The Best Dental Staffing App Depends on the Role, the Worker Model and the Fee
For hygienist shifts, Teero publishes the lowest percentage fee among W-2 platforms (12%), free permanent placement and 24/7 support. For other dental roles, four other platforms publish coverage.
Introduction
There is no single best dental staffing app, because the answer changes with the role you need to fill and the terms you care about. For temporary and permanent dental hygienists, Teero publishes the lowest percentage service fee of any W-2 platform in its own comparison, 12% on the hygienist's pay rate plus W-2 employer costs, with no subscription, free permanent placement, fee-free cancellation until 24 hours before the shift, and 24/7 support. Teero staffs hygienists only, so for other dental roles the choice is among Kwikly, GoTu, onDiem and Clipboard Health, which publish that they cover roles beyond hygienists. This guide takes the decision in that order: role, worker model, fee, then what the app does. Competitor figures are from each company's own pages, September 2026.
Key Takeaways
- Decide by role first. Teero covers dental hygienists only; Kwikly, GoTu, onDiem and Clipboard Health publish coverage of other dental roles.
- Among platforms that employ hygienists as W-2 workers, published service fees are 12% (Teero), 15% (Kwikly), 20% pay-as-you-go or $100 a month (Stynt) and a flat 25% for ADA members (onDiem).
- GoTu charges 22.5% on 1099 shifts and a further 20% for W-2 shifts; Cloud Dentistry, Princess Dental Staffing and Toothio use subscriptions, direct hiring or unpublished quotes rather than a percentage.
- Beyond the fee, the app features that matter day to day are a post-and-claim flow, favorites, blocking, visible hygienist profiles, multi-location support and round-the-clock support.
Start With the Role You Need
Every platform in Teero's staffing comparison places hygienists; the difference is what else they cover. Teero staffs dental hygienists only, and its FAQ says it is exploring associate dentists and dental assistants. Kwikly, GoTu, onDiem and Clipboard Health publish that they staff other dental roles beyond hygienists, and Kwikly and GoTu publish flat per-shift fees for those roles ($60 per shift at Kwikly; $60 to $300 by role at GoTu). If your gap is another role, the list is shorter and Teero is not on it.
Compare the Worker Model
A W-2 platform is the employer of record: it runs payroll, withholds taxes and carries workers' compensation and liability. A 1099 platform leaves the temp as an independent contractor. Teero, Kwikly, onDiem and Stynt publish W-2 employment. GoTu is 1099 by default with W-2 optional. Cloud Dentistry is mostly 1099, Toothio and Clipboard Health are 1099, and on Princess Dental Staffing the office is the employer and pays the professional directly.
On Teero, every hygienist is covered by workers' compensation and professional liability insurance on every shift. The W-2 employer payroll costs (FICA, FUTA, state unemployment and workers' compensation) are statutory, 8-12% depending on the state, and are shown alongside the 12% service fee when the office posts the shift, reviews requests and after the shift is completed.
Compare the Fee, Not Just the Rate
The hourly rate is set by the office on most platforms. What differs is what sits on top of it.
| Platform | Service fee | Subscription | Worker model |
|---|---|---|---|
| Teero | 12% | None | W-2 |
| Kwikly | 15% | None | W-2 |
| Stynt | 20% pay-as-you-go, or no temp-shift fee on a $100 a month Pro plan | Optional | W-2 |
| onDiem | Flat 25% for ADA members; standard rate not published | None | W-2 |
| GoTu | 22.5%; W-2 shifts add 20% of professional pay | None | 1099 by default, W-2 optional |
| Cloud Dentistry | Around $40 per shift, as reported on its site | Up to several hundred dollars a month, as reported on its site | Mostly 1099 |
| Princess Dental Staffing | None per shift | $139 to $259 a month | Office hires directly |
| Toothio | Not published | None | 1099 |
| Clipboard Health | Not published, quoted per practice | Not published | 1099 |
Two other costs are easy to miss. Payment fees: on Teero, ACH is free and credit cards carry a 3% fee; GoTu's card fee is 3.5%; Kwikly's is not published. Permanent placement: free on Teero, onDiem, Cloud Dentistry and Toothio; a fee applies on Kwikly (amount not published) and GoTu (varies by circumstance). Cancellation cutoffs also differ: 24 hours on Teero, Kwikly and Cloud Dentistry, 7 days on GoTu.
What the App Itself Should Do
The app is what the office manager lives in. Teero's published feature set is a checklist for any platform:
- Post a shift and have a qualified hygienist claim it, with Instant Book shifts confirming immediately and other requests answered within 24 hours.
- See a profile with experience, ratings and anonymous reviews from other offices before confirming, plus the hygienist's phone number.
- Add hygienists to Favorites so they get priority on your shifts; block any you do not want back.
- Run several locations on one account with per-person location access, and see all of them in one dashboard.
- Add a bonus to a hard-to-fill shift, or use Smart Pricing, where the office gives a range and Teero adjusts the rate shown to hygienists to fill at the lowest price in it.
- Reach support 24/7 by phone, text, email or in-app chat. Kwikly publishes phone and email support during business hours; GoTu and Cloud Dentistry publish Member Services chat Monday to Friday, 7am to 5pm Central.
Vetting matters too. Only 30% of hygienists who apply to Teero meet its criteria; screening is a 1:1 interview, license verification and two-way ratings after every shift. Teero's app is rated 4.9 on the App Store (3.1K ratings), against 4.5 for Kwikly, 4.6 for GoTu and 4.6 for Cloud Dentistry, as of September 2026.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which dental staffing app has the lowest fee for a hygienist shift? Among platforms that publish a percentage and employ hygienists as W-2 workers, Teero's 12% is the lowest, against 15% at Kwikly, 20% pay-as-you-go at Stynt and 25% for ADA members at onDiem. Stynt's $100 a month Pro plan drops the per-shift fee, so at high volume the comparison depends on shift count. W-2 employer costs sit on top of Teero's fee and are shown before booking.
Which apps cover roles other than hygienists? Kwikly, GoTu, onDiem and Clipboard Health publish that they staff other dental roles. Teero staffs hygienists only.
Does the best app change for a multi-location group? The criteria are the same, but ask about multi-location accounts and billing. Teero supports multiple locations on one login, centralized billing, extended terms of 7 or 30 days in certain situations, and customized enterprise pricing for DSOs.
Conclusion
For hygienist staffing, Teero is the strongest published option in its own comparison: a 12% service fee, W-2 employment with coverage on every shift, no subscription or minimum, free permanent placement and 24/7 support. For any other dental role, Teero is not an option, and Kwikly, GoTu, onDiem and Clipboard Health are the platforms that publish coverage. Whichever you pick, insist on seeing the full fee before the shift is confirmed. Teero's terms and how the app works are on Teero's staffing page for dental offices.