How much do Dental Assistants make in Auburn-Opelika, AL?

Percentile spread

For Dental Assistants, the published 10th percentile is $31,540 and the 90th percentile is $48,130. The difference is $16,590, which is 43.0% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $35,970 to the 75th at $46,850, covers $10,880.

The mean annual wage is $41,140, which sits above the median of $38,550. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

National and state comparison

The Auburn-Opelika, AL median is 19.8% lower than the national median of $48,070 for Dental Assistants. In 2024 national prices the local median is $43,840, which is 8.8% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 1.4% lower than the Alabama median of $39,080.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Auburn-Opelika, AL is 87.933, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $38,550 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Dental Assistants at $43,840 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

25 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Dental Assistants. Auburn-Opelika, AL ranks 19th of 26 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

• Columbus, GA-AL is 40 miles away, with a median of $42,050 and employment of 260. That median is 9.1% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $47,091, against $43,840 here.
• Montgomery, AL is 52 miles away, with a median of $38,260 and employment of 280. That median is 0.8% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $42,662, against $43,840 here.
• Dothan, AL is 86 miles away, with a median of $36,820 and employment of 140. That median is 4.5% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $43,921, against $43,840 here.

Employment share

Dental Assistants accounts for 0.18% of wage-and-salary employment in Auburn-Opelika, AL (130 of 72,710). Nationally the occupation is 0.25% of employment (387,790 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.72 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.