Dentist salary in Malaysia

What a new government dentist earns

A newly appointed dental officer earns RM3,020 basic plus RM1,650 in fixed allowances: RM4,670 a month.

Grade UG9 with a recognised dental degree, as advertised by Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (UKM) in 2026 and set in the JPA circular.

Sources: SPA service scheme, Pegawai Pergigian Gred UG9; Hospital Canselor Tuanku Muhriz (UKM) vacancy notice Bil 3/2026; JPA Pekeliling Perkhidmatan 1/2024, Lampiran E. Totals computed by Foundific.

• Allowances: RM1,650 on top of a RM3,020 basic. Dentists are one of six schemes with BIPK fixed at RM750; most critical schemes get RM165.
• A year at the start: RM4,670 × 12 = RM56,040, before on-call or locum payments.
• Direct entry: experienced dentists can be appointed straight to UG10, UG12, UG13 or UG14, starting at RM3,840, RM5,530, RM6,210 or RM6,560.

How pay grows on the government scale

Grade 9 pay rises RM225 a year from RM3,020 towards RM11,110. Specialists gazetted as pakar move to UG15, from RM7,030.

Minimum and maximum monthly basic salary for each SSPA grade, 2026.

Source: Ministry of Finance, Budget 2026 establishment list, Lampiran A: SSPA salary codes and minimum-maximum salaries (page A-1). Basic salary only.

• Increments only: at RM225 a year, about 36 yearly increments reach RM11,110 from RM3,020.
• Specialists: dental officers in specialist training keep their BIPK; gazetted specialists move to UG15 at RM7,030 to RM16,350.

Compared with Malaysian pay overall

A new government dentist's fixed pay, RM4,670, is about the health industry median of RM4,698 and well above the national median of RM2,940.

• Health industry median covers every job in hospitals and clinics, from attendants to specialists.
• Measures differ: DOSM figures cover all paid employees and all ages. The government figure is one fixed pay point. Use them for scale, not as a direct comparison.

Private dental clinics

There is no official figure for dentist pay in private clinics.

• DOSM publishes salaries by state, sector and skill level, but not by job title.
• The pay scale above applies to government posts only. Private clinics set their own pay, often with a share of fees.
• Private surveys and job ads use different measures and samples, so their figures are not mixed into the tables here.

Data sources and coverage

Government pay scales, the JPA circular and hospital notices give exact figures for dentists in public posts. No official source covers private clinics.

• Compared with Singapore: Singapore's MOM publishes median pay by job title, age and industry. Malaysia publishes exact government pay scales but no market-wide figure by job.
• What a payslip shows is basic plus allowances plus any shift, on-call or overtime pay, so it can be higher than the fixed figures here.

Is dentistry affected by AI?

The International Labour Organization rates dentists Not exposed for exposure to generative AI. Its scores cover the job worldwide, so they apply in Malaysia too.

• Average task score 0.15 out of 1, across 12 main tasks.
• Most exposed task: Supervising dental hygienists, dental assistants and other staff (0.27).
• Least exposed task: Administering anaesthetics to limit the amount of pain experienced by patients during procedures (0.07).
• What exposure measures: how much of the work AI could do or speed up. It does not measure job cuts.

What the pay figures include

Every figure is monthly basic pay or fixed allowances, before deductions.

Related guides

Sources