Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 29-1224

Radiologists

The published band from $89,010 to $594,410 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Cardiologists.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Radiologists: Cardiologists ($496K) , Obstetricians and Gynecologists ($293K) , Surgeons, All Other ($414K) , Physicians, Pathologists ($312K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Radiologists publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 29-1224 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Prepare comprehensive interpretive reports of findings
  2. 2. Perform or interpret the outcomes of diagnostic imaging procedures including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computer tomography (CT)…
  3. 3. Document the performance, interpretation, or outcomes of all procedures performed
  4. 4. Communicate examination results or diagnostic information to referring physicians, patients, or families
  5. 5. Obtain patients' histories from electronic records, patient interviews, dictated reports, or by communicating with referring clinicians
  6. 6. Review or transmit images and information using picture archiving or communications systems
  7. 7. Confer with medical professionals regarding image-based diagnoses
  8. 8. Recognize or treat complications during and after procedures, including blood pressure problems, pain, oversedation, or bleeding
  9. 9. Perform interventional procedures such as image-guided biopsy, percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, transhepatic biliary drainage, or n…
  10. 10. Develop or monitor procedures to ensure adequate quality control of images
  11. 11. Provide counseling to radiologic patients to explain the processes, risks, benefits, or alternative treatments
  12. 12. Establish or enforce standards for protection of patients or personnel

Radiologists: O*NET ranks Reading Comprehension first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 29-1224 - lead skill Reading Comprehension at 4.3 ; lead knowledge Medicine and Dentistry. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Reading Comprehension 4.3
  2. 2. Active Listening 4.3
  3. 3. Speaking 4.3
  4. 4. Writing 4.1
  5. 5. Critical Thinking 4.1
  6. 6. Judgment and Decision Making 4.1
  7. 7. Monitoring 4.0
  8. 8. Social Perceptiveness 4.0

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Medicine and Dentistry 4.7
  2. 2. Biology 4.5
  3. 3. English Language 4.3
  4. 4. Computers and Electronics 3.9
  5. 5. Education and Training 3.7
  6. 6. Customer and Personal Service 3.6
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$89,010 to $594,410
median $420,860 · ~6.7× spread
$421K
National median
↑ +3%
Growth 2024-2034
800
Annual openings
26,770
Estimated US jobs
Cardiologists
Highest-pay peer · $496K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Doctoral or professional degree

Top Paying States for Radiologists

1. New Jersey $482,700
2. Maine $555,750
3. Maryland $581,510
4. Michigan $485,920
5. Minnesota $708,340
6. New Hampshire $506,010
7. North Dakota $553,140
8. West Virginia $471,650
9. South Dakota $586,010
10. Arizona $470,640

Other Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations titles

  1. 1. Surgeons, All Other $414,010
  2. 2. Cardiologists $496,010
  3. 3. Physicians, Pathologists $312,400
  4. 4. Dermatologists $328,730
  5. 5. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons $352,220
  6. 6. Obstetricians and Gynecologists $292,910

The OEWS band for Radiologists runs from $89,010 (10th) to $594,410 (90th), about 6.7× wide, with median $420,860. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +3% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 800 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Doctoral or professional degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: New Jersey at $482,700. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Cardiologists at $496,010. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Radiologists pay-rank #3 in Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations

Among 71 detailed Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations with a published OEWS median, Radiologists is pay-rank #3, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 29-1224 · national median $420,860 · upper third of Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations (#3/71). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Radiologists salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 29-1224

New Jersey · top state for Radiologists

$483K published median

Maine · #2 state pay

$556K · behind New Jersey

Cardiologists

Highest-pay peer vs Radiologists · $496K

Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Lower-pay peer beside Radiologists · $293K

Compare Radiologists

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Radiologists with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations titles sit near Radiologists at the top of the pay table? ▼
Radiologists is pay-rank #3 of 71 detailed Healthcare Practitioners and Technical Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Surgeons, All Other ($414K), Anesthesiologists ($391K), Orthopedic Surgeons, Except Pediatric ($359K), Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons ($352K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do radiologists do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Radiologists. Leading ones include: Prepare comprehensive interpretive reports of findings; Perform or interpret the outcomes of diagnostic imaging procedures including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computer tomography (CT)…; Document the performance, interpretation, or outcomes of all procedures performed; Communicate examination results or diagnostic information to referring physicians, patients, or families. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for radiologists? ▼
For SOC 29-1224, O*NET importance scores lead with Reading Comprehension (4.3), Active Listening (4.3), Speaking (4.3), Writing (4.1). Knowledge areas emphasize Medicine and Dentistry, Biology, English Language. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Radiologists? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $89,010 and the 90th at $594,410 for Radiologists (6.7× spread). The national median is $420,860. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Radiologists? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Radiologists is +3%. Projected annual openings: about 800. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Radiologists? ▼
BLS assigns Doctoral or professional degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Radiologists. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Radiologists? ▼
New Jersey ($482,700), Maine ($555,750), Maryland ($581,510) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Radiologists card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 29-1224. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Radiologists. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics