Best Free Practice Owner CPD Courses

Last updated July 2026

Written by Dr Sam — practising dentist, Australia, and the clinician behind this directory. About the author →

Owner CPD is the education nobody gives you before you sign, delivered free after you needed it. The recurring themes in the good courses map exactly to where new owners bleed: rostering and utilisation (empty chairs cost more than any supply bill), recall systems as the practice’s actual revenue engine, employment basics that prevent the disputes which consume whole months, and reading a profit-and-loss well enough to ask your accountant real questions.

My advice is to treat leadership content as seriously as the financial content — most practice problems are team problems wearing a spreadsheet costume, and the free education on running meetings, giving feedback and retaining good staff compounds faster than anything else. Owners can legitimately point part of their non-clinical CPD allocation here; it’s the rare category where the practice, the team and the patients all feel the improvement.

A snapshot of the current directory: the strict topic matcher identifies 39 courses relevant to Practice Owner across 15 providers. 36 are marked as having certificates, and 2 run two CPD hours or longer.

Practice Owner education is most useful when it reflects the realities of day-to-day dental practice. For practice owners, that usually means practical courses that support leadership, compliance, team systems, patient experience and sustainable practice growth.

FreeDentalCPD brings together free courses from dental manufacturers, education platforms and professional learning providers, so you can compare available CPD without searching multiple sites individually.

Browse free practice owner CPD courses

What to look for in practice owner CPD

The best course is not always the longest one. A useful course should be relevant to your role, clearly presented, and easy to record for your CPD portfolio.

• Certificate availability
• Relevance to your current role and scope of practice
• Evidence-based and practical content
• Clear learning aims and outcomes
• On-demand access where possible
• Presenter experience and provider reputation

Providers worth checking

The exact courses available change throughout the year. These providers commonly publish education that may be relevant to practice owners.

• Viva LearningA broad webinar platform with courses across clinical care, compliance, communication and practice systems.
• Colgate Oral Health NetworkStrong for prevention, periodontal care, patient education and evidence-based oral health topics.
• Philips Oral Healthcare LearningUseful for prevention, patient motivation, behaviour change and modern oral hygiene support.
• Practice management educatorsUseful for communication, leadership, systems, team training and sustainable practice operations.
• Dental compliance providersHelpful for record keeping, consent, privacy, infection control, complaints and regulatory topics.
• Manufacturer education portalsOften include free courses that support practical use of materials, equipment and clinical workflows.

How to choose the right course

Start with topics that directly support your everyday responsibilities. Once those foundations are covered, broaden your CPD across communication, compliance, clinical updates and patient-centred care.

It is also worth choosing a mix of short refresher courses and more detailed sessions. This makes it easier to keep learning consistent throughout the year rather than leaving CPD until the last minute.

Latest courses from the directory

• What They Didn’t Teach You in Dental School: Billing, Marketing, and Business Venture ComplianceDentalcare.com (Crest + Oral-B) · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Dentistry’s Tipping Point: Why Some DSOs are Failing & What It Means For Practice Owners (On-Demand)Dental Academy of CE · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• The Elite Sellers Club: How Smart Owners Are Achieving Premium Valuations (On-Demand)Dental Academy of CE · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Leadership Principles for Success in Dental PracticeGlidewell · Practice Management · ~1.3 CPDCE hrs · Certificate
• Predictable Marketing Results in Unpredictable TimesAscent PGS · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Practice Management Series: Managing and Understanding Teams and How to Develop Power and InfluenceColgate Oral Health Network · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Broken Appointments: Protocol and SystemsViva Learning · Practice Management · ~0.5 CPDCE hrs · Certificate
• Driving Practice Growth with GBT: Advanced Technologies, Marketing Strategies and Smart InvestmentsCDEWorld · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Inside Expert Series: BusinessCDEWorld · Practice Management · ~2 CPDCE hrs · Certificate
• Becoming a Digital Orthodontist – Top 10 Social Media & Digital Marketing TipsSolventum (3M Oral Care) · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Practice Marketing Webinar Series – Contemporary Marketing Strategies in a Digital World – Part 2 of 3Solventum (3M Oral Care) · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate
• Practice Marketing Webinar Series – Measuring and Monitoring the Marketing Plan – Part 3 of 3Solventum (3M Oral Care) · Practice Management · ~1 CPDCE hr · Certificate

Showing 12 of 45 relevant courses from the directory. 42 are marked as having certificates. Open the filtered directory.

Frequently asked questions

What CPD is useful for dental practice owners?

Practice owners often benefit from CPD in leadership, compliance, complaints, patient communication, team systems, marketing, finance and risk management.

Can business-focused courses count as CPD?

They may be useful where they support professional practice, patient care, compliance or management responsibilities. Local CPD rules vary.

Should practice owners complete clinical CPD too?

Yes. Even owners with significant management responsibilities usually need to maintain appropriate clinical and regulatory knowledge.

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