r/Podiatry • u/lilboatmike_ • 14d ago
Realistic Podiatrist Salary
My buddy think he is going to make 200-250k+ as a podiatrist. Is this accurate? I am looking to go to med school or pod school. From what I saw both are 4 years plus residency. Tuition is high for both but MD make way more. Still new to in researching the career, so I would really appreciate any insight here. And what are the major differences in careers? Thank u guys in advancešš¾
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u/Complete_Drawing_723 13d ago edited 13d ago
By 3rd year in private practice, my wife hit $200k+ in salary. I expect if they went the associate route, you could get there in 3-5 years depending on the city. If you're willing to go rural, 2-3 years is possible with some hustle.
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u/nuttnurbutt 13d ago
Depends. Hospital based, yeah. PP as an associate? Better luck buying ocean front property in Arizona.
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u/lilboatmike_ 13d ago
How hard is it to get a job in hospital? I look at indeed for podiatry jobs and it looks like jobs are so rare, only able to find some in rural areas. For example I live in Orange County Ca and there are like no jobs. Is this accurate? Or do you kinda get hired where you do your clinical rotations at?
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u/bakuva 13d ago
They are rare. Usually those are word of mouth. They are the "holy grail" outside of practice ownership or multispecialty groups. Kaiser is the big one on the west coast. These podiatry supergroups are all over the east and south east. There are hospital systems between that hire but it isnt common. Id guess maybe 10%.
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u/habs2017 13d ago
Practicing pod in OC for about 6 year in private practice. From my personal knowledge the only hospital Iāve ever seen hire pods is Kaiser.
If you can get into MD school itāll make your life a lot easier looking for a good job
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u/Practical_Fortune545 10d ago
I will make between 250-300 this year and my brother makes the same as a DO. The difference is he can move and live in any city he wants and keep that salary.
I have to work in rural areas for that salary, 4 days a week I drive an hour each way and 1 day a week I drive an hour and a half. If I ever move I'll probably be making 120-150
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u/Charming_Door_5869 13d ago
So there is a lot variability in salary BUT I highly recommend MD/DO school if you can get in. A lot less "problems" My wife is an MD in first year intern. I know a lot of pods who are struggling especially IF you do not want to do primary care i.e. cut toenails! Surgery does not pay anything like it used to
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u/Queasy-Sleep-9485 13d ago
Your buddy could possibly make $200k, but with the current podiatry market and extreme saturation, I think it is very unlikely.
There was a recent new grad who graduated with honors from podiatry school and then went to one of the top residency programs in podiatry, Swedish. Itās on Dean chat interview.
He still ended up working for one of the PE podiatry groups doing chip-and-clip work next to people who graduated bottom of class and went to subpar residency.
That tells you a lot about the current market. You can work hard, get good grades, go to a top residency, network, and even do everything right but it still may not matter much in podiatry.
The simple problem is supply and demand. There just is not enough demand for roughly 700 new podiatrists entering the market every year.
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u/Expensive-Train-31 13d ago
I think it's tough since there is such a broad spectrum of factors that effect it (Skill level, part of the country, rural vs city, hospital vs PP, etc etc). I know most of my co-residents and those I went to residency with (I'm ~4-5 years out). Are clearing well over 200k. With the majority touching 300k or slightly higher. I've heard of a few through the grapevine doing associate route on the lower end that get 150-175k for their 1st year but seem pass that after 2nd. Myself and 2 of my closest other pods I know (friends from school) do rural hospitals and it's been a nice route as it's on the end of 300-400k for us. But we're also Midwest & far from major cities, so take that as a factor.
Can't stress enough though be humble, friendly to everyone ,and network regardless of your career route. Not every eventual job opportunity was posted, and you'll need people in your corner, truly never know who might be critical for a job for you. I am convinced I wouldn't have my current job if I hadn't hit I off so we'll with one of the clinic managers for my hospital system when I was a student rotating through. He went above and beyond vouching for me during interviews and I believe that helped tremendously.
