Nearly 288,800 dental assistants were employed in the United States as of May 2024 per the latest available occupational employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  Over 17,600 dental assistants at work in May 2024 lived in the six-state New England region of the country.  BLS data reveals New England to be one of the better regions of the country for dental assistant pay.  Every state in New England, except Rhode Island, recorded an annual mean wage level for dental assistants that was above the national average for the profession, with three states in the region, Massachusetts, Maine, and Vermont, ranked among the top ten states nationally for that pay metric.  A deeper dive into May 2024 BLS data details the following about dental assistant pay in New England:

Dental Assistant Pay in New England

State	# Employed	Annual Mean Wages	Wage Rank*
CT	3,740	$51,540	13th
MA	9,250	$56,790	4th
ME	1,450	$54,190	9th
NH	1,400	$52,850	11th
RI	1,120	$51,700	12th
VT	650	$54,570	8th
U.S.	287,780	$48,225	-------

(*) annual mean wage ranking among the 50 states and the District of Columbia

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on August 11, 2025