Health care · Metro area · California
Dentists and orthodontists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area
The dentists and orthodontists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other metro areas.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 25 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #363 of 387 scored metro areas
#21 of 25 scored metro areas based in California
- Listings
- 2,226
- 179 chain locations (8%)
- Official establishments
- 1,927
- +1.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.8B
- On medical and dental services · $1,502 a household
- Spending per listing
- $790K
- 20% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 19.0
- 45% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 3,282,248
- −0.6% since 2020
See the dentists and orthodontists around any address in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
The site report maps the dentists and orthodontists on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
For dentists and orthodontists, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area has a Groundwork market score of 25 (lower middle): #363 of 387 scored metro areas and #21 of 25 scored metro areas based in California. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 2,226 dentists and orthodontists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. Of those, 179 are chain locations, or 8%, against 12% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 19.0, 45% above the U.S. rate of 13.1.
Household spending on medical and dental services in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area comes to about $1.8B a year: $1,502 per household, 17% above the U.S. average. That works out to $790K per practice, 20% below the U.S. figure of $984K. That spending covers all medical and dental services, which dentists and orthodontists share with other businesses in the trade.
In 2023, official counts showed 1,927 businesses with payroll in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area classed as offices of dentists, up 1.0% from 2019. That is one for every 608 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 62 SBA-backed loans worth $58.8M have gone to businesses classed as offices of dentists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. Population estimates show the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area declined 0.6% from 2020 to 2025, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area compares
The same measures for California and the whole U.S. Spending per listing divides a year of household spending on all medical and dental services by the dentists and orthodontists counted, so it measures the demand for each competitor, not any business’s revenue. Households per establishment does the same with the official count.
| Measure | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area | California | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 19.0 | 17.9 | 13.1 |
| Spending per listing | $790K | $817K | $984K |
| Households per official establishment | 608 | 595 | 952 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +1.0% | +1.8% | −0.5% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | −0.4% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on medical and dental services | $1,502 | $1,464 | $1,288 |
| Median household income | $106,268 | $99,122 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 25 | 22 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 1,927+1.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 12,563
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $677.3M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 2,226179 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 1,789The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 62
- Amount
- $58.8M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of dentists in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 3,282,248−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 1,171,278
- Median age
- 38.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 4,211 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 781
- Median household income
- $106,268+34.6% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $141,250
- Median home value
- $854,700
- Jobs located here
- 1,516,991
- Daytime population
- 3,269,716Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the dentists and orthodontists on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardDentists and orthodontists across California
Every California market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in California for dentists and orthodontists, numbered among those based in California, with the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area marked.
Top metro areas in California
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Spending per listing | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1El Centro, CA | 72 | 31 | 6.2 | $1.8M | +1.1% | #34 of 387 |
| 2Yuba City, CA | 62 | 66 | 10.7 | $1.2M | +3.3% | #111 of 387 |
| 3Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 56 | 310 | 10.9 | $1.1M | +2.3% | #141 of 387 |
| 4Hanford-Corcoran, CA | 52 | 46 | 10.4 | $1.2M | +1.0% | #177 of 387 |
| 5Merced, CA | 51 | 93 | 10.8 | $1.1M | +5.1% | #182 of 387 |
| 6Stockton-Lodi, CA | 49 | 337 | 13.7 | $1M | +5.5% | #194 of 387 |
| 7Visalia, CA | 44 | 163 | 11.4 | $1.1M | +2.4% | #234 of 387 |
| 8Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 37 | 2,197 | 15.1 | $900K | +3.5% | #301 of 387 |
| 9Vallejo, CA | 36 | 248 | 15.7 | $919K | +0.6% | #312 of 387 |
| 10Salinas, CA | 34 | 192 | 14.5 | $984K | −1.5% | #320 of 387 |
| 21San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | 25 | 2,226 | 19.0 | $790K | −0.6% | #363 of 387 |
Other business types in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
- Doctors, dentists and clinics38
- Dentists and orthodontists25
- Primary care and pediatrics48
- Urgent care and walk-in clinics46
- Chiropractors41
- Physical therapy49
- Optometrists and eye care44
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many dentists and orthodontists are in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area?
There are 2,226 dentists and orthodontists on map listings in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area as of September 2026. 179 of them (8%) are chain locations. The listings count dental practices, orthodontists included. Official counts show 1,927 businesses with payroll classed as offices of dentists in 2023, up 1.0% from 2019.
How much do households in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area spend on medical and dental services?
About $1.8B a year, or $1,502 per household. That is 17% above the U.S. average (an index of 117, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 2,226 dentists and orthodontists on map listings, it comes to $790K per practice. The spending figure covers all medical and dental services, not only dentists and orthodontists. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,171,278 households in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area compare with the U.S. for dentists and orthodontists?
The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area has 19.0 dentists and orthodontists per 10,000 households, 45% above the U.S. rate of 13.1. Spending per practice is $790K, 20% below the U.S. figure of $984K. At the national ratio of dentists and orthodontists to household spending, the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area would have about 1,789, against 2,226 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 608 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S. The official count rose 1.0% from 2019 to 2023, against −0.5% for the U.S.
How fast is the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area at 3,282,248 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 1,171,278 households. The median household income in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area is $106,268 a year, 32% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 34.6% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. The San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area scores 25 for dentists and orthodontists (lower middle), #363 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. It maps the dentists and orthodontists on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for dentists and orthodontists · All 56 business types in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad metro area. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.