Pediatrics recruiting guide
Where to post, which agencies carry pediatrics, and what a vacancy costs while it stays open.
Salary data, May 2025 release
Bureau of Labor Statistics figures for general pediatricians from the May 2025 release, published May 15, 2026: national pay and its spread, every state BLS publishes, and the metro areas at the top, with the survey’s limits beside the numbers.
Verified BLS May 2025 national file
Pediatricians, General (29-1221), United States, all industries. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 estimates, published May 15, 2026.
Who BLS counts here. “Diagnose, treat, and help prevent diseases and injuries in children. May refer patients to specialists for further diagnosis or treatment, as needed. Excludes "Family Medicine Physicians" (29-1215) and "General Internal Medicine Physicians" (29-1216).” (BLS, 2018 occupation definitions)
Verified
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $91,470 | $43.98 |
| 25th percentile | $138,290 | $66.49 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $210,040 | $100.98 |
| 75th percentile | $273,700 | $131.59 |
| 90th percentile | $338,500 | $162.74 |
| Mean | $212,110 | $101.98 |
BLS’s state file covers 54 areas: the states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For general pediatricians, 50 of them have a published mean wage, 1 shows * (no wage estimate) and 3 have no row for general pediatricians at all.
Verified BLS May 2025 state file
Pediatricians, General by state, May 2025
Select a column heading to sort by it; select it again to reverse the order.
| State | Employment | Per 1,000 jobs | Location quotient | Mean annual wage | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | ** Not available | ** Not available | ** Not available | $237,810 | $209,490 |
| Alaska | 60 | 0.172 | 0.68 | $282,020 | $267,390 |
| Arizona | 1,230 | 0.381 | 1.50 | $239,830 | $233,950 |
| Arkansas | 100 | 0.078 | 0.31 | $182,700 | $160,440 |
| California | 6,680 | 0.367 | 1.45 | $221,480 | $214,140 |
| Colorado | 570 | 0.199 | 0.79 | $199,990 | $196,440 |
| Connecticut | 1,310 | 0.774 | 3.06 | $220,010 | $216,830 |
| Delaware | 180 | 0.372 | 1.47 | $213,680 | $219,190 |
| District of Columbia | ** Not available | ** Not available | ** Not available | $116,210 | $79,240 |
| Florida | 700 | 0.071 | 0.28 | $172,610 | $182,010 |
| Georgia | ** Not available | ** Not available | ** Not available | $153,380 | $149,990 |
| Hawaii | 470 | 0.752 | 2.97 | $177,890 | $197,090 |
| Idaho | 60 | 0.074 | 0.29 | $273,550 | $297,680 |
| Illinois | 1,180 | 0.193 | 0.76 | $225,740 | $196,760 |
| Indiana | 1,080 | 0.339 | 1.34 | $195,330 | $177,300 |
| Iowa | 230 | 0.150 | 0.59 | $221,690 | $262,440 |
| Kansas | 110 | 0.078 | 0.31 | $221,860 | $209,840 |
| Kentucky | 380 | 0.188 | 0.74 | $188,030 | $175,690 |
| Louisiana | 40 | 0.020 | 0.08 | $378,020 | $502,720 |
| Maine | 130 | 0.207 | 0.82 | $243,380 | $245,920 |
| Maryland | 580 | 0.211 | 0.83 | $202,610 | $181,640 |
| Massachusetts | 2,310 | 0.636 | 2.51 | $228,920 | $221,170 |
| Michigan | 1,340 | 0.304 | 1.20 | $195,760 | $204,690 |
| Minnesota | 890 | 0.301 | 1.19 | $228,400 | $226,660 |
| Mississippi | 40 | 0.037 | 0.15 | $214,380 | $183,650 |
| Missouri | 500 | 0.169 | 0.67 | $225,730 | $223,910 |
| Montana | 50 | 0.098 | 0.39 | $284,770 | $273,260 |
| Nebraska | 290 | 0.280 | 1.11 | $210,390 | $175,990 |
| New Hampshire | 210 | 0.307 | 1.21 | $255,760 | $273,410 |
| New Jersey | 1,280 | 0.298 | 1.18 | $194,010 | $201,560 |
| New Mexico | 270 | 0.306 | 1.21 | $216,420 | $202,390 |
| New York | 4,570 | 0.472 | 1.86 | $205,770 | $212,150 |
| North Carolina | 740 | 0.150 | 0.59 | $183,450 | $183,550 |
| North Dakota | 90 | 0.200 | 0.79 | $242,000 | $234,950 |
| Ohio | 2,110 | 0.379 | 1.50 | $223,710 | $217,970 |
| Oklahoma | 280 | 0.164 | 0.65 | $257,980 | $236,780 |
| Oregon | 620 | 0.313 | 1.24 | $228,070 | $224,690 |
| Pennsylvania | 1,120 | 0.184 | 0.73 | $236,790 | $226,440 |
| Puerto Rico | 1,020 | 1.085 | 4.28 | $97,770 | $98,350 |
| Rhode Island | 180 | 0.360 | 1.42 | $215,550 | $218,080 |
| South Carolina | 420 | 0.181 | 0.71 | $233,160 | $217,120 |
| South Dakota | 80 | 0.185 | 0.73 | $288,400 | $257,610 |
| Tennessee | 740 | 0.227 | 0.90 | $188,280 | $176,210 |
| Texas | 2,740 | 0.195 | 0.77 | $194,140 | $173,360 |
| Utah | 310 | 0.178 | 0.70 | $220,460 | $210,360 |
| Vermont | 130 | 0.417 | 1.65 | $207,630 | $215,350 |
| Virginia | 750 | 0.182 | 0.72 | $210,010 | $195,940 |
| Washington | 480 | 0.136 | 0.54 | $201,120 | $169,540 |
| West Virginia | 140 | 0.194 | 0.76 | $164,720 | $158,470 |
| Wisconsin | 350 | 0.117 | 0.46 | $245,400 | $269,790 |
| Wyoming | 100 | 0.356 | 1.41 | * Not available | * Not available |
In state order.
