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Medical Transcriptionist Salary & Wages

The salary of a medical transcriptionist depends on several things. One factor that influences medical transcription salary is experience, since most employers value medical transcriptionists who have been working for at least two years. Another factor influencing medical transcriptionist salary is the amount of formal training a medical transcriptionist has. A third is the type of employment, whether a medical transcriptionist is working with a hospital, a medical transcription company or as a self-employed medical transcriptionist from home.

However, the biggest factor influencing medical transcriptionist salary is location. Medical transcription salary varies widely from state to state, and even between cities within the same state. This variation in medical transcription salary is due to differences in cost of living, state and local economies, and demand for healthcare services that generate medical transcription jobs. To earn the highest possible medical transcription salary, the best thing you can do is to move to a location that pays higher wages.

How Much do Medical Transcriptionists Make?

Some national medical transcriptionist salary statistics are as follows, based on 2012 data:

Lowest Pay Median Pay Highest Pay Average Pay
Annual Salary $22,400 $34,020 $47,250 $34,650
Hourly Wage $10.77 $16.36 $22.71 $16.66

Medical Transcriptionist Salary and Wages by State

Here are the five highest-paying states for medical transcriptionist salary and hourly wage, including lowest, median, highest, and average pay.

Salary by State

State Lowest Salary Median Salary Highest Salary Average Salary
Massachusetts $29,320 $43,520 $63,990 $45,730
Alaska $32,090 $45,490 $57,630 $44,960
California $26,090 $45,280 $60,300 $44,770
DC $27,870 $41,830 $64,840 $43,720
Connecticut $26,790 $40,060 $54,430 $39,840
Delaware $31,300 $39,850 $47,070 $39,120
New Jersey $24,470 $39,100 $51,140 $38,630
Oregon $29,740 $39,080 $47,070 $38,600
New York $25,820 $36,820 $48,330 $37,200
Hawaii $25,180 $36,760 $49,210 $37,190
See all states…

Hourly Wage by State

State Lowest Wage Median Wage Highest Wage Average Wage
Massachusetts $14.09 $20.92 $30.76 $21.99
Alaska $15.43 $21.87 $27.71 $21.61
California $12.54 $21.77 $28.99 $21.52
DC $13.40 $20.11 $31.17 $21.02
Connecticut $12.88 $19.26 $26.17 $19.16
Delaware $15.05 $19.16 $22.63 $18.81
New Jersey $11.76 $18.80 $24.59 $18.57
Oregon $14.30 $18.79 $22.63 $18.56
New York $12.41 $17.70 $23.24 $17.89
Hawaii $12.11 $17.68 $23.66 $17.88
See all states…

Medical Transcriptionist Salary and Wages by City

These are a few of the highest-paying cities for medical transcriptionist salary and hourly wage, showing lowest, median, highest and average pay.

Annual Salary by City

City Lowest Salary Median Salary Highest Salary Average Salary
San Francisco, CA $32,410 $55,880 $72,620 $52,950
Boston, MA $31,020 $46,890 $70,650 $49,830
Los Angeles, CA $38,640 $47,870 $61,680 $48,730
Anchorage, AK $39,180 $47,460 $58,440 $47,420
San Diego, CA $34,680 $46,600 $58,130 $46,560
Sacramento, CA $32,130 $42,350 $60,790 $44,300
Hartford, CT $32,350 $42,950 $57,700 $43,510
Nashville, TN $28,200 $36,280 $54,760 $42,230
Portland, OR $32,660 $41,640 $48,290 $41,170
New York, NY $30,800 $41,420 $54,330 $41,150
See other cities…

Hourly Wage by City

City Lowest Wage Median Wage Highest Wage Average Wage
San Francisco, CA $15.58 $26.86 $34.91 $25.46
Boston, MA $14.92 $22.54 $33.97 $23.96
Los Angeles, CA $18.58 $23.02 $29.65 $23.43
Anchorage, AK $18.84 $22.82 $28.10 $22.80
San Diego, CA $16.67 $22.40 $27.95 $22.38
Sacramento, CA $15.45 $20.36 $29.23 $21.30
Hartford, CT $15.55 $20.65 $27.74 $20.92
Nashville, TN $13.56 $17.44 $26.33 $20.30
Portland, OR $15.70 $20.02 $23.21 $19.79
Reno, NV $12.45 $20.30 $27.66 $19.78
See other cities…

How to Increase Your Medical Transcriptionist Salary

Taking into consideration all of the factors that affect medical transcriptionist salary, there are several things you can do to ensure you receive the best possible pay for your situation:

  • Get more training. Formal training builds your career skills based on the medical transcriptionist job description, and looks good on your resume. More training allows you to take on more responsibilities either in your current position or in a new job, and usually leads to a higher salary.
  • Become certified. Medical transcriptionist certification shows employers you are more dedicated and more skilled, making you stand out among other transcriptionists and earning you a higher potential salary. Again, you may do this in your current position or use it to apply for a higher-paying job.
  • Pursue further medical transcription employment on the side. Working in medical transcription from home is a popular source of additional medical transcriptionist salary, and can increase your monthly income. Some medical transcriptionists even start their own side businesses, which pay more and eventually become their full-time careers.

(Salary figures based on 2012 data courtesy of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Employment & Wages database.)

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