Annual Report · 2026 Edition
2026 Physician Pay Report
What doctors actually earn — median compensation by specialty, experience, practice setting, and geography, from 3,832 approved physician salary reports collected between March 2025 and July 2026.
Median Attending Pay
$465,000
middle 50%: $350,000–$620,000
Median Resident Stipend
$70,000
reported separately · n=573
Approved Reports
3,832
3,201 attendings · 631 trainees
Specialties · States
50 · 38
min 5 / 10 submissions each
Part 1 of 2 · 3,201 attending physicians
What Attending Physicians Earn
Every figure in this part covers attending physicians only. Residents and fellows are analyzed separately in Part 2 and are never included in the medians below.
Key Findings
The numbers that define attending compensation in 2026.
Highest-Paid Specialty
Cardiothoracic Surgery
$1,150,000
median · n=21 · 3.8x the lowest-paid specialty
Early-Career Pay Is Rising
+7.9%
median for physicians 0–5 years out: $380,000 (2025) → $410,000 (2026)
Private Practice Premium
+47%
$575,000 in private practice vs $392,000 in academics
The Experience Curve
+51%
from $390,000 (0–2 years) to $589,000 (21+ years)
Highest-Paying State
Kansas
$630,000
median · n=16
Would Choose Medicine Again
89%
of attendings · avg 48 hrs/week worked
Pay by Specialty
All 50 specialties with at least 5 approved attending reports, ranked by median total compensation.
| # | Specialty | Median | N | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiothoracic Surgery | $1,150,000 | $1,000,000 | $1,250,000 | 21 | |
| 2 | Neurosurgery | $900,000 | $850,000 | $1,100,000 | 91 | |
| 3 | Thoracic Surgery | $790,000 | $710,000 | $850,000 | 20 | |
| 4 | Orthopedic Surgery | $782,500 | $690,000 | $895,000 | 106 | |
| 5 | Plastic Surgery | $750,000 | $712,500 | $880,000 | 70 | |
| 6 | Pediatric Surgery | $675,000 | $635,000 | $725,000 | 15 | |
| 7 | Ophthalmology | $670,000 | $500,000 | $797,000 | 93 | |
| 8 | Dermatology | $640,000 | $505,000 | $700,000 | 86 | |
| 9 | Interventional Radiology | $625,000 | $580,000 | $785,000 | 49 | |
| 10 | Cardiology | $621,500 | $530,000 | $750,000 | 168 | |
| 11 | Pain Management | $615,000 | $473,750 | $800,000 | 26 | |
| 12 | Vascular Surgery | $615,000 | $570,300 | $745,500 | 51 | |
| 13 | Urology | $590,000 | $555,000 | $639,000 | 79 | |
| 14 | Radiation Oncology | $590,000 | $552,500 | $620,000 | 42 | |
| 15 | Radiology | $580,000 | $520,000 | $620,000 | 100 | |
| 16 | Gastroenterology | $550,000 | $501,250 | $597,500 | 90 | |
| 17 | Burn Surgery | $540,000 | $505,000 | $675,000 | 13 | |
| 18 | Anesthesiology | $535,000 | $472,500 | $614,375 | 147 | |
| 19 | General Surgery | $530,000 | $480,000 | $627,500 | 127 | |
| 20 | Gynecologic Oncology | $525,000 | $495,000 | $640,000 | 14 | |
| 21 | Otolaryngology | $520,000 | $475,000 | $552,250 | 42 | |
| 22 | Maternal-Fetal Medicine | $505,000 | $485,000 | $535,000 | 15 | |
| 23 | Hematology/Oncology | $495,000 | $440,000 | $550,000 | 120 | |
| 24 | Critical Care | $477,600 | $420,000 | $538,750 | 32 | |
| 25 | Pulmonology | $460,000 | $360,000 | $530,000 | 85 | |
| 26 | Neurology | $430,000 | $395,000 | $470,000 | 65 | |
| 27 | Obstetrics & Gynecology | $425,000 | $400,000 | $490,000 | 73 | |
| 28 | Emergency Medicine | $406,184 | $360,000 | $465,000 | 130 | |
| 29 | Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation | $400,000 | $350,000 | $420,000 | 37 | |
| 30 | Sleep Medicine | $400,000 | $370,000 | $410,000 | 14 | |
| 31 | Neonatology | $395,000 | $365,000 | $415,000 | 31 | |
| 32 | Pathology | $391,000 | $330,000 | $450,000 | 51 | |
| 33 | Nephrology | $390,000 | $335,000 | $433,000 | 33 | |
| 34 | Sports Medicine | $375,000 | $320,000 | $440,000 | 15 | |
| 35 | Occupational Medicine | $370,000 | $348,750 | $376,250 | 28 | |
| 36 | Infectious Disease | $360,000 | $340,000 | $385,000 | 73 | |
| 37 | Psychiatry | $360,000 | $334,750 | $390,000 | 92 | |
| 38 | Endocrinology | $360,000 | $335,000 | $370,000 | 61 | |
| 39 | Allergy/Immunology | $360,000 | $316,478 | $388,000 | 39 | |
| 40 | Clinical Informatics | $355,000 | $325,000 | $370,000 | 12 | |
| 41 | Rheumatology | $350,000 | $333,750 | $365,000 | 60 | |
| 42 | Internal Medicine | $345,000 | $300,000 | $375,000 | 157 | |
| 43 | Child Neurology | $335,000 | $290,000 | $345,000 | 23 | |
| 44 | Palliative Care | $325,000 | $300,000 | $345,000 | 16 | |
| 45 | Geriatrics | $320,000 | $290,000 | $345,000 | 19 | |
| 46 | Preventive Medicine | $320,000 | $305,000 | $340,000 | 19 | |
| 47 | Addiction Medicine | $315,000 | $285,000 | $335,000 | 16 | |
| 48 | Family Medicine | $310,000 | $275,000 | $350,000 | 143 | |
| 49 | Pediatrics | $310,000 | $275,000 | $350,000 | 261 | |
| 50 | Medical Genetics | $300,000 | $275,000 | $300,000 | 17 |
Year-over-Year: Reported Pay by Career Stage
Median reported compensation among 2025 vs 2026 respondents, compared within experience bands.
Early career (0–5 yrs)
$410,000
+7.9%vs $380,000 in 2025 · n=836/251
Mid career (6–15 yrs)
$590,000
+18%vs $500,000 in 2025 · n=1,634/108
Late career (16+ yrs)
$500,000
-10.2%vs $557,000 in 2025 · n=325/47
Why we compare within career stages
2026 respondents skew earlier-career than 2025 respondents (median 5 vs 8 years in practice), which drags raw year-over-year medians down without any actual pay change. Comparing within experience bands controls for that shift. We computed specialty-level year-over-year changes as well, but the 2026 samples are not yet cohort-comparable at the specialty level, so we don't publish them — sample sizes are shown so you can judge the bands for yourself.
Pay by Years of Experience
Median attending compensation climbs more than 50% over a career, with the steepest gains between years 5 and 15.
Experience Curve by Specialty
Median compensation by career stage for the 10 largest specialties. Cells with fewer than 8 submissions are omitted.
| Specialty | 0–2 years | 3–5 years | 6–10 years | 11–15 years | 16–20 years | 21+ years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pediatrics | $250,000 | $288,154 | $330,000 | $315,000 | $315,000 | $425,000 |
| Cardiology | $485,000 | $562,743 | $630,000 | $650,000 | $710,000 | $635,000 |
| Internal Medicine | $322,500 | $340,000 | $350,000 | $370,000 | — | $345,000 |
| Anesthesiology | $500,000 | $494,761 | $535,000 | $550,000 | $585,000 | — |
| Family Medicine | $276,852 | $303,500 | $320,000 | $360,000 | $365,000 | — |
| Emergency Medicine | $388,000 | $390,000 | $425,000 | $435,000 | — | — |
| General Surgery | $395,000 | $500,000 | $505,000 | $610,000 | $575,000 | — |
| Hematology/Oncology | $405,000 | $400,000 | $495,000 | $515,000 | $535,000 | — |
| Orthopedic Surgery | $515,000 | $800,000 | $760,000 | $810,000 | $840,000 | — |
| Radiology | $540,000 | $525,000 | $550,000 | $590,000 | — | — |
Pay by Practice Setting
Where a physician practices moves pay as much as how long they've practiced.
