $23.77/hr |
| Mean (average)i | $43,150 | $20.75/hr |
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How much does a dental assistant make in Watertown?
The verified BLS OEWS median dental assistant in the Watertown metro earns about $43,010 ($20.68/hr), from the official May 2025 metropolitan wage survey.
How does Watertown dental assistant pay compare to New York overall?
The verified BLS OEWS Watertown metro median is about $43,010, versus the verified BLS OEWS New York statewide median of about $48,110.
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