Salary Research
How Much Does a Doctor Make? Physician Salaries by Specialty (2026)
By Personpages Research Desk · June 26, 2026 · 10 min read
Physician compensation in 2026 averages $352,000 across all specialties, according to the latest Medscape and MGMA surveys. But "average" hides a 4x spread between the highest and lowest paid specialties — and an even bigger spread between employed academic physicians and private-practice partners.
Top-paying specialties
Orthopedic surgery ($573K), plastic surgery ($536K), cardiology ($507K), urology ($505K), and gastroenterology ($501K) lead the field. All five involve high-margin procedures, an aging patient population, and constrained training pipelines.
Lowest-paying specialties
Public health/preventive medicine ($249K), pediatrics ($251K), family medicine ($273K), and internal medicine ($282K) round out the bottom. Primary care still pays well by any objective standard — it just looks low next to the proceduralists.
Employed vs. private practice
A partner in an independent GI or derm group can earn 40-70% more than a hospital-employed peer in the same specialty. The catch: practice ownership, MIPS reporting overhead, and personal liability for staff and rent.
Looking up a specific doctor's salary
Academic physicians at public universities are in the salary database — every state's UC, SUNY, UT, UNC, and similar systems publish them. Private practice doctors are estimated from specialty, years post-residency, and metro area. Personpages pulls NPI records, board certifications, and hospital affiliations into the model automatically.
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Start a search →Frequently asked questions
Which medical specialty pays the most in 2026?▾
Orthopedic surgery leads at a $573K average, followed by plastic surgery and cardiology. All three are procedure-heavy specialties.
Do doctors at public universities have published salaries?▾
Yes. Every state university medical center publishes faculty pay. UC, SUNY, UT, and similar systems have searchable databases.