Number of dentists in Turkey in figures: how tight is competition for a new clinic?
The number of dentists in Turkey has risen to 62 per 100,000 people, according to the Ministry of Health’s Health Statistics Yearbook 2025 press release published on 30 September 2026. A year earlier the ratio was 59. Multiplied by TÜİK’s end-2025 population of 86,092,168, that works out at roughly 53,400 dentists. In plain terms, there is about one dentist for every 1,613 people.
For a new clinic the message is clear: the supply of dentists grows every year, while the number of dental visits does not grow at the same pace. In 2025, 104 universities in Turkey run dentistry programmes. Competition is tight but scattered; patients find you through your district, your dentist’s name and the search results.
How many dentists does Turkey have, and where does the figure come from?
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- The ministry’s ratio: 62 per 100,000
- TÜİK’s population: 86,092,168
- The chamber’s count points to the same range
The official source is the Ministry of Health’s annual statistics bulletin, and it reports dentists as a ratio per 100,000 people rather than as a headcount. The 2025 ratio is 62. Multiply it by TÜİK’s Address-Based Population Registration result and you get a profession of about 53,400 people. That headcount is our calculation, not a ministry figure.
The ministry’s ratio: 62 per 100,000
The Health Statistics Yearbook 2025 press release shows dentists per 100,000 people rising from 59 to 62. The same bulletin puts the total number of physicians at 232,315. Reading: dentists are a small group next to physicians, but a fast-growing one.
TÜİK’s population: 86,092,168
According to TÜİK, the population on 31 December 2025 is 86,092,168, up 427,224 in a year. 62 × 860.9 gives about 53,400 dentists. Reading: population grows 5 per thousand; the dentist ratio grows nearly 5 percent.
The chamber’s count points to the same range
In November 2024 the Gaziantep Chamber of Dentists put the national number of dentists at 49,300. Multiply the 2024 ratio of 59 by that year’s population and you get about 50,500. Reading: two separate sources land in the same range, so the figure holds up.
How fast is the supply of dentists growing?
The rough maths: around 50,500 dentists in 2024 becomes around 53,400 in 2025, which means some 2,900 new dentists in a single year. 104 universities run dentistry programmes, and the profession’s own body expects a much higher number within five years.
Dentistry at 104 universities
A parliamentary question filed in February 2026 and the 2025 university placement data both list 104 universities offering dentistry. Reading: thousands of new graduates enter the same market every year.
The professional body’s outlook
In its June 2026 Council of Presidents document, the Turkish Dental Association says the number of dentists could approach 100,000 within five years and that employment is the real problem. Reading: the clinic opening its doors today may find new signs on the same street tomorrow.
What does demand look like on the patient side?
The most quoted demand figure is dental visits per person. The 2024 bulletin value is 0.73, which means the average person does not see a dentist even once a year. That line is missing from the 2025 bulletin, a gap raised in parliament. Demand exists, but it is postponed and irregular.
What 0.73 tells you
According to an MP’s statement reported by Ankara Masası, dental visits per person stood at 0.73 in 2024. Reading: most patients wait until the pain arrives.
What it means for a new clinic
The market is not empty, but patients are not queuing either. A new clinic has to appear when a patient stops postponing and starts searching. When nobody walks through the door, the problem is usually not the number of dentists but not being seen.
All figures in one table: source, year and reading
The table below puts the figures side by side. Official data, our calculations and estimates sit on separate rows; rows marked “calculation” are our rough maths. Base decisions on the official rows.
| Indicator | Figure | Source and year | Reading for a new clinic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dentists per 100,000 people | 59 → 62 | Ministry of Health, 2024 and 2025 | Supply grows close to 5% in a year |
| Population of Turkey | 86,092,168 | TÜİK, 31.12.2025 | Population grows 5 per thousand |
| Approximate number of dentists | 53,400 | Calculation, 2025 | More dentists per person each year |
| People per dentist | 1,613 | Calculation, 2025 | A few streets in neighbourhood terms |
| Dental visits per person | 0.73 | 2024 bulletin, as reported | Demand is postponed and irregular |
| Universities teaching dentistry | 104 | Parliamentary question, Feb 2026 | The graduate pipeline keeps flowing |
How should you read the picture in Istanbul?
