10 standout findings in Doximity’s latest physician compensation report

Almost three-fourths of physicians in their 30s, some 73%, say they use AI at least weekly for their work. Meanwhile not a lot more than half of doctors in their 60s, 52%, do the same. One takeaway there: Healthcare AI is still more a thing of the future than of the present. 

The figures are from Doximity, which released its 2026 report on physician compensation and related matters Aug. 25. 

The authors drew on surveys completed by around 23,000 of Doximity’s 3 million-plus registered users between January and December 2025. The report also presents data from more than 250,000 surveys completed over the last seven years.

That’s a lot of information. For the time-pressed healthcare executive, here are 10 nuggets that made the editors of HealthExec do a double-take or something close to it. 

1. The metropolitan areas with the highest and lowest average compensation, respectively, are Oklahoma City and Boston. Yes, really. 

Oklahoma City rose to the No. 1 position this year for highest compensation as adjusted for cost of living, swapping places with Rochester, Minn., Doximity analysts underscore. But even before figuring in living expenses, Beantown is still among the 10 with the lowest annual compensation, at $394,518—while Oklahoma City is still on top, at $495,617. 

“Average physician compensation in the U.S. increased 2% from 2024 to 2025, compared with 3.7% in the prior year,” Doximity reports. “The 10 metros with the highest average compensation were primarily located in the West Coast and the Midwest.”

2. Physicians practicing in single-specialty groups are the best compensated, taking home annual average pay of $480,961. 

Multispecialty settings are close behind, at $477,033, followed by hospitals ($454,440), health system/IDN/ACO ($451,233), solo practice ($440,424) and the rest.  

“Solo practice dropped two spots to fifth highest in compensation, with the largest dip in year-over-year compensation (-3.8%) across all practice settings,” the report authors point out. “Government compensation remained at the bottom, while urgent care centers saw the highest growth for the second year in a row.”

3. Younger physicians were not only more likely to use AI daily or weekly but also more likely to report that the technology is reducing their workload. 

Roughly a fourth (26%) of responding physicians in their 30s indicated AI is reducing their workload, compared with 19% in their 40s and 50s, and 14% in their 60s.

“Despite these differences, most physicians (72%) say AI is not changing the physician's role in their specialty, regardless of age,” Doximity comments, “though 50% acknowledge AI is changing how work in their specialty is done.”

4. If AI allows physicians to complete more clinical work in the same amount of time, physicians should be the primary financial beneficiaries.

So say 44% of responding doctors. By comparison, less than half that slice, 20%, feel the monetary benefits should be shared between physicians, patients and payers. A decidedly modest 17% think patients should be the biggest winners (through lower costs). 

“As physicians use AI for more clinical and administrative work, some see room for their own compensation to grow alongside it,” the authors note. “More than a third of respondents, 36%, say physician compensation for a service should change if AI substantially reduces their time or effort for that service—though 43% said compensation should stay the same.”

5. Almost a fourth of physicians, 23%, expect AI to increase their total compensation within the next 12 months.

And most physicians expect that those who stay up to date with AI will benefit the most. 

“To be specific, 67% said that physicians who stay current with AI tools will have a meaningful earnings advantage over colleagues who don't adopt them during the next 12 months,” Doximity analysts write. “And in general, physicians in specialties that reported using AI more frequently were also more likely to say that AI would give them a financial edge.”

6. The vast majority of physicians, 85%, report that the physician shortage has already affected their clinical practice. 

However, Doximity surveys over the past three years point to early signs that the shortage could be reversing course, the analysts emphasize. 

“About 18% of physicians described the impact as ‘severe’ this year, compared with 21% in 2025 and 30% in 2024,” they write. “And a lower percentage of physicians reported experiencing negative effects this year than in prior years.” For example, they add, 52% of physicians reported overwork or burnout due to the shortage, compared with 63% in 2025 and 67% in 2024.

7. Fully two-thirds of the field, 66%, say they’re considering a career change. 

That figure includes 46% who said they are now mulling early retirement, a substantial increase from 34% the prior year, Doximity points out. 

“The vast majority of physicians, 82%, reported they are overworked in a Doximity poll of more than 600 physicians conducted in June 2026,” the authors report. “This continues the trend observed over the past several years in a series of Doximity polls covering thousands of physicians: 85% reported being overworked in 2025, 81% in 2023, 86% in 2022 and 73% in 2021.”

8. About three out of four physicians, 76%, would be willing to accept lower pay if it would result in greater autonomy or work-life balance.

This finding is from a Doximity poll of around 1,000 physicians conducted in July 2026, the authors note. 

“The preference to prioritize autonomy or work-life balance was higher for women physicians (86% of women respondents) than men physicians (71%)—a gap that has slightly widened compared with the prior year.”

9. Almost half of responding physicians, 44%, say they are somewhat or very likely to leave clinical practice entirely within the next two years. 

And three-fourths said they are open to relocating should the right opportunity come along. “In addition, nearly two-thirds of physicians, 63%, would not want their children to pursue a career in medicine,” according to a 2024 Doximity poll of 7,590 physicians. 

“Despite these headwinds, the vast majority of physicians, 81%, said they would still pursue a career as a physician if they had a chance to do it over again,” Doximity reports. “A majority, 55%, would also choose to stay in the same specialty.”

10. Building a healthier, more sustainable future will take more than physician dedication alone. 

“It will require meaningful collaboration across the entire healthcare ecosystem, including health systems, hospitals, payers and policymakers.”

This is not from the survey respondents but from the Doximity analysts who wrote the report.

“Physicians must not only have a voice in shaping the future of medicine—they must also have a seat at the table.”