# By audience A dental practice transition changes who buys, who approves and who pays for nearly everything a practice uses: 15.2% of U.S. dentists were 65 or older and another 18.6% were 55 to 64 in 2025, according to the ADA Health Policy Institute. TUSK Practice Sales counted at least 175 practice locations sold in the first half of 2026, so accounts change hands continuously. By DDSIntel Editorial. Source: DDSIntel, https://ddsintel.com/for. Published 2026-10-26; data as of 2026-10-25. ## Key numbers - **205,088** professionally active U.S. dentists (ADA Health Policy Institute, 2025; https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dentist-workforce) - **15.2%** were 65 or older (ADA Health Policy Institute, 2025; https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dentist-workforce) - **16.1%** of U.S. dentists were DSO-affiliated (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) - **72.5%** of dentists in private practice owned it, down from 84.7% in 2005 (ADA Health Policy Institute, 2023; https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dental-practice-research) - **175** practice locations reported sold in the first half of 2026, a minimum (TUSK Practice Sales, H1 2026; https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tusk-practice-sales-assesses-the-state-of-the-dental-industry-in-its-q3-2026-dental-market-report-302823046.html) ## Why should firms that serve dentists track practice transitions? A change of owner is the moment a vendor account is most likely to be lost, renegotiated or won. A new owner, and especially a DSO, may consolidate vendors, centralize purchasing or replace systems. A firm that sees a transition coming can defend the account early or position itself with the likely buyer. The [dental retirement cohort](https://ddsintel.com/glossary/retirement-cohort) and the national age profile in [dentist age distribution](https://ddsintel.com/data/dentist-age-distribution) show the size of the wave. They do not show which practices will move, which is what [dental transition signals](https://ddsintel.com/signals) are for. ## Which firms does this guide cover, and what changes for each? DDSIntel organizes this section by audience. Brokers gain or lose a listing, DSOs gain acquisition targets, lenders see new loans and payoffs, accountants and attorneys carry the deal work, labs, equipment reps and IT firms see accounts move to a new buyer, and contractors see build-outs. Each audience has its own hub. Start with the hub for your role: [brokers](https://ddsintel.com/for/brokers), [DSOs](https://ddsintel.com/for/dso), [lenders](https://ddsintel.com/for/lenders), [CPAs and attorneys](https://ddsintel.com/for/cpas-attorneys), [dental labs](https://ddsintel.com/for/labs), [equipment reps](https://ddsintel.com/for/equipment-reps), [IT and MSPs](https://ddsintel.com/for/it-msps) and [contractors](https://ddsintel.com/for/contractors). Each hub embeds the daily briefing for that audience where one exists. ## How can a firm see transitions coming without naming practices? A firm can watch aggregate signal activity in its territory rather than lists of individual dentists. DDSIntel publishes counts of license, entity, facility, compliance and lifecycle signals by state and region through the [Dental Transition Index](https://ddsintel.com/glossary/dti), and never names a dentist, address or practice on a public page. An [observed signal](https://ddsintel.com/glossary/observed) never means an owner intends to sell. Individual introductions happen only where an owner has consented. See [a signal is not a sale](https://ddsintel.com/signals/signal-is-not-a-sale) for the distinction. DDSIntel measures are published in aggregate by state and region once each release is signed off. ## How does a practice sale move through the vendor chain? A sale usually reaches advisers first (broker, CPA, attorney, lender), then operations (IT, labs, supplies), then facilities (equipment and construction). Advisers are involved before closing. Operational vendors may learn of the sale only when the new owner contacts them, which is why early visibility matters most to the firms at the end of the chain. The sequence runs from [finding the seller](https://ddsintel.com/for/broker-sell-side-leads) to [pricing the practice](https://ddsintel.com/data/practice-valuation-multiples), [normalizing earnings](https://ddsintel.com/for/normalizing-dental-ebitda), [tax allocation](https://ddsintel.com/for/dental-practice-sale-tax-form-8594), [the purchase agreement](https://ddsintel.com/for/dental-purchase-agreement-clauses), [IT](https://ddsintel.com/for/it-during-a-dental-practice-sale), [lab accounts](https://ddsintel.com/for/dental-lab-accounts-after-a-sale) and [equipment](https://ddsintel.com/for/dental-equipment-demand-around-a-sale). For expansion, see [DSO de novo site selection](https://ddsintel.com/for/dso-de-novo-site-selection) and [breach rules after a sale](https://ddsintel.com/for/dental-practice-breach-trends). ## Frequently asked questions ### Why does a dental practice sale matter to vendors? A new owner can change who approves purchases, consolidate vendors or centralize contracts. A transition is the moment an account is most likely to be lost or won. ### How many dental practices change hands? TUSK Practice Sales reported at least 175 practice locations sold in the first half of 2026 and said the true count is likely higher. No public source is a complete census. ### Does DDSIntel sell lists of dentists who are about to sell? No. DDSIntel publishes aggregate signal activity and never names a dentist, NPI or practice on a public page. Individual introductions happen only with the owner’s consent. ### What share of dentists are part of a DSO? The ADA Health Policy Institute put DSO affiliation at 16.1% of U.S. dentists in 2024. See [how consolidated dentistry is](https://ddsintel.com/dso) for why other estimates differ. ### Where can I find the national numbers behind these pages? The [dental market data hub](https://ddsintel.com/data) lists each national figure with its publisher, URL and retrieval date. ## Sources 1. ADA Health Policy Institute. The dentist workforce. https://www.ada.org/resources/research/health-policy-institute/dentist-workforce 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. Practice Ownership Among Dentists Continues to Decline (November 2023). https://www.ada.org/-/media/project/ada-organization/ada/ada-org/files/resources/research/hpi/practice_ownership_among_dentists_continues_decline_2023.pdf 4. TUSK Practice Sales. TUSK Practice Sales Assesses the State of the Dental Industry in Its Q3 2026 Dental Market Report (July 10, 2026). https://pr.timesenterprise.com/article/TUSK-Practice-Sales-Assesses-the-State-of-the-Dental-Industry-in-Its-Q3-2026-Dental-Market-Report/6a514c9516e7610b3c53e15d --- 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.