Aim: This study aimed to evaluate perception of dental, smile, and gingival esthetic components by dental specialists, general dental practitioners, dental assistants, and laypersons. Material and methods: Seven standard photographs representing dental, smile, and gingival components were manipulated digitally. The sample composed of 465 [74 dental specialists (DS), 152 general dental practitioners (GDP), 97 dental assistants (DA), and 142 laypersons (LP)] assessed the normal and the digitally manipulated images on a visual analog scale ranging from 1 to 5 where 1 is the less pleasant image and 5 is the standard normal image. The data was analyzed using Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests, and multiple linear regression analyses. Results: Out of 100, the overall rate was 81.42 ± 10.8% with no statistical gender differences. Regarding the individual components, females exhibited significant perception for “midline diastema,” while males showed significantly better perception for “gingival marginal height.” General dental practitioners (GDP) showed significantly higher perception score than DS, DA, and LP did. Out of the seven evaluated components, five were differently perceived in favor of the GDP followed by DS and the lowest were for LP. Linear regression analyses revealed that the “participant's category” (GDP vs others) was the only independent determinant of the overall esthetic perception in addition to six individual esthetic components. Conclusion: GDP showed more favorable perception of dental, gingival, and smile esthetics than laypersons and other dental professionals with considerable variations. Clinical significance: The patients’ perception toward esthetics is to be considered over that perceived by dental professionals during daily dental procedures and smile design.