Dental Hygienist salary in Rockford
Rockford, IL
The verified BLS median dental hygienist in the Rockford metro earns $86,120 ($41.40/hr). Rockford pays roughly 12% below the national median of $98,100.
Dental Hygienist pay in Rockford: the analysis
At a verified median of $86,120, dental hygienists in Rockford earn notably below the U.S. median of $98,100 — a gap of about 12%. Among the 377 metro areas where the BLS reports dental hygienist pay, Rockford ranks 223rd.
Compared with Illinois as a whole (median $96,670), Rockford pays dental hygienists 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 hygienists in this metro area earn around $78,410, while the top tenth earn $97,590 or more — a spread of about $19,180. 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 370 dental hygienists employed in Rockford — a measure of how deep the local job market is for the role.
Within Rockford, a dental hygienist earns about 2.5× less than a general dentist and about 1.9× what a dental assistant earns ($214,670, $45,970 respectively) — a quick way to see where the role sits in the local dental pay ladder.
Dental Hygienist pay distribution — Rockford (verified)
Inner percentiles marked “est.” are interpolated between published anchors.
| Percentile | Annual pay | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentilei | $78,410 | $37.70/hr |
| 25th percentilei | $81,790 | $39.32/hr |
| Median (50th)i | $86,120 | $41.40/hr |
| 75th percentilei | $97,490 | $46.87/hr |
| 90th percentilei | $97,590 | $46.92/hr |
| Mean (average)i | $88,260 | $42.43/hr |
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Submit your salary →Frequently asked questions
How much does a dental hygienist make in Rockford?
The verified BLS OEWS median dental hygienist in the Rockford metro earns about $86,120 ($41.40/hr), from the official May 2025 metropolitan wage survey.
How does Rockford dental hygienist pay compare to Illinois overall?
The verified BLS OEWS Rockford metro median is about $86,120, versus the verified BLS OEWS Illinois statewide median of about $96,670.
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