Groundwork

Health care · County · South Carolina

Dentists and orthodontists in Dorchester County, SC

How Dorchester County, SC compares with other counties and the U.S. for dentists and orthodontists: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 42 out of 100: Lower middle

Ranked #1,241 of 1,886 scored counties
#25 of 38 scored counties in South Carolina

Listings
78
11 chain locations (14%)
Official establishments
56
+3.7% since 2019
Household spending a year
$71.9M
On medical and dental services · $1,138 a household
Spending per listing
$922K
6% below the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
12.3
6% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
178,397
+10.1% since 2020

See the dentists and orthodontists around any address in Dorchester County

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 Dorchester County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

As of September 2026, map listings count 78 dentists and orthodontists in Dorchester County. Chain locations make up 14% of them, against 12% across the U.S. That is 12.3 per 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 13.1.

Households in Dorchester County spend about $71.9M a year on medical and dental services, or $1,138 per household, 12% below the U.S. average. That works out to $922K per practice, 6% 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.

The official count of businesses with payroll classed as offices of dentists in Dorchester County was 56 in 2023, up 3.7% from 2019. That is one for every 1,128 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 7 SBA-backed loans worth $635K have gone to businesses classed as offices of dentists in Dorchester County.

Population estimates show Dorchester County grew 10.1% from 2020 to 2025, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for dentists and orthodontists in Dorchester County is 42 (lower middle), #1,241 of 1,886 scored counties and #25 of 38 scored counties in South Carolina.

How Dorchester County compares

The same measures for South Carolina 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.

Dentists and orthodontists in Dorchester County, SC compared with South Carolina and the U.S.
MeasureDorchester CountySouth CarolinaU.S.
Listings per 10k households12.311.413.1
Spending per listing$922K$951K$984K
Households per official establishment1,1281,205952
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023+3.7%+3.7%−0.5%
Population growth, 2020–2025+10.1%+8.5%+3.1%
Spending per household on medical and dental services$1,138$1,086$1,288
Median household income$78,198$69,324$80,734
Groundwork market score4249

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
54 → 56+3.7% over the period
Employees, 2023
501
Annual payroll, 2023
$28.7M
One-person businesses, 2023
Not publishedNot published for this business type
Map listings, September 2026
7811 chain locations
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
73The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here

SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022

Loans
7
Amount
$635K

SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of dentists in Dorchester County, 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 Dorchester County

Population, 2025 estimate
178,397+10.1% since 2020
Households
63,179
Median age
38.4
Homes lived in by their owners
76%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
568 sq. mi.
People per square mile
294
Median household income
$78,198+24.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$100,220
Median home value
$329,300
Jobs located here
39,777
Daytime population
129,933Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Dorchester County?

These figures cover the whole county. 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 Dorchester County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

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Dentists and orthodontists across South Carolina

Every South Carolina market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in South Carolina for dentists and orthodontists, numbered among those based in South Carolina, with Dorchester County marked.

Top counties in South Carolina

Counties in South Carolina ranked for dentists and orthodontists by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsSpending per listingPopulation growthU.S. rank
1Jasper County, SC7764.6$2.3M+32.2%#112 of 1,886
2Edgefield County, SC7655.1$2.1M+16.1%#127 of 1,886
3Laurens County, SC68155.6$1.7M+6.2%#309 of 1,886
4Chesterfield County, SC6695.1$1.8M+3.4%#374 of 1,886
5Darlington County, SC65114.3$2.2M+0.1%#397 of 1,886
6Kershaw County, SC65217.8$1.4M+11.6%#422 of 1,886
7Berkeley County, SC609910.6$1.1M+18.7%#589 of 1,886
8Cherokee County, SC59167.3$1.3M+3.7%#626 of 1,886
9Horry County, SC581428.9$1.2M+20.9%#668 of 1,886
10Clarendon County, SC5675.7$1.6M+0.7%#699 of 1,886
25Dorchester County, SC427812.3$922K+10.1%#1,241 of 1,886

Other business types in Dorchester County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many dentists and orthodontists are in Dorchester County, SC?

Dorchester County has 78 dentists and orthodontists on map listings as of September 2026. 11 of them (14%) are chain locations. The listings count dental practices, orthodontists included. Official counts show 56 businesses with payroll classed as offices of dentists in 2023, up 3.7% from 2019.

How much do households in Dorchester County, SC spend on medical and dental services?

About $71.9M a year, or $1,138 per household. That is 12% below the U.S. average (an index of 88, where 100 is the U.S. average). Spread across the 78 dentists and orthodontists on map listings, it comes to $922K per practice. The spending figure covers all medical and dental services, not only dentists and orthodontists. It is estimated from the incomes of the 63,179 households in Dorchester County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Dorchester County, SC compare with the U.S. for dentists and orthodontists?

Dorchester County has 12.3 dentists and orthodontists per 10,000 households, 6% below the U.S. rate of 13.1. Spending per practice is $922K, 6% below the U.S. figure of $984K. At the national ratio of dentists and orthodontists to household spending, Dorchester County would have about 73, against 78 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 1,128 households, against one for every 952 across the U.S. The official count rose 3.7% from 2019 to 2023, against −0.5% for the U.S.

How fast is Dorchester County, SC growing?

Population estimates put Dorchester County at 178,397 people in 2025, up 10.1% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 63,179 households. The median household income in Dorchester County is $78,198 a year, 3% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 24.0% 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. Dorchester County scores 42 for dentists and orthodontists (lower middle), #1,241 of 1,886 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Dorchester County. 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 Dorchester County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Dorchester County?

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 Dorchester County. 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.