Nephrologist Salary Guide

The average annual nephrologist salary is $312,000 per year in the U.S., according to the Medscape nephrologist 2023 compensation report. Nephrologists witnessed a slight decrease in annual salary front the previous year. 

Locum tenens nephrologists can make upwards of $162 per hour on average, however, there are many factors that impact rates including location, years of experience, and the level of demand.

If you were to extrapolate that rate over a year (at 40 hours per week), the average locum salary comes out to around $336,960. 

That means locum tenens nephrologists can make up to 8% more than the average provider. However, making direct salary comparisons can be complicated. While perm nephrologists are more likely to be salaried, locum tenens nephrologists are independent contractors earning an hourly rate, which can vary based on which assignments they take in a year. 

Furthermore, because locum tenens nephrologists are paid by the hour, the hours they work are directly reflected in their pay, while a salaried nephrologists additional hours may not be reflected in their salary.

Finally, paid time off and insurance may be reflected in the perm nephrologists salary structure, but locum tenens providers do have options when it comes to health insurance. 

The most recent state breakdown of physician salaries comes from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the BLS was not able to collect data for nephrologists specifically, the the top 5 highest paying states for physician salary are:

• Montana 
• South Dakota 
• Wyoming 
• Indiana 
• Colorado

This information can provide some insight for the possible highest paying states for nephrologists.

Nephrologists are in the bottom half of the 30+ physician specialties surveyed in the Medscape 2023 compensation report. The top five specialties (plastic surgery, orthopedics, cardiology, urology, gastroenterology) all reported annual income of greater than $500,000.

While nephrologists salaries have increased 28% over the past several years, this specialty experienced a decrease in annual compensation  by 5% from 2022 to 2023. Even though this past year nephrologists experienced a decrease in annual compensation, the specialty has generally increased annual compensation each year.

Based on this information, it is reasonable to say that nephrologists can make close to what they made in 2022, meaning the specialty can make  $329,000 in annual compensation in 2024.