As of January 01, 2026, the average hourly rate for a Chief of Surgery in the United States is $227, which translates to an annual salary of about $472,167.
However, the hourly wage can vary significantly based on several factors. Here’s a detailed look at the typical pay range per hour:
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A Chief of Surgery's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.
Experience is a primary driver of a Chief of Surgery's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:
| Levels | Salary |
|---|---|
| Entry Level Chief of Surgery | $447,383 |
| Intermediate Level Chief of Surgery | $451,010 |
| Senior Level Chief of Surgery | $454,032 |
| Specialist Level Chief of Surgery | $458,868 |
| Expert Level Chief of Surgery | $464,913 |
What Am I Worth?
Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Chief of Surgeries. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
Demanded Skills for the Role:
| Skills | Demand Percentage |
|---|---|
| Leadership | 7.21% |
| Acute Care | 4.65% |
| Medical Education | 2.6% |
| Skill | Salary | Salary % Increase |
|---|---|---|
|
Internal Medicine
|
$637,425 |
35%
|
|
Coaching
|
$505,219 |
7%
|
|
Geriatrics
|
$500,497 |
6%
|
|
Cardiology
|
$500,497 |
6%
|
|
Long Term Care
|
$500,497 |
6%
|
|
Communicates Effectively
|
$495,775 |
5%
|
Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Chief of Surgeries enter the field with a JD, MD, PhD or Equivalent degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.
According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for a Chief of Surgery with a JD, MD, PhD or Equivalent is between $471,784 and $562,096).
Chief of Surgery Salaries by Degree Level
| Degree Level | % of user with this level of education |
|---|---|
| No Diploma | 6.7% |
| High School | 6.7% |
| Associates | 6.7% |
| Bachelors | 6.7% |
| Masters | 6.7% |
| Doctorate | 73.3% |
Understanding how a Chief of Surgery's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting. Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role. Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.
Last Updated on January 01, 2026
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Directs the staff and programs of the surgical department. Works closely with hospital staff, department directors, and physicians to ensure that the highest standards of quality and service are maintained. Requires a MD degree from an accredited school. Requires a valid state license to practice. Require extensive clinical experience. Typically reports to top management. Manages a departmental function within a broader corporate function. Develops major goals to support broad functional objectives. Approves policies developed within various sub-functions and departments. Comprehensive knowledge of the overall departmental function. Typically requires 8+ years of managerial experience.
Specify the abilities and skills that a person needs in order to carry out the specified job duties. Each competency has five to ten behavioral assertions that can be observed, each with a corresponding performance level (from one to five) that is required for a particular job.
Leadership: Knowledge of and ability to employ effective strategies that motivate and guide other members within our business to achieve optimum results.
Acute Care: Acute care is a branch of secondary health care where a patient receives active but short-term treatment for a severe injury or episode of illness, an urgent medical condition, or during recovery from surgery. In medical terms, care for acute health conditions is the opposite from chronic care, or longer term care. Acute care services are generally delivered by teams of health care professionals from a range of medical and surgical specialties. Acute care may require a stay in a hospital emergency department, ambulatory surgery center, urgent care centre or other short-term stay facility, along with the assistance of diagnostic services, surgery, or follow-up outpatient care in the community. Hospital-based acute inpatient care typically has the goal of discharging patients as soon as they are deemed healthy and stable. Acute care settings include emergency department, intensive care, coronary care, cardiology, neonatal intensive care, and many general areas where the patient could become acutely unwell and require stabilization and transfer to another higher dependency unit for further treatment.
Medical Education: Medical education is a course of study directed toward imparting knowledge and skills required for the prevention and treatment of diseases to persons seeking to become physicians.
Salary.com salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third-party data sources. We also provide multiple percentiles of salary information for your reference, click here to know Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial to Getting Pay Equity Right. With more online, real-time compensation data than any other website, Salary.com helps you determine your exact pay target.
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