Dentists, General in Arkansas
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$127,403
after federal, FICA and Arkansas tax
Tax takes
$51,527
28.8% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$147,273
Arkansas costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Arkansas — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$178,930
Kept after tax
$127,403
Worth in national money
$147,273
State rank
18
of 47 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Arkansas is 18 of 47 states for dentists, general, with a middle wage of $178,930. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- This is one of the better-paid jobs in Arkansas. It ranks 2 out of 489 occupations the state publishes figures for, which puts it in the top quarter locally.
- Cheaper living works in this state's favor. From $178,930 you keep $127,403 after tax, and local prices stretch that to the equivalent of $147,273 at national prices. Here the average runs under the middle, at $174,280.
- Arkansas ranks 18 of 47 for dentists, general at $178,930. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Within Arkansas, dentists, general ranks 2 of 489 occupations by median pay, placing it in the top quartile of the local distribution. This is the comparison a resident actually makes — against neighbors rather than against the same job elsewhere.
- Retained pay in Arkansas is $127,403 after the full tax stack, from $178,930. Because the state's price level runs below the national average, the price-adjusted equivalent is $147,273 — a real-terms figure describing purchasing power rather than compensation, and not a number that appears on any pay stub. Mean pay of $174,280 sits under the median, so the lower tail is the longer one.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Dentists, General
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $99,010 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $178,930 |
| Top tenth earn over | $223,010 |
| This salary | $178,930 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Arkansas | $127,403 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $133,565 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$9,825 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $169,915 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$13,270 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 87 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $178,930 as a midpoint for Arkansas, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $99,010 and the ninetieth is $223,010 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- That $127,403 take-home in Arkansas comes from $178,930. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 2 of 489.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $147,273 uses one figure for the whole of Arkansas. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 489 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 2.
- The Arkansas median of $178,930 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $99,010 to $223,010. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Retained pay of $127,403, from $178,930, assumes a single Arkansas filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 2 of 489 locally, and the state ranks 18 of 47 for it.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $147,273, worked from $178,930, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Arkansas address, on work sitting at 2 of 489 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $99,010 at the bottom tenth to $223,010 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Arkansas is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $147,273 in national terms.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Arkansas's own levy, $127,403 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
Because the survey suppresses a figure when too few employers report it. This occupation has published pay in 47 states — the rest are withheld to protect confidentiality, which is not the same as nobody doing the work there.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($99,010 to $223,010) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Arkansas rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Arkansas's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $147,273 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $127,403 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Arkansas income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 47 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.