Pediatrician Salaries Depend on a Number of Factors

As with any job, there are several factors that will directly affect a pediatrician’s salary. Of course, the most obvious would be education and experience, including specialty and subspecialty board certification. Whether the professional decides to work for a medical facility or open their own practice will also impact their salary, although as will be discussed later other costs can be defrayed that tends to equalize pay levels. Finally, geographic location within the country will change the expected salary for a pediatrician.

For a pediatrician out of residency for just a few years the average starting salary is around $135,000, while overall the average pediatrician salary is in the area of $175,000 a year.

Pediatrician Salary by Subspecialty

As with any medical career, a major determinant of salary is the level of specialization. While the average salary for pediatricians is around $175,000, that of pediatric specialists is typically higher. Pediatricians with at least 3 years experience who are specialized in neurology or oncology/hematology can typically earn up to $250,000, while pediatric surgeons typically earn $400,000-$500,000 a year.

CejkaSearch.com published the following data showing median pediatrician compensation, by specialty. The original data is from the AMGA (American Medical Group Association) 2009 Physician Compensation Survey:

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