How much doctors are paid

USA Facts - The average doctor in the US earned $350,000 in individual total income in 2017. That’s about 1.75 times what most people guessed ($200,050). But, of course, doctors of certain specialties earn more than others. And earnings vary by state — and the top state might surprise you. The highest-paid doctors live in South Dakota. There, the average physician earned $432,800 in 2017. Compared to other states, South Dakota had a median household income below the national average, at $56,521 in 2017.  Workloads for different specialties also contribute to income differences. Neurosurgeons earned an average of $623,500 in 2017, over three times more than family medicine doctors ($192,800). They also worked about 16 more hours per week on average: 63.6 compared to 47.4. Some jobs, like lawyers, have pay that tracks closely to state household income. Physician pay follows no such pattern. This is partly due to how Medicare adjusts reimbursements, particularly in rural areas. The top 1% of the nation’s doctors earned an average of $4 million annually, largely from business income and capital gains.