Planet DDS announced the release of its 2026 Dental Industry Outlook, an annual benchmark report that examines operational performance across dental practices and organizations. The report analyzes changes in core practice metrics and identifies shifts in treatment follow-through, patient reliability, and daily production levels. The findings suggest improvements in several operational indicators compared with the previous year.
One trend highlighted in the report is an increase in completed treatment plans. Case completion rose from 42 percent to 47 percent year over year, which the company said reflects improved conversion of planned care into completed care and more predictable production levels.
The report also notes changes in patient scheduling behavior and follow-through. Cancellations dropped 17 percent, and no-show rates continued to decline. These changes reflect increased use of proactive communication and scheduling systems designed to help patients maintain appointments.
Operational technology is another factor identified in the analysis. Practices that have moved away from fragmented patient data and legacy tools toward technology-driven workflows are seeing improvements in daily operational metrics, including reduced manual effort and fewer opportunities for human error.
“Dental leaders are looking for signals they can trust, and the strongest ones are in the day-to-day operational metrics,” said Mike Huffaker, chief revenue officer of Planet DDS. “The goal of the industry outlook is to give DSOs a clear baseline so they can prioritize the workflows that drive real results. By comparing their own performance against industry averages, leaders can quickly see where they’re ahead, where they’re falling behind, and where focused changes will have the biggest impact.”
Planet DDS develops cloud-based software platforms for dental service organizations and group practices, including practice management and imaging systems designed to connect operational workflows and data across organizations. The report is based on analysis of data from more than 15,000 practices using the Denticon platform. The dataset includes general dentistry practices, specialty practices, emergency clinics, and mobile clinics.
The full report is available at https://www.planetdds.com/outlookreport/.
