Dental Assistant salary in Roanoke
Roanoke, VA
The verified BLS median dental assistant in the Roanoke metro earns $45,170 ($21.72/hr). Roanoke pays roughly 6% below the national median of $48,070.
Dental Assistant pay in Roanoke: the analysis
At a verified median of $45,170, dental assistants in Roanoke earn modestly below the U.S. median of $48,070 — a gap of about 6%. Among the 377 metro areas where the BLS reports dental assistant pay, Roanoke ranks 283rd.
Compared with Virginia as a whole (median $46,670), Roanoke pays dental assistants about 3% 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 $36,120, while the top tenth earn $56,060 or more — a spread of about $19,940. 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 300 dental assistants employed in Roanoke — a measure of how deep the local job market is for the role.
Within Roanoke, a dental assistant earns about 3.7× less than a general dentist and about 2.2× less than a dental hygienist ($166,160, $98,550 respectively) — a quick way to see where the role sits in the local dental pay ladder.
Dental Assistant pay distribution — Roanoke (verified)
Inner percentiles marked “est.” are interpolated between published anchors.
| Percentile | Annual pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentilei | $36,120 | $17.37/hr |
| 25th percentilei | $36,800 | $17.69/hr |
| Median (50th)i | $45,170 | $21.72/hr |
| 75th percentilei | $47,570 | $22.87/hr |
| 90th percentilei | $56,060 | $26.95/hr |
| Mean (average)i | $43,170 | $20.75/hr |
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How much does a dental assistant make in Roanoke?
The verified BLS OEWS median dental assistant in the Roanoke metro earns about $45,170 ($21.72/hr), from the official May 2025 metropolitan wage survey.
How does Roanoke dental assistant pay compare to Virginia overall?
The verified BLS OEWS Roanoke metro median is about $45,170, versus the verified BLS OEWS Virginia statewide median of about $46,670.
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