Doctor salary

Doctor earnings by seniority

90th percentile

Top-level doctor earnings begin at:

$169.70 per hour

$352,975 per year

75th percentile

Senior-level doctor earnings begin at:

$86.40 per hour

$179,721 per year

50th percentile

Mid-level doctor earnings begin at:

$50.95 per hour

$105,968 per year

25th percentile

Junior-level doctor earnings begin at:

$37.70 per hour

$78,421 per year

10th percentile

Starting level doctor earnings begin at:

$33.14 per hour

$68,922 per year

Approximate values based on highest and lowest earning segments.

Doctor salary by state

How much does a Doctor earn?

After graduating from residency, doctors have the option to go on for advanced specialty training, but in some specialties, they can go right to work. This group includes primary care physicians such as pediatricians, internists and family practitioners, as well as general surgeons, anesthesiologists and obstetrician / gynecologists. Starting salaries vary for these specialties.

With a base pay offer of $189,000 a year, on average, family practitioners and pediatricians are offered the lowest pay of all physicians, according to the medical search and consulting firm Merritt Hawkins & Associates’ 2012 Review of Physician Recruiting Incentives. An orthopedic surgeon, in comparison, earns $519,000. Doctors who go on to specialize make a considerable amount more. Cardiologists are high on the list, being guaranteed an average base salary of $512,000, according to the Merritt Hawkins data. The third highest-paying specialty is in Urology, with these physicians earning an average of $461,000, not including production bonuses or benefits.

Here are Doximity's (a social network for physicians) average U.S. Physician Salaries by specialty:

Allergy and Immunology - $296,705
Anesthesiology - $357,116
Cardiology- $436,849
Colon and Rectal Surgery - $343,277
Dermatology - $400,898
Emergency Medicine - $320,419
Endocrinology - $217,610
Family Medicine - $227,541
Gastroenterology - $379,460
General Surgery - $360,933
Hematology - $376,660
Infectious Disease - $205,570
Internal Medicine - $223,175
Medical Genetics - $158,597
Medicine/Pediatrics - $205,610
Neonatology/Perinatology - $290,853
Nephrology - $306,302
Neurology - $243,105
Neurosurgery - $609,639
Nuclear Medicine - $290,639
Obstetrics & Gynecology - $315,295
Occupational Medicine - $229,450
Oncology - $341,701
Ophthalmology - $343,144
Orthopaedic Surgery - $535,668
Otolaryngology (ENT) - $369,790
Pathology - $302,610
Pediatric Cardiology - $303,917
Pediatric Emergency Medicine - $273,683
Pediatric Endocrinology - $157,394
Pediatric Gastroenterology - $196,708
Pediatric Hematology & Oncology - $192,855
Pediatric Infectious Disease - $163,658
Pediatric Nephrology - $183,730
Pediatric Pulmonology - $218,106
Pediatric Rheumatology - $200,027
Pediatrics - $206,961
Physical Medicine/Rehab - $278,283
Plastic Surgery - $407,709
Preventive Medicine - $270,888
Psychiatry - $227,478
Pulmonology - $317,323
Radiation Oncology - $418,228
Radiology - $404,302
Rheumatology - $244,765
Thoracic Surgery - $471,137
Urology - $381,029
Vascular Surgery - $428,944

Note: Certain regions of the country may have to pay more to attract doctors, so physician salaries often reflect the level of competition more than the cost of living. Doctors in rural areas also tend to earn more.

How do doctor salaries compare to similar careers?

Doctors earn about the same as related careers in the United States. On average, they make less than cardiothoracic surgeons but more than psychiatrists.

Source: CareerExplorer (Aggregated)