Annual salaries for US radiologists grew 3.1% in 2023 in the most recent physician salary report by Medscape. Although radiologist salaries are nearing the half-million-dollar mark, the increase actually represents a slowdown compared to 11% growth last year.
The Medscape report shows that US radiologists had an average annual salary of $498k in 2023, compared to $483k in 2023 and $437k in 2022.
- Radiologists ranked sixth on a list of 29 medical specialties, with orthopedic physicians topping the charts at $558k and diabetes and endocrinology doctors at the bottom at $256k.
The report surveyed 7k practicing US physicians from October 2023 to January 2024, finding …
- 61% of those surveyed thought physicians overall are underpaid
- 49% believe that they themselves are fairly paid
- 83% said that pay was either no factor or only a minor factor in the specialty they chose, with only 14% saying it was the leading factor
- Male specialists earned 31% more than female specialists, indicating a widening gender gap compared to 27% last year
- 57% of radiologists were happy with their compensation, sixth among 29 medical specialties
Physician comments submitted to Medscape focused on the significant stress being experienced by many physicians, a phenomenon that’s been linked to burnout in other surveys.
The Takeaway
Underlying this year’s Medscape data is an inconvenient truth for radiologists: their 3.1% pay gains for the year were not enough to keep pace with the US inflation rate of 3.4%. In that respect, radiologists find themselves in the same situation as most Americans.
