Are Doctors Fairly Paid? Inside the 2026 Compensation Data

28% of physicians say they don't earn enough for what their family needs. The lowest-paid specialty still makes $266,000.

Medscape's 2026 physician compensation report surveyed roughly 6,000 doctors across 29+ specialties, and the numbers tell a stranger story than "doctors are underpaid." Average pay rose 3%, barely clearing inflation, and nine specialties were flat or down. Jimmy and Justin unpack what the data says about physician pay, negotiation, and the 40% side-gig statistic.

What you'll learn:

• Why primary care averaged $298K and specialists $417K — and which specialties outpaced inflation
• What percentage of physicians negotiated their compensation, and how many just took what they were given
• Why "we don't negotiate" pay models push high performers out
• The paradox: 53% feel personally fairly paid, but 61% say the profession is underpaid
• What the 40% side-gig number reveals about autonomy and moral injury

Resources mentioned:

• Money Meets Medicine Disability — moneymeetsmedicine.com/disability
• Need a new CPA or a better Tax Strategy? Get a 10% discount when working with Gelt, the tax strategy team that Jimmy Turner uses: https://moneymeetsmedicine.com/Gelt
• Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2026

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.