How to Sell a Dental Practice (2026)
Decide who is buying before anything else. Another dentist pays 60% to 80% of a year’s collections. A group pays 5 to 12 times profit and keeps you on.
- The buyer sets the price basis. Collections for a dentist, profit for a group. They are not comparable.
- The preparation is the long part. 18 to 24 months before you list is where the price is decided.
- A bigger headline can mean less money. A group holds part of it back and keeps you working for years.
What a Dental Practice Sells For
Size decides which yardstick a buyer uses. These bands come from McLerran & Associates, a dental sale advisory firm. They are the same figures used across this site.
| Practice Size | Priced Off | Typical Price | Who Buys |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo, small | Collections | 60% to 80% of collections | An associate or another dentist |
| One location | Profit | 5x to 7x profit | Group buyers, as a small addition |
| Small group | Profit, $1M to $3M | 7x to 9x profit | Mid-sized groups, regional chains |
| Big enough to build on | Profit, $3M to $5M | 9x to 11x profit | Investor-backed groups |
| Large group | Profit, $5M or more | 10x to 12x profit | The largest platforms |
| Specialty, any size | Profit | 10x to 14x profit | Specialty roll-ups |
Read the first row against the others carefully. A share of collections and a multiple of profit are different measures, and comparing them directly will mislead you.
Full detail by tier sits on dental practice valuation by size.
Who Buys a Dental Practice
Two buyers, and the choice shapes everything that follows.
- Another dentist, often your associate. They pay a share of collections, mostly in cash, and you are out in 30 to 120 days. Most borrow through the government-backed 7(a) program.
- A group, backed by investors. A Dental Service Organization pays a multiple of profit, holds part of it back, and keeps you working for three to five years.
- How much dentistry you do decides which is open to you. A practice that runs on the owner’s own production is hard for a group to buy.
The two paths compared in full: associate versus group sale.
The Steps to Sell a Dental Practice
- Pick your date and your number. Get a valuation early, so you know the gap you are closing.
- Cut your own share of production. A practice that needs you every day is worth less to every buyer.
- Clean up the books. Three years of statements that match your tax returns, with every add-back evidenced.
- Renew the lease. A short lease is the quiet deal-killer, because the buyer’s lender wants the term to cover the loan.
- Decide who you are selling to, then package the practice for that buyer.
- Compare offers on what you keep, not on the headline. Count the hold-back and the years you stay.
- Open your books, then close. The buyer checks production, hygiene, the schedule and the patient list.
What to have ready before you talk to a buyer
- Three years of profit and loss statements, plus the matching tax returns
- Production and collections reports by provider
- Your hygiene numbers, split out from restorative
- The lease, with the remaining term and any renewal options
- An equipment list, with the age of the chairs and imaging
How Long It Takes to Sell
Six to 12 months from going to market to closing. The preparation before it runs far longer.
The full breakdown: how long it takes to sell a dental practice.
What You Keep After Tax
Most practice sales are an asset sale. The buyer takes the equipment, the patient list and the name, and leaves the company behind.
You and the buyer split the price across those assets on IRS Form 8594. Each slice carries a different tax rate.
- Chairs and imaging you already wrote off are taxed as ordinary income, at your normal rate.
- The patient list and the name are taxed at the lower long-term rate. The IRS sets out the asset classes in Publication 544.
- The split is negotiated. The buyer wants more of the price in equipment. You want more of it in the patient list.
The dental version in full: asset sale versus stock sale for a practice.
Five Mistakes Dentists Make When Selling
- Going to market on a short lease. The buyer’s lender wants the term to outlast the loan, and a landlord knows it.
- Doing all the production yourself. It reads as risk to a group, and it caps who can buy you.
- Comparing a collections offer to a profit offer. They are different measures. Work out what you bank under each.
- Telling the team too early. Hygienists and assistants who leave take production with them, and the buyer pays for production.
- Treating the hold-back as money. Part of a group’s offer depends on the practice hitting targets after you stop controlling it.
Related Guides
- What your practice is worth by size: dental practice valuation by size.
- What groups actually pay: DSO acquisition offers.
- Selling it yourself: sell a dental practice without a broker.
- The wider process: how to sell a small business.
Frequently Asked Questions
A small solo practice sells for 60% to 80% of a year’s collections. Once a group is buying, the price moves to profit. That runs from 5 times for one location to 12 times for a large group. Specialty practices run higher.
An associate pays less and lets you leave in 30 to 120 days. A group pays more but keeps you working for three to five years, with part of the money paid later. How much dentistry you personally do often decides which is even open to you.
Six to 12 months from going to market to closing. Getting the practice ready properly takes 18 to 24 months before that, and it is where most of the price is decided.
Not at the start, and most sellers do not. Buyers expect confidentiality and sign an agreement before they see numbers. Tell the team once the deal is certain, because staff who leave early cost you value.
They stay with the practice, which is most of what the buyer is paying for. Expect a handover where you introduce the new owner, 30 to 90 days for a dentist buyer and longer for a group.