Start with the answer
Dentists, General pay in Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY and North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Dentists, General is $193,780 per year in Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY. It is $241,850 per year in North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL. Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY is 19.9% below North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 29-1021 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 320 wage and salary jobs in Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY and 450 in North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings