How to Set Dental Fees in 2026 (The PPO Trap Most Dentists Miss) | EP 748

Most dental practice owners haven't reviewed their fee schedule since 2020. In the meantime, lab costs are up 30%, staff costs are up 40%, supply costs are climbing every quarter — and the fees haven't moved. That gap doesn't disappear. It comes straight out of the doctor's take-home pay. On this episode of The Thriving Dentist Show, Gary Takacs and Naren Arulrajah unpack how to determine the right fee schedule for your dental practice in 2026. The conversation covers the psychology behind why most dentists are underpriced (hint: it isn't math), the 74% overhead reality from the ADA, the little-known way PPO insurance companies use percentile ceilings against practices that haven't re-indexed their fees, and the exact strategy Gary uses to set fees at the 80th percentile of any market. If you take PPO insurance, run an 85% PPO practice, or have never had your fee schedule audited, this is the 40 minutes that will pay for itself many times over. WHAT YOU'LL LEARN: ✓ Why fear (not math) keeps most dentists from raising fees ✓ The 74% overhead reality and what it means for your take-home pay ✓ How PPO fee ceilings actually work — and the percentile most practices set their fees below ✓ Why setting your fees at the 80th percentile is the sustainable, market-appropriate strategy ✓ How to communicate a fee increase to patients (the answer might surprise you) ✓ Where value pricing makes sense in dentistry — and where it's a gimmick ✓ The financing options Gary recommends for high-value treatment plans CHAPTERS: 00:00 Welcome & Episode Intro 03:05 AI Search Update: Why Human-First Content Is the New Standard 05:48 The Ekwa Report Card: Know Where You Stand 09:15 Why Dentists Struggle to Set Appropriate Fees 16:13 The Psychology of Fees: Projecting Your Own Price Sensitivity 19:06 We Were All Trained to Think Cheap 23:49 The 74% Overhead Reality 26:19 How PPO Fee Ceilings Work: The Percentile System Explained 28:56 The 0.24% Statistic: Almost No One Is at the 80th Percentile 32:01 Setting Fees at the 80th Percentile: The Strategy 35:39 How to Communicate a Fee Increase (You Don't Announce It) 38:33 Value Pricing: When It Makes Sense and When It Doesn't RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE: 👉 Book a free Marketing Strategy Meeting with Ekwa (includes a 6-hour pre-meeting audit of your practice's online ranking): https://ekwa.com/td 👉 Schedule a Coaching Strategy Meeting with Gary Takacs to talk through your specific fee schedule and overhead: https://thrivingdentist.com/csm ABOUT THE THRIVING DENTIST SHOW: The Thriving Dentist Show is the #1 podcast for dental practice owners who want to build their ideal practice — one that delivers personal, professional, and financial satisfaction. Hosted by Gary Takacs (40+ years in dental practice coaching) and Naren Arulrajah (founder of Ekwa Marketing). New episodes every Wednesday. CONNECT WITH US: 🌐 Website: https://www.thrivingdentist.com/podcast-show/ 📘 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThrivingDentist 📷 Instagram: @thrivingdentist 💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thriving-dentist 🎧 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-thriving-dentist-show 🎧 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/thrivingdentist SUBSCRIBE for new episodes every Wednesday and become the dentist who actually keeps what they earn. #DentalPracticeManagement #DentalFees #PPODentistry #ThrivingDentist #DentalPracticeGrowth #DentalPodcast #FeeForService