# What is a dental support organization (DSO)? A dental support organization (DSO) is a separate business entity that provides non-clinical services to dental practices, as the New Jersey Dental Association describes it, and 16.1% of U.S. dentists were affiliated with one in 2024 (ADA Health Policy Institute). The ADA counts a practice as DSO-affiliated when an outside entity manages some or all of its non-clinical functions. By DDSIntel Editorial. Source: DDSIntel, https://ddsintel.com/dso/what-is-a-dso. Published 2026-10-26; data as of 2026-10-25. ## Key numbers - **16.1%** of U.S. dentists were DSO-affiliated in 2024 (ADA Health Policy Institute, The U.S. Dentist Workforce, 2025 update, 2024; https://www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/files/resources/research/hpi/US_dentist_workforce_2025.pdf) - **13%** of dentists were DSO-affiliated in 2022 (ADA Health Policy Institute, via ADA News, 2022; https://adanews.ada.org/ada-news/2023/june/more-dentists-affiliating-with-dsos/) - **27%** of dentists five or fewer years out of school were DSO-affiliated in 2022 (ADA Health Policy Institute, via ADA News, 2022; https://adanews.ada.org/new-dentist/2024/february/practice-modality-by-the-numbers/) - **72.5%** of dentists owned a private practice in 2023 (ADA Health Policy Institute, 2023; https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dental-practice-research) ## What does a DSO do for a dental practice? A DSO takes on non-clinical work such as staffing, IT and billing for the practices it supports, part of the wider [consolidation of dentistry](https://ddsintel.com/dso). The New Jersey Dental Association describes the purpose as letting dentists focus on clinical care while the DSO runs the business infrastructure, with diagnosis and treatment left to licensed dentists. ## How is a DSO different from a DPO or an MSO? A management services organization (MSO) is the general term for a company that manages a practice’s business side under contract, and a DSO is the dental form. A dental partnership organization (DPO) is generally a group in which participating dentists hold significant ownership. Labels are used loosely, so the agreements matter more than the name. ## How does a DSO relate legally to the practices it supports? In states that require dentists to own and control practices, the dentist owns the practice and the DSO is paid a management fee under a contract. One state dental association cites a statute barring a dentist from practicing for an entity not owned and controlled by a licensed dentist. Rules differ by state, so counsel should review any structure. The contract is covered in [management services agreements](https://ddsintel.com/dso/management-services-agreements). Because it is private, public records understate affiliation, a point developed in [how many dental practices DSOs own](https://ddsintel.com/dso/why-dso-counts-differ). ## Which dentists are most likely to join a DSO? Newer graduates. In 2022 the ADA Health Policy Institute found 27% of dentists five or fewer years out of school affiliated with a DSO, against 13% of dentists overall. Practice ownership also moved the other way: 72.5% of dentists owned a private practice in 2023, down from 84.7% in 2005. Growth over time is charted in [how fast DSOs are growing](https://ddsintel.com/dso/dso-growth-2015-2024). The age profile of the profession is in [dentist age distribution](https://ddsintel.com/data/dentist-age-distribution), and ownership changes surface as [corporate signals](https://ddsintel.com/signals/corporate-signals). ## Frequently asked questions ### What does DSO stand for in dentistry? Dental support organization: a business entity that provides non-clinical services to dental practices while dentists keep clinical care. ### Do DSOs own dental practices? In states that restrict ownership to licensed dentists, a DSO usually contracts with a dentist-owned practice rather than owning it. Rules vary by state. ### What percentage of dentists work with DSOs? 16.1% of U.S. dentists were DSO-affiliated in 2024 (ADA Health Policy Institute). The often-quoted 35% is a different, undisclosed measure. ### Is a DSO the same as private equity? No. Some DSOs are backed by private equity and some are not. See [private equity in dentistry](https://ddsintel.com/dso/private-equity-in-dentistry). ### Who buys practices on behalf of DSOs? The DSO or its investors do. See [who buys dental practices](https://ddsintel.com/dso/dso-or-private-buyer) for how DSO and private-dentist buyers compare. ## Sources 1. American Dental Association. More dentists affiliating with DSOs (ADA News, June 2023). https://adanews.ada.org/ada-news/2023/june/more-dentists-affiliating-with-dsos/ 2. ADA Health Policy Institute. The U.S. Dentist Workforce, 2025 update. https://www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/files/resources/research/hpi/US_dentist_workforce_2025.pdf 3. ADA Health Policy Institute. Dental practice research (DSO affiliation and practice ownership). https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dental-practice-research 4. New Jersey Dental Association. Dental support organizations in New Jersey: how they operate and how ownership works. https://www.njda.org/dental-advocacy/news---notes/2025/12/05/dental-support-organizations-in-new-jersey--how-they-operate--how-ownership-works--and-what-the-wisconsin-delta-dental-case-means-for-us --- DDSIntel is a dental transition intelligence platform that detects pre-market dental practice transition signals for brokers, DSOs, lenders and the firms that serve them.