The ministry bulletin does not publish dentist numbers by province, so for Istanbul we can only build a rough estimate. TÜİK puts Istanbul’s population at 15,754,053. At the national ratio of 62, that gives around 9,800 dentists. Treat it only as a sense of scale, since dentists tend to cluster in big cities.
Think at district level
In TÜİK data, Esenyurt becomes the first district to pass 1 million people, with 1,003,905 residents. At the national ratio, that district would have around 620 dentists. Reading: even at district level, competitors number in the hundreds.
Patients search by district name
Say you are opening a two-chair polyclinic in Beylikdüzü. A patient searches “Beylikdüzü dental clinic” and looks at the few names on the first screen. We cover how to show up in those searches in district-name dental searches.
Where can a new clinic stand out in a crowded market?
BU BÖLÜMÜN ÖZETİ
- The dentist’s name comes before the clinic’s name
- Being visible in your district is groundwork
- Ready-made visibility is an option too
A new clinic cannot stand out on price or discounts, because fees and campaign information are banned in health promotion in Turkey. It stands out through a findable dentist’s name, visibility in its district and informative answers to patients’ questions. First check the Regulation on Promotion and Information Activities in Health Services and your chamber’s rules, then build the plan.
The dentist’s name comes before the clinic’s name
Patients often search for a recommended dentist’s name; see why patients search the dentist’s name.
Being visible in your district is groundwork
A mobile-friendly website, a Google Business Profile and basic SEO are the three surfaces where patients find you. The full promotion plan for a new clinic sits in our guide to new dental clinic promotion.
Ready-made visibility is an option too
To skip starting from zero, see ready-made digital assets that already attract dental searches on our dental clinic assets page (in Turkish).
If you want those three surfaces built at a fixed price, look at the Get Visible Online campaign: TRY 36,000 + VAT, paid upfront at a fixed price for a 3-month period. The Website Recipe covers a mobile-friendly sales page, contact buttons, Google Business Profile, basic SEO and visitor tracking. With 20 percent VAT the total is TRY 43,200; check the current rate on your invoice.
How do you keep these figures up to date?
Three sources are enough, and each follows a calendar. The Ministry of Health’s annual bulletin usually appears at the end of September, and TÜİK’s population results in February. Update the same table yearly and read competition from data, not guesswork.
- At the end of September, open the Health Statistics Yearbook press release and note the dentist ratio.
- In February, take provincial and district population from TÜİK’s results.
- Note chamber and Turkish Dental Association statements in a separate estimates column.
Cut your coat according to your cloth
More competition does not have to mean a bigger budget. Build the channels where patients find you, then measure. We plan the first 90 days of a new dental practice step by step in new dentist practice.
Quick Summary
- In 2025 there are 62 dentists per 100,000 people, up from 59 in 2024.
- Using TÜİK’s population, Turkey has roughly 53,400 dentists.
- There is about one dentist for every 1,613 people.
- Dental visits per person were 0.73 in 2024; demand is postponed.
- 104 universities teach dentistry, so supply keeps growing.
- A new clinic stands out through the dentist’s name and district visibility, not price.
Short Glossary
Dentists per 100,000 people: Dentists per 100,000 people is the ratio used to compare dentist density across places regardless of population size.
ADNKS: ADNKS is TÜİK’s Address-Based Population Registration System, used to count the resident population from address records.
Visits per person: Visits per person is the indicator used to measure demand by dividing a year’s total visits by the population.
Next Step
You have seen the competition in numbers; the next step is building the surfaces where patients find you. Apply to the Get Visible Online campaign and learn which recipe fits your needs form.
Frequently Asked Questions
Source: Ministry of Health — Health Statistics Yearbook 2025 Press Release
Sık Sorulan Sorular
Ministry of Health data for 2025 shows 62 dentists per 100,000 people. With TÜİK’s 2025 population of 86,092,168, that means roughly 53,400 dentists. The ministry bulletin gives a ratio, not an absolute count.
About 1,613 people at the 2025 ratio. That is the national average; large cities and central districts usually have a higher density of dentists.
No. The package is TRY 36,000 + VAT, paid upfront at a fixed price. In the Google Ads or Meta Ads Recipe the ad budget is paid separately; for health facilities, check the regulation’s limits on sponsored promotion first.
Updated: October 2026