Why Independently Owned Dental Practices Matter

A Shift in Dental Practice Ownership

The way dental practices are owned in the United States is changing. According to the ADA Health Policy Institute, the percentage of dentists who own their practice dropped from 84.7 percent in 2005 to 73 percent in 2021. Among dentists under 35, ownership rates have nearly halved in the past decade.

At the same time, dental service organizations (DSOs) are growing. ADA research from 2024 shows that 27 percent of dentists less than 10 years out of dental school are now affiliated with a DSO. This trend matters, and not just for dentists. It affects you as a patient.

What You Get From an Independent Dentist

Full Clinical Autonomy

When a dentist owns their practice, they answer to their patients and their professional judgment. There are no corporate production targets, no quotas, and no external pressure to recommend treatments beyond what is clinically needed.

ADA research on career satisfaction among new dentists backs this up. Dentists who left DSO-affiliated practice settings reported a 62 percent increase in satisfaction with clinical autonomy. They also reported a 53 percent increase in satisfaction with schedule flexibility. For the remaining seven measured attributes of job satisfaction, dentists in unaffiliated (independent) private practice reported the highest levels of satisfaction across all practice settings studied.

Long-Term Relationships

Independent practices tend to have lower provider turnover. Your dentist knows your history because they have been treating you for years, not because they read a chart summary before walking in. That continuity means fewer missed details, better preventive care, and a provider who understands your specific concerns.

Community Investment

Independent dentists live and work in the same community they serve. They sponsor local events, donate to schools, and build relationships with other local healthcare providers. When you pay an independent dentist, more of that money stays in your local economy rather than going to a corporate headquarters in another state.

Flexibility for Patients

Independent practice owners have the authority to make case-by-case decisions. They can adjust fees for a patient going through financial hardship. They can work out a custom payment plan. They can take extra time with a nervous patient without worrying about a corporate-mandated scheduling template. That flexibility comes from not having to answer to a board or a quarterly earnings report.

What Is at Stake

The decline of independent practice ownership matters beyond individual patient experiences. Here is why:

Competition keeps pricing honest. A dental market with many independent providers competing for patients tends to keep prices reasonable and quality high. As consolidation increases, patients in some areas may have fewer options.

Diversity of approaches. Different dentists have different philosophies about treatment. Some are conservative, preferring to watch and wait. Others are more interventionist. A market with independent practices preserves that diversity. When a single DSO owns many practices in an area, treatment approaches may become standardized.

Training and mentorship. Many independent practice owners serve as mentors to new dentists, teaching them not just clinical skills but also the ethics and business acumen needed to run a patient-centered practice. As fewer dentists own practices, that mentorship pipeline narrows.

How to Support Independent Dentistry

If the ownership structure of your dental practice matters to you, here are a few things you can do:

• Ask. The simplest step is to ask your dental office if the practice is independently owned. There is nothing wrong with asking, and any good practice will answer honestly.
• Choose intentionally. If you are looking for a new dentist, factor in ownership as one of your criteria alongside location, insurance, and reviews.
• Leave reviews. Independent practices rely heavily on word of mouth and online reviews. If you have a good experience, leave a review. It helps them compete with practices backed by corporate marketing budgets.
• Refer friends and family. A personal recommendation is the most powerful form of marketing. If you trust your independent dentist, tell the people around you.

The Bottom Line

Independent dental practices are not a relic of the past. They represent a model of care where the dentist who treats you is the same person who built the practice, hired the team, and chose every piece of equipment in the office. That level of personal investment in a practice often translates to personal investment in your care.

The choice is yours. But it helps to know what your options are.

Search the DentistrySelect directory to find verified independently owned dental practices in your area.