EBITDA for Dental Practices

EBITDA stands for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. In dental, it's the standard way to measure how profitable your practice actually is, and it's the number any buyer will look at first.

How to calculate it

Start with your net income (from your P&L), then add back interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. For dental practices, you also typically add back the owner's discretionary expenses. things like the owner's salary, personal vehicle, health insurance, etc.

What's a good number?

Healthy single-location practices generally see EBITDA margins (EBITDA ÷ collections) between 20% and 35%. If you're running a lean operation with good overhead control, you might be higher. If you're heavily staffed or in an expensive market, you might be lower.

Why it matters

EBITDA strips away the noise and tells you what the practice actually earns from operations. It's how you compare yourself to other practices, how banks evaluate you for loans, and how buyers value your practice if you ever sell.

How to track it

This requires your full financial data. typically from QuickBooks or your accountant. Denta connects to QuickBooks and calculates EBITDA automatically, giving you a real-time view instead of waiting for quarterly statements.