How much do emergency medicine physicians make in 2026?
Emergency medicine physicians earn a national median of $335,550 a year ($161.32 an hour) per BLS OEWS May 2025 (SOC 29-1214), with a P25 of $184,830, a P75 of $418,890 and a P90 of $495,910. Read the $103,610 tenth percentile with care: it reflects residents, part-time attendings and partial-year physicians rather than a full-time attending floor, so the P25 is the realistic starting reference for a board-eligible emergency physician. The specialty's distinguishing economic feature is that it is shift-based — no clinic panel, no continuity billing, no call from home — so annual income is close to a direct function of shifts worked, and physicians can genuinely dial income up or down. Against that, nights, weekends and holidays are permanent, and the market has tightened as staffing groups consolidate. Employment is projected to grow 2.7% through 2034 with roughly 1,000 openings a year. → Full emergency medicine physician career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $335,550 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Emergency Medicine Physicians earn a national median $335,550/yr ($161.32/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 29-1214); the P10 to P90 range is $103,610 to $495,910.
- The $103,610 tenth percentile reflects residents and part-time physicians, so the $184,830 P25 is the honest floor for a full-time board-eligible attending.
- Emergency medicine is paid by the shift rather than by panel or productivity continuity, which makes income unusually adjustable — and makes nights and weekends a permanent feature.
- Employment growth is projected at just 2.7% through 2034 with roughly 1,000 openings a year, and group consolidation has made contract terms as important to earnings as the hourly rate.
US Emergency Medicine Physician Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do emergency medicine physicians earn at each level?
BLS OEWS publishes one blended wage for the whole occupation and does not break pay out by credential or practice level. The levels below distribute the published percentile range across the credential tiers this role actually hires at.
Level medians are aligned to the BLS OEWS May 2025 percentile distribution for SOC 29-1214; GlobalCybers does not yet publish a verified placement sample for this role, so no verified median is shown.
Methodology & Sources
How the numbers on this page are built
Published (BLS): BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 29-1214, United States national estimate. Public, methodologically rigorous, but sampled on a rolling 3-year basis and published ~10 months after collection — so it reflects wages that are already 1–2 years old by the time you read them.
Level and certification medians: distributed across the published BLS percentile range for this SOC code (P10 through P90) according to the credential tiers this occupation actually hires at. They are modeled reference points, not separately surveyed wages.
State and metro figures: modeled — the BLS national median multiplied by the GlobalCybers state wage index, and for metros by the published metro index for that state. They are estimates of local pay, not BLS state or metropolitan-area observations, and are labelled as modeled in the tables below.
No verified placement sample:GlobalCybers does not yet publish a placement median for this role, so no "verified" figure appears anywhere on this page.
Pay by Career Level
How much does an emergency medicine physician earn at each career stage?
Emergency medicine pay follows shift volume, site acuity and contract structure rather than a partnership ladder. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 29-1214.
By State
Which states pay emergency medicine physicians the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the BLS national median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Emergency medicine geography inverts the usual pattern: rural and small-town departments frequently pay above desirable metros, because they cannot recruit and must cover 24 hours regardless. State medical board licensure and the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact govern how quickly a physician can add another state, which matters for locum and multi-site work.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($385,880), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay emergency medicine physicians the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median scaled by the state wage index and then by that state's published metro index. They estimate local wage levels and are not BLS metropolitan-area observations.
BLS OEWS MSA estimates, May 2025. Nominal pay — weigh each metro against its cost of living before relocating.
Certification Impact
Which certifications raise an emergency medicine physician’s pay the most?
Median annual pay before and after each credential, based on GlobalCybers placement data cross-referenced with BLS. License upgrades move the needle most; stackable certs add on top.
Impacts are not additive, the licensing rows share the same career ladder. Browse all 167 certifications →
Trade Comparison
How does emergency medicine physician pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Emergency Medicine Physicians sit mid-pack on median but carry one of the widest P10–P90 spreads, licensing and specialization drive the upside.
BLS OEWS May 2025. Verify emergency medicine physician wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does an emergency medicine physician actually take home after taxes?
The medians above are gross base wage.
Estimates use 2026 federal brackets, standard deduction, and 7.65% FICA. Actual take-home varies with filing status, deductions, and local tax.
FAQ
Emergency Medicine Physician Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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