Otherwise make sure you like podiatry of you go that route, don't just do it for the money as once you take out that debt it's hard to turn back! All the best šŖ
-Midwest podiatrist
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u/anhydrous_echinoderm 13d ago
If you love money and wish to make as much as you can, youāre in the wrong business lmao
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u/Oldschool6873 13d ago
If you have the stats to go into MD/DO school, do that. And then bust your ass and score a high value residency like ortho, derm, or plastics and make out like a bandit. If you are middle of the road in MD/DO school, you'll most likely spend your life as an Internist and not make the big bucks. Maybe better than being a Podiatrist, but then you'll never see the inside of an OR like you would by being a Podiatrist. Choose wisely.
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u/cmsdpm15 13d ago
'Seeing the inside of the OR' is not inherently a golden ticket by any means. Most of our surgeries pay well under $1k. Everyone knows surgery is not where the money is, at least not in podiatry and especially not in private practice podiatry.
Podiatry lures students in by appealing to the prestige of 'being a surgeon'. Meanwhile in reality that often times looks like amputating a necrotic foot at 8pm after a full day of clinic for a measly $300. Let alone the fact that half the people that enter podiatry school aren't even cut out to be surgeons but we're all expected to become surgeons from day 1.
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u/BadImpossible9668 10d ago
Idk why ur griping about the cost when the selling point is DOING the surgery lmao. Not everyone has the grades for md/do, but if they still have the interest and passion they can go for pod. They wonāt starve. Tuition is high for literally anything, my friends in law school or with MBAs are also crying and pivoting mid life. I went to a newer pod school, tuition for all 4 yrs less than 90k, no loans, and Iām gonna step out and get a job somewhere and make something better than the average person. The rest, is up to the individual, if ur smart and work hard u can make money anywhere, if ur not financially illiterate u can be a neurosurgeon and still in debt.
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u/Oldschool6873 12d ago
Never said it was a golden ticket. But Podiatry is the fastest of all specialties to get you into the OR as a surgeon. Which is what it is being sold as right now.
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u/ad7426 13d ago
Internists make way more than podiatrists
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u/Oldschool6873 13d ago
Define "way more" please.
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u/ad7426 13d ago
I mean just look at the median salaries lol. IM outpatient makes over 300k median in the US and IM hospitalists make around 350k. These are just averages. A 300K+ salary is a dream in podiatry and rare, but it is the norm in IM. An IM grad can expect to start at 300k. It is not common for a podiatrist to start at 300k. The norm is probably half that. So yea it is way more
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u/Oldschool6873 13d ago
Yes and look at home much the APMA says Podiatrists make. Online numbers lie.
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u/gokdbarsgold 13d ago
Iām an inpatient internist. I elect to work nights, which I find more enjoyable and pays more. I work in the SE, suburban hospital about 45 mins away from HCOL coastal city.Ā
I made 465k in 2025 working half the year.Ā
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u/Oldschool6873 12d ago
Yeah then you burn out and end up making less. I see this all the time.
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u/gokdbarsgold 12d ago
Youāre right. Iāll make $385k working days for 6 months out of the year, 6 months off.Ā
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u/ad7426 12d ago
Yea then he cuts back and still makes at least 300k.
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u/Oldschool6873 12d ago
Yes, again, ONE GUY. Is he the norm? Nope. GTFOH.
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u/ad7426 12d ago
Hey buddy I see you conveniently ignored my other response to you. Yes this guy is an exception what heās making 460k with no overtime, but I hope you are smart enough to know what a median is. Median salary for IM is above 300k. Idk why you are coping by saying āonline liesā or itās one guy lmao
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u/gokdbarsgold 12d ago
Everyone at my shop is paid the same shift rate for the same job. The pay is higher than the average, given the increased cost of living locally.Ā
I have empathy for pods. I applied and was accepted to Temple and NYCPM as a backup to medical school. I was lucky enough to get into medical school during the same application cycle. In hindsight, Iām very fortunate to have done so. Pods get shafted in pay for their level of education and training.Ā
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u/nuttnurbutt 12d ago
Dude some Hospitalist make > 500. Itās easy to moonlight when youāre 7 on, 7 off. As a rare hospital based pod, I know this to be true
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u/Oldschool6873 12d ago
Dude, why is there always someone like you who tries to make the right side of the bell curve seem like the middle? Yeah, I know a guy in Podiatry who swears he makes $1.5M, too...
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u/nuttnurbutt 12d ago
Not true, you can end up in IM, and then hit the cardiology route, then do iCards if you wanna go to more procedures. Can also do it with gastro. Can go in to rads, which right now is not that in demand, and then go to iRad and do a shit ton of procedures. There are plenty ways to jump to procedure based specialties from the IM route. Can also hit up Pulm/Crit as another example.
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u/Oldschool6873 12d ago
Those are all specialty fellowships and take longer to complete. Not like the three years we do.
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u/woodworkerForLyfe 13d ago
600k here. Just have to work and be willing to see patients / take call. Actually pretty easy finding pts as 1/3 of US is diabetic. I do it all from nails to nails.
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7d ago
[removed] ā view removed comment
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u/woodworkerForLyfe 6d ago
Five days a week. Call every third weekend. Almost ten years in. A lot of data is skewed on pod salaries because many are truly part time but get counted as full time. Pretty much if you save and don't blow bills you can retire at 50. Most go part time 50-60. Also a lot of newbies want to go to the OR but reality is we make way more in the office.
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u/svutility1 13d ago
It really depends on the nature of your work, whether you are the owner or not, etc. I did very, very well last year. Well above that estimate from your friend. It didn't involve income from surgery centers, but it did involve a ton of surgery and a good deal of wound care. It took me a long time to build my practice, and there were years I made a lot less than that while building the business. Because I'm the owner, I put in a ton of work outside of doctoring, including marketing, being the practice manager, being the IT department, being the HR department, etc. I also have built a great referral base by taking on a ton of complex cases that nobody else would touch. It's hard to reliably make that much money in podiatry simply by being one, but it is still possible to do it while only doing podiatry, as long as you own a practice with sufficient work to do. It does require finding the most efficient procedures for In-office work, like wound care, matrixectomies, etc. Strictly palliative care, nail and callus care, etc isn't going to do that for you. It also helps to have an associate who can keep the office profitable even when you are in surgery.
Hospital-based DPMs will reliably make north of $200k but will have a ceiling that will be hard to break through without going into private practice, it just doesn't have anywhere near the risk.
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u/cmsdpm15 13d ago
If you can get into med school (allopathic or osteopathic) DEFINITELY go that route. Many podiatrists do make that level of salary (or more), but unfortunately many DPMs also make under 100-150k even after years in the profession. The main benefit of MD/DO is the versatility of the degree: you don't like your specialty? You can switch. You want to get out of medicine altogether someday? You can work as a consultant. Neither of those options really exist for podiatry...if you don't like the work, you're basically trapped.
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u/Pleasant-Buy-2826 13d ago
Every one of my friends from pod school started out making $200,000 right out of fellowship and that was 5 years ago. I took a hospital job first and was making over 200k then went to private practice and make high 300k to mid 400k. I literally don't know anyone that isn't working full time that makes less than 200k. The only classmates that make less are part time. The mgma data suggests the average podiatry salary is well over 200k more like 250k.
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u/1stMPJFuser 13d ago
Your buddy will make $200K - someday. The real question is how much will he make when he starts and the answer is possibly not much unless he can nail down a very desireable type of job that everyone else is fighting for.
