The aim of the present investigation was to compare dental development in children from a non-Caucasian population (Saudi Arabia) with age- and gender- matched children from a Caucasian population (Australia).Randomised study comparing two population groups using a common set of standards.Dental ages of 842 Australian and 456 Saudi Arabian children were assessed from orthopantomograms (OPGs) using the method of Demirjian and co-workers. The children were divided into male and female groups of 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, and 13-14 year-olds, and the dental age of each child compared to that the corresponding calendar age group.In both Australian and Saudi Arabian children, the dental ages were higher than the corresponding calendar ages. The largest difference between calendar and dental ages (1.10±0.80 years, p<0.001) was noted in 11-12 year-old Saudi Arabian girls, and the smallest difference (0.33±1.19 years, p<0.01) in 11-12 year-old Australian boys. These discrepancies between calendar and dental ages were significantly different between Australian and Saudi Arabian children (p<0.01).Although the results suggest that dental development of both Caucasian and non-Caucasian children are generally underestimated by current standards, a few age-specific differences between the two types of population can be discerned.