Career
Dental laboratory technicians
Make crowns, bridges and dentures.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Read prescriptions or specifications and examine models or impressions to determine the design of dental products to be constructed.
- Test appliances for conformance to specifications and accuracy of occlusion, using articulators and micrometers.
- Fabricate, alter, or repair dental devices, such as dentures, crowns, bridges, inlays, or appliances for straightening teeth.
- Place tooth models on an apparatus that mimics bite and movement of patient's jaw to evaluate functionality of model.
- Remove excess metal or porcelain and polish surfaces of prostheses or frameworks, using polishing machines.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on objects & tools, then ideas & analysis?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Read prescriptions or specifications and examine models or impressions to determine the design of dental products to be constructed.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Reading Comprehension, Time Management, Critical Thinking, Operations Monitoring.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
No degree beyond high school, though moderate-term on-the-job training is typical, for a median of $49,610 a year and 3,600 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Dental Laboratory Technology/TechnicianCIP 51.0603
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Medical Appliance Technicians$48,030 · +3.5%
- Dental Assistants$48,070 · +7.4%
- Ophthalmic Laboratory Technicians$39,460 · +2.2%
- Medical Equipment Repairers$61,660 · +12.6%
- Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic$46,170 · +5.8%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.