Resident salary

What residents are getting paid in 2024

Annual Medscape report explores average resident salaries based on residency year and notes that 90% of residents feel they are underpaid “relative to their worth, skills and hours.”

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The average medical resident is earning around $70,000 annually, according to Medscape’s 2024 Resident Salary and Debt Report, a 3.9% increase from 2023’s average, which was $67,400. The report explores average resident salaries based on residency year, and notes that 90% of residents feel they are underpaid “relative to their worth, skills and hours.” Resident pay increases are less generous when adjusted for inflation, said a fellow quoted in the story. For example, average resident pay increased by 27% over the past 9 years, but inflation for that same time period is 33%.

The survey respondents shared their average salary changes throughout the years: $65,000 yearly was typical for first- and second-year residents, while third-years got a little more at $68,000. Fourth-year residents reported an average of $70,000 yearly, and fifth year respondents had the biggest increase to $78,000. The difference between first- and fifth-years is nearly 20%, a jump from last year’s 16%.

The demanding nature of residency

With the majority of respondents in agreement that they remain underpaid (not one participant claimed to make too much), residents shared that a bigger salary or more benefits would better align with their skills and overwhelming workload.

“The demanding nature of residency—such as 28-hour call, back-up call responsibilities on days off, night float, frequent transitions between day and night schedules—has only intensified,” Dayna Isaacs, MD, MPH, an oncology/hematology fellow in California, told Medscape. “Despite our crucial role in patient care, hospitals often perceive us more as students rather than essential employees, when it comes to compensation and benefits.”

A big concern also surrounding the pay disparities is the fact that most residents have student loans to start paying off, which can be a factor when deciding what career moves to make. Medscape found that more than half of surveyed residents have at least $150,000 in debt from medical school. Although many residencies also give benefits like health insurance, paid time off, a meal allowance and commuter assistance, it’s not always enough to make up the difference in the discrepancies between salary and costs.

A DO resident weighs in

“It’s totally natural for residents and trainees to feel underpaid, given the amount of work we do,” David Shumway, DO, an osteopathic internal medicine resident in Biloxi, Mississippi, told The DO. “I had a co-resident who worked at a prominent national fast-food chain before medical school, and when we did the math per hour, the average resident in our program was making significantly less than the hourly employees at said fast food joint. Considering the backbreaking and vital patient care work residents do, the relatively low hourly wage can be a major morale de-motivator.

“But on the other hand, I also recognize that due to the nature of being in training, residents require a huge investment by not only the attendings but the hospitals that train them,” he continued. “Attending preceptors take extra risk by co-signing trainee medical care and use their time to give training. Hospitals give resources to support the residency program. It doesn’t make sense to compensate residents to the same degree to a fully qualified physician, even though residents may work more hours and have more direct patient contact than some attendings. There’s still tons of room to meet in the middle somewhere.”

By the numbers

The lists below share the percent increases in pay residents would need to be satisfied with their earnings as well as the factors residents prioritize when assessing possible post-residency jobs. Please note that the statistics below come from self-reported survey results.

How much of a salary increase would residents find appropriate?

Salary increasePercent of respondents
1% – 10%2%
11% – 25%25%
26% – 50%37%
51% – 75%18%
76% – 100%7%
More than double10%

What factors guide residents toward their first post-residency job?

FactorsPercent of respondents
Work schedule/call hours/expected work-life balance36%
Starting compensation19%
Supportive practice environment17%
Educational/professional growth opportunities10%
Potential for career advancement5%
Patient population4%
Staff support3%
Prestige of the organization/practice2%

Residents required to crunch the numbers

“The sad reality is that at the end of the day, while many of us get into medicine because we love patient care and healing the sick, when we’re making decisions about where to work, we have to consider the cost of living, the cost of education (six-figure student debt) and the intangible cost of all those years lost in pursuing our training,” Dr. Shumway told The DO.

For these reasons, financial considerations are a much higher priority for many early-career physicians when choosing where to work than they would like them to be, he said.

“There has to be a suitable return on investment that justifies the expenditures trainees have already paid,” he says. “We shouldn’t have to wait years to start families or support the ones we already have.”

For more guidance on money, see the AOA’s financial planning resources. AOA members can receive discounts on certain financial services from Student Loan Professor and SoFi.

Related reading:

A quarter of medical students rarely see their friends, report finds

Roughly 21% of physicians have student debt, report finds

One comment

  1. Jim Gaden,DO

    My how times have changed. Graduated med school in 1989 only $240,000 in debt. As an intern worked 120 hours a week and made $16,000 a year. Back then we were cheap labor and the true scut monkey. Drawing blood, doing EKGs, blood gases and H and Ps until you couldn’t see or think straight. We were the true walking dead after 36 hour shifts every other night. Now after 33 years in solo practice in family medicine I am coming to the end of my rope. I started my training with the AIDS epidemic and recently survived COVID. I have sat on every board and committee in the area attempting to advocate for our patients and the profession but to no avail. I have preceptor med students, PAs and NPs for years for free. I feel that our current system is not fixable especially when politicians continue to practice medicine without a license. But mostly I blame ourselves for our current predicament. So as I wind down my practice I say to you stay healthy because you can not afford to get sick. Fight like hell to retain what little professionalism and autonomy you have left. As in a democracy once it is gone it is not coming back. Do what good you can do and embrace your victories and successes. Remember to talk as EMR doesn’t. And laugh often as it is the best and cheapest medicine around. Goodnight and good luck.

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