The location quotient compares the occupation’s share of jobs in the state with its share nationally: above 1, the state has more general pediatricians for its size than the country does.
No estimate for general pediatricians: Guam, Nevada, Virgin Islands.
BLS, May 2025 release, state file.
BLS publishes figures for general pediatricians in 106 of its 393 metropolitan areas. The ten with the highest published mean wage and the ten with the most jobs:
Verified BLS May 2025 metro area file
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Mean annual wage | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | 100 | 0.36 | $340,410 | $395,040 |
| Vallejo, CA | ** Not available | ** Not available | $306,510 | $357,320 |
| St. Cloud, MN | 60 | 2.13 | $304,330 | $298,830 |
| Fresno, CA | 410 | 3.36 | $294,660 | $289,290 |
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | 80 | 1.51 | $288,830 | $287,040 |
| Anchorage, AK | 50 | 1.01 | $277,830 | $251,830 |
| Bakersfield-Delano, CA | 70 | 0.79 | $276,350 | $290,420 |
| York-Hanover, PA | 40 | 0.77 | $274,970 | $344,960 |
| Tulsa, OK | 120 | 1.01 | $274,320 | $208,040 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI | 60 | 0.29 | $269,730 | $276,470 |
Ranked on published figures only. BLS, May 2025 release, metropolitan area file.
Verified BLS May 2025 metro area file
| Metro area | Employment | Location quotient | Mean annual wage | Median annual wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | 4,510 | 1.88 | $201,550 | $216,040 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 3,080 | 1.94 | $201,090 | $176,900 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | 1,860 | 2.72 | $235,680 | $221,170 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | 1,080 | 1.80 | $245,770 | $233,950 |
| Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX | 1,040 | 1.25 | $167,810 | $124,190 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Greenwood, IN | 920 | 3.30 | $186,190 | $170,020 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 870 | 1.19 | $238,640 | $226,440 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN | 860 | 0.75 | $219,140 | $188,340 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | 810 | 1.35 | $248,510 | $207,450 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 730 | 1.51 | $210,140 | $218,000 |
Ranked on published employment only. BLS, May 2025 release, metropolitan area file.
BLS’s own notes on the survey, in plain words, with the page each one comes from.
Find the state in the state table: it gives the mean and median annual wage BLS publishes for general pediatricians there, with employment and the location quotient. Nationally the mean annual wage is $212,110 and the median $210,040 (BLS, May 2025 release).
50 of the 54 state-level areas have a published mean. The rest have no wage estimate for general pediatricians; they are listed under the table.
It may not be. Where it is, look first at who and what BLS counts:
A survey that asks physicians or medical groups directly counts different people and different pay. Compare the same specialty, the same kind of employer and the same year.
BLS counts 39,390 general pediatricians on employer payrolls (BLS, May 2025 release), rounded to the nearest ten, with a relative standard error of 4.9%. Self-employed physicians and owners of unincorporated practices are not in that count, so it describes the employed part of the field.
Of the 106 metro areas where BLS publishes figures for general pediatricians, Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA has the highest published mean annual wage: $340,410 (BLS, May 2025 release), on employment of 100. A small metro area can lead on a few dozen jobs, so read the employment and the standard error with the wage. The metro tables show the top ten by mean wage and by employment.
They are the marks BLS puts in a cell instead of a figure. In its own words: # indicates a wage equal to or greater than $115.00 per hour or $239,200 per year; * indicates that a wage estimate is not available; ** indicates that an employment estimate is not available. This page prints “Not available” for the first two and the floor for the third (“$239,200 or more”), never a zero.
BLS material is in the public domain; BLS asks that it be cited as the source. The three Excel files are the May 2025 release as downloaded on October 25, 2026.