Pay by Geography
Median attending compensation by US Census region and by state (states need at least 10 submissions). Kansas leads all states at $630,000; Utah trails at $335,000.
Northeast
$460,000
n=777
Midwest
$425,000
n=589
South
$465,000
n=890
West
$490,000
n=885
State rankings reflect individual state markets and can diverge from their region's aggregate — the Midwest trails as a region even as Kansas leads all states, because regional medians are dominated by their largest submission pools.
| # | State | Median | N | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kansas | $630,000 | $365,000 | $865,000 | 16 | |
| 2 | South Carolina | $585,000 | $450,000 | $775,000 | 18 | |
| 3 | Kentucky | $570,000 | $400,000 | $950,000 | 15 | |
| 4 | Texas | $550,000 | $407,000 | $781,000 | 126 | |
| 5 | Nevada | $550,000 | $385,000 | $655,000 | 13 | |
| 6 | Washington | $538,125 | $402,500 | $687,134 | 54 | |
| 7 | California | $520,000 | $400,000 | $685,000 | 399 | |
| 8 | Tennessee | $510,000 | $340,000 | $910,000 | 20 | |
| 9 | New York | $500,000 | $355,000 | $705,000 | 133 | |
| 10 | Ohio | $500,000 | $314,000 | $785,000 | 29 | |
| 11 | Mississippi | $500,000 | $355,000 | $750,000 | 15 | |
| 12 | Connecticut | $500,000 | $375,000 | $650,000 | 12 | |
| 13 | Missouri | $485,000 | $320,000 | $645,000 | 20 | |
| 14 | Michigan | $485,000 | $324,000 | $575,000 | 27 | |
| 15 | Georgia | $480,000 | $377,500 | $600,000 | 243 | |
| 16 | North Carolina | $479,000 | $311,250 | $685,083 | 34 | |
| 17 | Florida | $475,100 | $346,750 | $650,000 | 192 | |
| 18 | Virginia | $475,000 | $350,000 | $595,000 | 22 | |
| 19 | Colorado | $467,925 | $371,250 | $690,000 | 48 | |
| 20 | Massachusetts | $465,000 | $350,000 | $590,000 | 419 | |
| 21 | Arizona | $465,000 | $360,000 | $586,500 | 107 | |
| 22 | Illinois | $450,000 | $350,000 | $570,000 | 307 | |
| 23 | Minnesota | $449,000 | $328,500 | $650,000 | 28 | |
| 24 | Pennsylvania | $445,000 | $325,000 | $585,000 | 156 | |
| 25 | Maine | $445,000 | $320,000 | $620,000 | 10 | |
| 26 | Oregon | $435,000 | $380,000 | $550,000 | 113 | |
| 27 | Montana | $430,000 | $350,000 | $600,000 | 82 | |
| 28 | Indiana | $430,000 | $350,000 | $605,000 | 17 | |
| 29 | Maryland | $425,000 | $325,000 | $645,000 | 20 | |
| 30 | New Jersey | $420,000 | $335,000 | $605,000 | 19 | |
| 31 | Oklahoma | $400,000 | $335,000 | $830,000 | 14 | |
| 32 | Vermont | $395,000 | $340,000 | $495,000 | 19 | |
| 33 | Iowa | $362,500 | $330,000 | $527,500 | 128 | |
| 34 | Louisiana | $360,000 | $340,000 | $690,000 | 17 | |
| 35 | Alabama | $360,000 | $330,000 | $500,000 | 136 | |
| 36 | New Mexico | $355,000 | $330,000 | $405,000 | 37 | |
| 37 | Alaska | $350,000 | $300,000 | $380,000 | 16 | |
| 38 | Utah | $335,000 | $285,000 | $760,000 | 10 |
Part 2 of 2 · 631 residents & fellows
What Residents & Fellows Earn
Training stipends are a different economy from attending pay — set by institutions, compressed in range, and never FTE-adjusted. Nothing in this part is mixed into the attending figures above.
