Dental Associate Pay Calculator — Compare Two Offers

What is this associate offer actually worth, next to the other one?

Enter two offers and the net production you expect. You get the yearly value of each, your effective percentage after lab fees and collections, the production where the guarantee stops mattering, and what each pays if your schedule comes in thin.

Nothing you type leaves this browser tab. Illustrative estimates, not advice. Not legal, tax, or financial advice.

Your expected work

Net production you expect in a year, dollars (after write-offs)

Days you work a year

Collections as a percent of net production

Lab fees as a percent of production

Years you expect to stay (spreads the sign-on bonus)

Cash pay you want, dollars a year (optional)

Offer A

Pay percentage (for example 30)

Percentage is applied to

Daily guarantee, dollars (blank if none)

Share of lab fees you pay, percent (blank if none)

Sign-on bonus, dollars

Other yearly pay (retirement match, CE allowance), dollars

Offer B

Pay percentage (for example 30)

Percentage is applied to

Daily guarantee, dollars (blank if none)

Share of lab fees you pay, percent (blank if none)

Sign-on bonus, dollars

Other yearly pay (retirement match, CE allowance), dollars

For a percentage-only offer, leave the guarantee blank. Net production is after PPO write-offs.

Fill in your expected production and both offers, then click Compare.

How it is calculated

Commission = your percentage x (net production, or net production times the collection rate, minus the share of lab fees you pay). Cash pay = the greater of the commission and the daily guarantee times your days worked. Yearly value = cash pay + other yearly pay + the sign-on bonus divided by the years you expect to stay. The effective percentage is cash pay divided by net production. The crossover is the production where the two yearly values are equal.

Not modelled: benefits, continuing education, malpractice, non-compete and non-solicit terms, ownership buy-in, hygiene splits, taxes, clawback of a guarantee or sign-on bonus, and the delay between doing the work and collecting for it. Unverified: checked by hand calculation and unit tests only. Have a healthcare contract attorney review the actual agreement.

Common questions

How do dental associates usually get paid?

Most associate contracts pay the greater of a daily or hourly guarantee and a percentage, often 25 to 35 percent, of production or collections, sometimes after subtracting lab fees. This tool applies exactly that formula to the numbers in your offer; it states no market percentage.

What is the difference between production and collections?

Production is the value of the dentistry you performed after write-offs; collections are the money the practice actually receives. Being paid on collections usually costs a little each year because not everything billed is collected, and it pays later. The tool shows the dollar gap at the collection rate you enter.

Why do lab fees change my real percentage?

If the contract charges you a share of the lab bill, that amount comes off the base before your percentage is applied, so your effective percentage of production is lower than the headline. The tool shows the yearly dollar cost and the effective percentage.

What does a daily guarantee do?

The guarantee is a floor. You are paid the larger of the guarantee and the percentage. The tool shows the production at which the percentage overtakes the guarantee. It does not model contracts that later claw the guarantee back against future production; read that clause and ask a contract attorney.

Can I compare a percentage-only offer against a guarantee offer?

Yes. Leave the guarantee at zero on the percentage-only offer. The tool shows where the two pay the same and how each moves if production comes in low or high.

What is not modelled?

Benefits, continuing education allowances, malpractice, non-compete and non-solicit terms, ownership buy-in, taxes, hygiene or specialty splits, and any clawback of a guarantee or sign-on bonus.

Is my offer uploaded anywhere?

No. Everything you type stays in this browser tab. There are no accounts, cookies or analytics vendors.