Dental Hygienist vs RN: Salary, Education and Job Outlook Compared

In honor of Dental Hygienist Week April 6th-12th, we’re taking a closer look at becoming a dental hygienist vs RN. Oftentimes called the “registered nurses” of the dental profession, dental hygienists as well as RNs both play a critical, hands-on role in effective patient care. While one champions oral care and prevention, the other navigates complex diagnoses in vastly different settings. 

If you’re passionate about patient care but don’t know which profession is for you, this is your complete guide to making a better informed decision. In it, we’ll explore a detailed career overview for each career, education and licensing requirements, and the anticipated salary, job outlook and career growth potential for each. We’ll conclude with a bonus section about deciding factors to decide which job is right for you. 

Let’s begin with a quick summary comparison of features each job has to offer:

*Dental Hygienist: BLS Healthcare Occupational Outlook Handbook

** RN: BLS Healthcare Occupational Outlook Handbook

Career Overview: Dental Hygienist vs Registered Nurse

Choosing between becoming a dental hygienist and an RN means understanding the roles each plays in delivering quality patient care. Both professions involve meaningful patient interactions, job security and the ability to improve patient lives, but they differ in scope of work, setting and daily demands. Here’s a more in-depth look to help you make an informed choice:

What Does a Dental Hygienist Do?

Dental hygienists dedicate their careers to preventative oral care. They spend their work day cleaning teeth, taking X-rays, assessing signs of oral disease and educating their patients on proper oral health and dental hygiene. They invest themselves in building long-term relationships with their patients and their families. 

They also work in offices alongside dentists where they focus on their hands-on work that provides them standard hours rather than emergency duties.  

What Does a Registered Nurse Do?

RNs provide comprehensive patient care that extends in scope from prevention, to treatment and recovery. They evaluate patient conditions, coordinate with doctors and support patients and their families through the healing journey. Exposed to diverse work settings like hospitals, clinics, schools and home care, RNs can often care for patients overnight and on weekends. 

Key Differences in Daily Responsibilities

Although both professions mainly feature daily patient care, their intensity and scope differ. Dental hygienists operate in a controlled environment with few sudden demands while RNs must constantly adapt to the urgent, fluctuating demands of nursing life. 

Their cases are oftentimes more complex, high pressure and time-sensitive than that of hygienists. Hygienists educate on effective oral health while RNs focus on a wider scope of patient care that demands that they respond to more critical patient acuity and greater patient responsibilities.

Education and Licensing Requirements

Whether you’re just starting or making a career shift, knowing the educational pathways and licensing requirements for becoming a dental hygienist vs RN can help you navigate which one might best suit you, your goals and your priorities. 

How to Become a Dental Hygienist

It usually takes 2-3 college years to become a dental hygienist because they are required to get an associate’s degree from an accredited program. For licensure, dental hygienists must pass the National Board Dental Hygiene Exam (NBDHE) and a state or regional clinical board exam after graduation. Upon passing, dental hygienists are prepared to begin working in a dental office.

How to Become a Registered Nurse

To become an RN, a qualified nurse needs to either complete an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN, about 2 years) or a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN, about 4 years). Upon completing their degree, nursing candidates must pass the NCLEX-RN and also pass their state’’s licensing requirements. Typically, once qualified, RNs take on clinical roles and grow into leadership, education or specialized positions. 

Fast-Track Options for Busy Adult Learners

For busy working adults, a traditional college pathway can be too time-consuming and costly. That’s where Achieve Test Prep comes in. Be it our dental hygiene program or numerous nursing pathways, like LPN to RN, LPN to BSN or CNA to RN, we’ve got you covered. Our credit-by-exam program helps students test out of general education and prerequisite college courses so you can get ahead and graduate sooner. 

This saves you time from taking semester-long courses and also money on tuition expenses. With live, online, expert instruction, personalized, 1:1 tutoring and flexible scheduling on your own terms, Achieve is trusted by thousands of students getting ahead every day.   

Dental Hygienist vs RN: Salary, Job Outlook, and Career Growth

If you’re trying to decide between dental hygienist vs RN, gaining insights into earning potential, job demand and opportunities for advancement will help inform your decision. Here’s a closer look into these considerations: 

Earning Potential

As mentioned above, both dental hygienist and RN offer competitive salaries:

• Dental Hygienist: $87,530/year
• RN: $86,070/year

However, if you are more inclined to pursue an RN career, know that they have greater opportunities for overtime shifts, shift differentials and bonuses which can significantly impact your earning potential. 

Job Demand and Long-Term Stability

Also previewed above, these two professions enjoy robust job demand which leads to projected long-term stability for both.

• Dental Hygienist: Anticipated to grow 9% by 2033, this profession is expected to add 19,600 new jobs by 2033.
• RN: This career is expected to grow by 6% in the same time, adding 195,400 jobs by 2033.

Opportunities for Advancement

RNs enjoy greater career advancement pathways, including care specializations, compared to dental hygienists. Here’s a breakdown:

• RNs: RNs are offered greater and more diverse specialization options like pediatrics, oncology and critical care. By pursuing further education, they can also become Nurse Practitioners, Nurse Anesthetists and are offered more advanced administrative and education roles. This opens the door to higher earning potential and more responsibilities. 
• Dental Hygienists: Although opportunities for advancement exist, dental hygienists are more limited in the ways they can uplevel their career. Hygienists can pursue roles in higher education, research and dental industry sales. Other possibilities, although not very common, include becoming dental therapists or advanced dental hygiene practitioners.  

Bonus: Which Career Is Right for You? A Side-by-Side Comparison

Choosing between dental hygienist vs RN takes into consideration more than just education, salary and job prospects. It has to feel like the right fit personally. In this table, we preview some important “right fit” considerations, like personality, lifestyle and long-term goals, that will help guide your decision-making journey. Here’s a side-by-side comparison:

Ready to Fast-Track Your Nursing or Dental Hygiene Journey? 

Achieve Test Prep empowers your accelerated journey to achieving your nursing or dental hygiene goals more affordably. Our flexible, expert-led instruction that helps you test out of college courses save you time, money and stress. Whether you’re a LPN to RN, LPN to BSN, CNA to RN or prefer to pursue a dental hygiene career, we’ve got you covered with personalized support and proven results. And hear why so many of our students love Achieve. Take your first step to fast-tracking your career dreams today with Achieve!