Physician compensation kept climbing in 2026, but the shape of that pay looks different than it did a few years ago, according to Resolve’s “2026 Physician Compensation Report,” an analysis of more than 4,000 physician employment contracts across all 50 states and 116 specialties. Eight things to know:
1. Base pay growth is slowing. The national average base salary reached $387,000 in 2026, but that figure grew just 2% to 4% over the past year, down from the 5% to 6% annual increases physicians saw in prior years.
2. Pay is becoming more conditional. Rather than raising guaranteed base pay, employers are increasingly leaning on sign-on bonuses, retention incentives and productivity thresholds tied to RVUs, or relative value units, to stay competitive.
3. Contract structure now matters more than the number on the offer letter. Hybrid compensation models, which blend a base salary with RVU- or performance-based pay, have become more common as organizations look to control fixed costs without losing ground in recruitment.
4. Pay still varies by region. Median base pay was highest in the South, at $355,000, followed by the West at $350,000, the East at $348,000 and the Midwest at $344,000.
5. State-level pay varies even more. New Jersey topped the list at $400,000, followed by Florida at $396,000. Pennsylvania, Illinois, Washington and Maryland each posted a $350,000 median.
6. The gender pay gap hasn’t closed. Women physicians reported a median base salary of $320,000, about 25% less than the $400,000 median for men, a gap that held steady even as overall pay climbed.
7. Employment classification creates its own pay gap. Partner physicians reported the highest median base salary, at $350,000, followed by employed physicians at $342,720. Independent contractors trailed both, with a median base salary of $316,921, about $26,000 less than their employed counterparts.
8. Negotiation matters more than ever. For physicians evaluating a new offer, particularly those signing their first contract, the report’s authors recommend closer scrutiny of the fine print, including bonus structure, RVU conversion rates and performance thresholds, rather than the base salary figure alone, and suggest working with a contract review professional before signing.
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