How much do health information technicians make in 2026?
Health information technicians are counted in the BLS health information technologists and medical registrars series: OEWS May 2025 reports the SOC 29-9021 national median at $68,020 a year ($32.70 an hour), with the bottom 10% near $39,830 and the top 10% at $117,420. The series is broader than the technician role, because it also captures informatics analysts and senior registry professionals, so a technician working in record management, release of information or registry abstraction generally sits in the lower half of that band — between the $48,940 P25 and the median — while the upper percentiles belong to analyst and management posts. The RHIT credential from AHIMA is the profession's standard qualification, and the reliable routes upward are cancer or trauma registry certification, coding credentials, and privacy or compliance specialisation. Employment is projected to grow 14.7% through 2034 with roughly 3,200 openings a year. → Full health information technician career guide, career path, credentials & placement →
Note: $68,020 blends every experience level and every setting in this occupation. For pay by level alone, see Pay by Level below.
- Health Information Technicians earn a national median $68,020/yr ($32.70/hr) (BLS OEWS May 2025, SOC 29-9021); the P10 to P90 range is $39,830 to $117,420.
- SOC 29-9021 pools technicians with informatics analysts and senior registry staff, so a technician typically sits between the $48,940 P25 and the $68,020 median rather than in the upper percentiles.
- The RHIT credential from AHIMA is the standard qualification, and registry certification, coding credentials or privacy specialisation are the practical routes above the median.
- Much of the work — abstraction, release of information, registry review — is performed remotely, which loosens the link between local wage levels and actual pay.
US Health Information Technician Pay Distribution · BLS OEWS May 2025
Pay by Level · BLS OEWS May 2025
How much do health information technicians 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 29-9021; 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 29-9021, 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 health information technician earn at each career stage?
Health information pay follows credentials and specialisation rather than tenure in records handling. Each median is anchored to the BLS OEWS distribution for SOC 29-9021, a broad series covering technicians through analysts.
By State
Which states pay health information technicians the most in 2026?
These are modeled state estimates — the BLS national median for the health information series scaled by the GlobalCybers state wage index — not BLS state observations. Because abstraction and release-of-information work is heavily remote, the local wage index predicts pay less well here than in bedside roles. What does vary by state is registry structure and reporting requirements, since state cancer and trauma registries set the demand for certified abstractors.
6 of 51 state guides shown, ranked by median. Bar is relative to California ($78,220), the highest-paying state shown. See all role salary guides →
By Metro
Which cities pay health information technicians the most?
Modeled metro estimates: the national median for the health information series 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 a health information technician’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 health information technician pay compare to related roles?
BLS OEWS national median across the closest trades. Health Information Technicians 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 health information technician wages on BLS.gov →
Take-Home Pay
What does a health information technician 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
Health Information Technician Salary, Frequently Asked Questions
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