Objective <p>To compare the quality of intraoral radiographic images of two types of dental detectors using wall-mounted and handheld dental X-ray units.</p> Methods <p>Six intraoral dental radiographic images of a Dental Digital Quality Assurance radiographic phantom (Dental Imaging Consultants LLC, San Antonio, TX) were acquired with two types of dental receptors: photostimulable phosphor (PSP) receptor (CS 7600 digital system, Carestream Dental, Rochester, New York, United States) under two conditions, filtered and unfiltered; and a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) sensor (RGV 6200, Carestream Dental, Rochester, New York, United States) using handheld (Nomad Pro 2; Kavo Kerr, Biberach, Germany) and wall-mounted (Midmark Preva DC Intraoral X-ray, Midmark Corporation, Illinois, United States) dental X-ray units. Spatial and contrast resolutions and percentage of radiographic contrast were evaluated. Then, radiographic images of an acrylic block were obtained under the same conditions and brightness, noise, and uniformity were assessed. Values were compared between the devices and the digital systems with Analysis of Variance (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.05).</p> Results <p>There were no differences in spatial and contrast resolutions between dental X-ray units and detectors. Handheld dental X-ray units provide significantly higher radiographic contrast (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.001) and lower brightness, noise, and uniformity (<i>P</i> &lt; 0.001) regardless of the digital system used.</p> Conclusions <p>Compared to a wall-mounted dental X-ray unit, the handheld device provides higher radiographic contrast and lower brightness, noise, and uniformity regardless of the digital system used.</p>