How much do general surgeons make in 2026?
General surgeons are reported within SOC 29-1249, Surgeons, All Other, which BLS OEWS May 2025 puts at a national median of $414,010 a year ($199.04 an hour), with a 25th percentile of $134,850 and a 90th percentile of $655,320. The published 10th percentile of $80,320 reflects surgical residents and fellows inside the same code rather than practising surgeons. Because the series pools several surgical specialties, read it as the surgical distribution rather than a general-surgery survey. Within general surgery, call burden and case mix drive the range: acute-care and trauma surgery carries heavy in-house call, elective subspecialty practice such as colorectal or minimally invasive surgery sits above the median, and rural sole-coverage posts pay recruitment premiums. Employment across the series is projected to grow 3.9% through 2034 with roughly 600 openings a year. → Full general surgeon career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $414,010 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- General Surgeons earn a national median $414,010/yr ($199.04/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 29-1249); the P10 to P90 range is $80,320 to $655,320.
- The figures come from the Surgeons, All Other series (SOC 29-1249), which pools surgical specialties rather than measuring general surgery alone.
- Read the $134,850 25th percentile as the attending floor: the published $80,320 P10 reflects surgical residents and fellows in the same code.
- Call structure is the defining pay variable in general surgery — trauma and acute-care coverage, and rural sole-coverage posts, both carry substantial premiums.
US General Surgeon Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do general surgeons 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 29-1249; 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 29-1249, 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 a general surgeon earn at each career stage?
Surgery has no licence tiers above board certification, so the stages below follow training, call structure and subspecialty. Each median is anchored to the BLS distribution for SOC 29-1249.
By State
Which states pay general surgeons the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the series national median scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. In general surgery the geographic premium runs opposite to the wage index: rural and small-hospital posts that cannot maintain surgical coverage often pay well above high-cost metropolitan academic appointments.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($476,110), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
general surgeon pay by state — all 5 state guides
By Metro
Which cities pay general surgeons the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the series national median scaled by the state wage index and then by the published metro index. They describe the pooled surgeons series 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 a general surgeon’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 general surgeon pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. General Surgeons 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 general surgeon wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a general surgeon 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
General Surgeon Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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