Orthopedic surgeons saw the highest average compensation of all specialties surveyed for Medscape’s 2026 Physician Compensation Report.
Medscape surveyed 5,916 physicians across more than 29 specialties from Sept. 5 to Dec. 17.
Seven things to know:
1. Orthopedic pay on average was $611,000. Other top-paid specialities include cardiology ($575,000), radiology ($571,000) and plastic surgery ($554,000).
2. Orthopedic pay saw one of the higher increases year over year at 8%. Cardiology pay had the highest increase of 10%.
3. The average physician compensation for all specialties rose on average 3%.
4. The gender pay gap among physicians persists. Of all physicians, men made an average $429,000 while women made $327,000.
5. Physicians were just about split on whether they feel fairly paid for their work. Of all physicians, 53% said they felt they were fairly paid while 47% said they didn’t.
6. Physicians in the Midwest saw higher average salaries than other regions of the U.S. at $400,000. The average pay for Western physicians was $390,000; $375,000 in the North and $381,000 in the South.
7. The average incentive bonus for all physicians was $49,000. RVUs generated, quality care metrics and patient satisfaction ratings were the biggest factors that went into bonus calculation.
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