Trainee stipend overview
Median Resident Stipend
$70,000
middle 50%: $65,000–$77,000 · n=573
Median Fellow Stipend
$80,000
middle 50%: $72,000–$90,000 · n=58
The Attending Jump
6.6x
median attending pay ÷ median resident stipend
Resident Stipend by PGY Year
Reported totals may include moonlighting income, which widens the upper range in senior years.
Resident Stipend by Specialty
Specialty gaps in training pay are small — institution and geography matter far more than the specialty itself.
Where Residents Earn the Most
Stipends track cost of living: the Northeast leads regions at $80,000, and New York leads states at $84,000 — $24,000 more than Arkansas.
Northeast
$80,000
n=137
Midwest
$69,913
n=116
South
$67,000
n=212
West
$72,000
n=94
| # | State | Median Stipend | N | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York | $84,000 | 65 | |
| 2 | Massachusetts | $80,000 | 16 | |
| 3 | Connecticut | $76,000 | 8 | |
| 4 | New Jersey | $76,000 | 15 | |
| 5 | California | $75,000 | 39 | |
| 6 | Pennsylvania | $74,408 | 26 | |
| 7 | Maryland | $74,000 | 11 | |
| 8 | Minnesota | $74,000 | 7 | |
| 9 | Colorado | $72,000 | 7 | |
| 10 | Wisconsin | $72,000 | 8 | |
| 11 | Texas | $70,101 | 51 | |
| 12 | North Carolina | $70,000 | 15 | |
| 13 | Illinois | $70,000 | 31 | |
| 14 | Ohio | $70,000 | 22 | |
| 15 | Virginia | $70,000 | 10 | |
| 16 | Alabama | $69,000 | 32 | |
| 17 | Missouri | $68,000 | 11 | |
| 18 | Indiana | $68,000 | 6 | |
| 19 | Michigan | $68,000 | 25 | |
| 20 | Arizona | $68,000 | 21 | |
| 21 | Alaska | $66,000 | 9 | |
| 22 | Florida | $65,000 | 43 | |
| 23 | Tennessee | $64,000 | 9 | |
| 24 | South Carolina | $62,000 | 6 | |
| 25 | Louisiana | $62,000 | 6 | |
| 26 | Georgia | $60,000 | 14 | |
| 27 | Arkansas | $60,000 | 5 |
Is your salary above or below the median?
Add your anonymous salary in under 2 minutes and help 3,832+ physicians negotiate with real data. Next year's report is built from submissions like yours.
Explore More Compensation Data
Methodology
This report analyzes 3,832 approved, self-reported physician compensation submissions to salaryDr collected between 2025-03-26 and 2026-07-17 (data as of 2026-07-17). Every submission is reviewed for internal consistency and plausibility before approval. Dental submissions are excluded; this report covers physicians (MD/DO) only. Attending physicians and trainees are analyzed as fully separate populations: resident and fellow stipends never enter attending medians, percentiles, or geographic aggregates, and vice versa.
Attending figures reflect total annual compensation (base plus bonus and incentive pay) for physicians with role "Attending Physician," normalized to full-time equivalent where part-time status was reported (55 records adjusted). Specialty names are consolidated to canonical specialties (for example, hospital medicine is reported under internal medicine, and interventional cardiology under cardiology). Outliers are handled with two rules: attending records below $150,000 FTE-adjusted are excluded as likely mislabeled trainee or unreported-part-time records (5 excluded), and records above 3x their specialty's median — floored at $1.5M — are excluded as likely practice-sale proceeds or data-entry errors (23 excluded). Medians and quartiles are otherwise computed on all remaining data; we deliberately do not trim legitimate high earners.
Every published breakdown requires at least 5 submissions; state medians require at least 10, per-cell experience medians at least 8, and year-over-year bands at least 40 per period. Year-over-year comparisons are made within experience bands because the 2026 respondent pool skews earlier-career than 2025's; specialty-level year-over-year is not published this edition for that reason. Percentiles use linear interpolation on sorted values. Self-reported data can skew toward higher earners; interquartile ranges are shown throughout to convey spread. See our methodology page for the full data collection and verification process.