Plastic Surgeon Salary Range & Figures For 2024

A plastic surgeon’s salary can vary widely, but estimates claim the average they earn a year can be as high as $571,373.

Of all the medical specialties and subspecialties that exist, plastic surgeons consistently rank amongst the United States’ highest-paid physicians.

Here’s a closer look at how much plastic surgeons make, where they make the most, and where they’re most in demand.

How Much Does a Plastic Surgeon Make?

Plastic surgeons fall into two main categories: cosmetic surgeons and reconstructive surgeons.

When most people think of a plastic surgeon, they think of a cosmetic surgeon who performs breast augmentation surgery, rhinoplasty, facelifts, and other forms of cosmetic surgery that are elective but not medically necessary.

Reconstructive surgeons, on the other hand, dedicate their careers to correcting abnormalities caused by congenital disabilities and injuries.

Reconstructive plastic surgery is necessary to improve the function of the body, while cosmetic surgery is designed for aesthetics and not necessarily for function.

While these subspecialists vary in their day-to-day work, all plastic surgeons must undergo significant training. In addition to medical school, plastic surgeons spend approximately six years in residency: two years in general surgery training and four years of plastic surgery training.

After all those years of education and training, plastic surgeons need to make sure they’re compensated fairly for their specialized training. So what exactly is the national average and salary range for a plastic surgeon?

The Hard Numbers

Here’s a look at the numbers:

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, a surgeon’s median salary in 2023 was around $239,200 per year. But that’s the average salary only among general surgeons. The BLS does not differentiate the salaries of surgeons of different specialties.

According to other compensation sources, plastic surgeons earn considerably more per year than the average surgeon. Here’s a comparison of the salary figures from various sources. The salaries below may be affected by various factors such as years of experience in the field, geographical location, specialization, and possibly other factors:

Source	Median
Zippia (2024)	$172,467
Payscale.com (2024)	$327,582
Salary.com (2024)	$434,310
Doximity (2024)	$571,373
Economic Research Institute (2024)	$484,973
Medscape (2024)	$536,000

Compared to surgeons in other specialties, plastic surgeons earn salaries in the top percentile of their field.

Related: Physician’s Guide to Salary Negotiations

What Factors Affect a Plastic Surgeon’s Salary?

The following factors have a connection with a plastic surgeon’s level of salary: gender, level of experience, and the location of your job site, whether it’s a hospital or a private practice.

Here’s how these elements affect your annual salary:

Geographic Region

Whether you’re a cosmetic surgeon or a reconstructive surgeon, salaries are highest in geographical regions where there is a shortage of qualified plastic surgeons.

According to Zippia, the states that pay plastic surgeons the most are as follows:

• Maine
• Wisconsin
• Pennsylvania
• New York

MGMA (the Medical Group Management Association) reports that plastic surgeons in the Midwest earn an average of $343,495 and receive an average of $12,693 in relocation expenses.

Physicians can command high salaries in regions where the supply of specialists outweighs the demand. While cities such as New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco may have a high cost of living, plastic surgeons working in other regions of the country can earn just as much or even more, depending on their demand.

Board Certification

Board certification alone won’t net you a higher salary. However, it can put you in better standing than other surgeons in the field. This allows you to potentially request a better salary from potential employers.

When a patient has to pay out of pocket, they tend to look for the services of surgeons who charge the least amount of money.

The problem is that surgeons offering inexpensive cosmetic procedures often aren’t board-certified to do cosmetic surgery at all.

Talk shows and television shows, such as Botched, have brought to light the danger of doing cosmetic surgery with a surgeon who is not board-certified. This has made the general public much more aware of the need to see a board-certified surgeon.

Experience

Your years of experience are also a factor, as most patients prefer to see a surgeon with hundreds or thousands of surgeries under their belt as opposed to a surgeon who’s just starting in the field.

According to Salary.com, the average salary for plastic surgeons jumps to $477,342 after only five years of experience, compared to the average of $449,921.

Gender Wage Gap

Unfortunately for female physicians, a gender wage gap exists in almost every area of medicine and healthcare.

According to a 2023 Medscape report, men earn an average of $386,000 per year. Their female counterparts earn just $300,000 per year. However, it’s interesting to note that the plastic surgery gender wage gap is considerably less than the average wage gap among all physicians.

What Regions Have the Greatest Demand for Plastic Surgeons?

While reconstructive surgery isn’t something that people plan on or save money for, cosmetic surgery is. So by looking at the Google search trends, it’s easy to identify where the need for cosmetic plastic surgeons lies.

According to Google Trends Relative Search Volumes in 2023, the demand for plastic surgeons, to date, is highest in the following states:

• Wyoming
• Oklahoma
• Arkansas
• New Mexico
• Alabama

Based on these same criteria, the states with the least demand for plastic surgeons include Oregon, Virginia, and Connecticut.

That said, people in California, Florida, and Hawaii generate the most Google searches for finding a plastic surgeon. People in Oregon, Virginia, and Alaska search for plastic surgeons the least.

So what does all of this info mean?

The geographic region plays a significant role in how much you can earn as a plastic surgeon. Whether you’re looking for your first job after residency or looking to relocate your private practice to a new state, keep these figures in mind.

Remember that these figures are always changing, depending on the physician supply and the demand for plastic surgery procedures.

Learn more: Physician Compensation Report 2023

Final Thoughts

Whether you’re a cosmetic surgeon or a reconstructive surgeon, you deserve fair compensation for the complicated and challenging work that you do.

Your subspecialty, level of experience, gender, and geographic region are just some of the factors that will affect your salary. And the best way to ensure that you’re getting a fair wage is to hire a contract review specialist to scrutinize your contract. We also negotiate better terms on your behalf.

If you’re about to sign a new physician’s employment contract, contact Physicians Thrive now. Protect your interests. Make sure that you are in a position to earn the highest salary. Take out insurance policies that will protect your future income.

With a sound retirement plan, proper insurance, and a tax planning strategy, you can build immense amounts of wealth throughout your career.