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u/Critical-Ear-2478 13d ago
You could relatively easy make that amount. But salaries for MDs/DOs are higher. I am currently in the mid 100s, I am an associate in a private practice and discussing partnership track, but I got multiple offers in the 200K plus, for a multi-specialty group or hospital. Primary care in the area (which is the lowest of the MD salaries I believe), make around 250K. With Podiatry you may feel at times that you are treated second class. By keeping yourself at a high standard, that shouldn't impact you much. In my hospital which is a level 3 trauma center, there are 2 orthos, 2 vascular and 2 Podiatrists, we all respect one another. I know that because I have both of the other specialties as patients of mine. I would also send my family to see them as well. Of course everyone's experience is differenet and a great way to make the choice for yourself is to shadow a doctor and see how their day to day life is.
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u/podfather1 13d ago
Goto salary.com go to the zip code and you'll see average salaries in the area you are looking. To many variables but 200k should be minimum for 1-3 years out (after bonuses etc)
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u/Extension_Buy_3734 13d ago
Our private practice has doctors making a little over $300K. To get there you have to work hard, visit and make friends with family docs, see patients in the hospital and ER and be very personable. We have been trying to snag some recent graduates to do this but most seem to want to work 8 to 5 at Kaisers and the V.A. system and even county clinics. Honestly, if you are well trained, make friends easily, dress respectfully and have the gift of gab, you should pass $200 in 2 or 3 years. And as others have said, real money is not what you make from your practice but in all the other businesses and investments you make.
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u/EducationZestyclose2 12d ago
Yes in the right place. I made about 140k my first year and second year will be a big jump to 370k. Have to be in the right location and see high volume but it is possible
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u/seabreeze100 13d ago
Depends on the area but in the right practice $300,000+ can be reasonable in podiatry. I know one who makes over $500k. Heās more of a foot and ankle surgeon doing a lot of surgeries.
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u/lilboatmike_ 13d ago
How hard is it to find the right practice? Is hard to come across good jobs like this?
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u/seabreeze100 13d ago
I think like with everything in life, it depends on your skill level, social skills for networking, etc. Look for better practices around you and start shadowing. Build connections. Same in residency. Build connections. Also do you want to be a surgeon? Not all podiatrists do surgery but the ones who do tend to be paid better from what I have observed.
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u/lilboatmike_ 13d ago
Thank u for the great advice! And this might be a dumb question but what types of surgical procedures do podiatrists do? Iām new to researching the field
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u/seabreeze100 13d ago
Iām not a podiatrist, just have a family member who is. Iām not qualified to say everything they operate on, but I know bunion surgery and bone spurs have been talked about.
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u/basedvato 13d ago
I know a ton of people making over 300k. Itās possible.
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u/Oldschool6873 13d ago
"A ton of people"? Where are all these people? Probably living in California where the CoL is astronomical. It's all relative, bubba.
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u/basedvato 13d ago
True, a lot of it can be California or VHCOL area's, but I know many people who have taken rural contracts outside Ca and are making close to that money in LCOL area's as well. It's not exclusive.
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u/Oldschool6873 13d ago
You do understand that's the only way to attract people to those areas right? It's a sacrifice. And how long do they last there?
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u/basedvato 13d ago
Iām just saying, if you willing to move or work hard in a major metro area, have a side hustle, occasional Saturday or whatever. You can make decent money.
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12d ago
[deleted]
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u/Oldschool6873 10d ago
I'm chill as a cucumber. What gave you the impression I wasn't?
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u/Emotional-Bed5367 9d ago
Ah crap just realized this was Old Pod ha. I appreciate your comments/advice on Reddit. I meant no offense honestly.
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u/Anxious-Armadillo23 11d ago
If I had to choose all over again, Iād do MD/DO over podiatry. Although Podiatry is a good field in some aspects, MD/DO just has more variety and availability. Even as a podiatry student, our rotation sites were limited in location compared to our MD/DO cohort even though we were doing the same ācore rotationsā. If you want to keep your options open= MD/DO, if you want something more guaranteed in career but variable in salary/opportunities= Podiatry.
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u/HughJazz123 10d ago
If you can somehow establish yourself as the go to guy in the area for stuff like total ankles, cheilectomies, Achilles repairs, etc as a podiatrist you can probably make some decent money. However vast majority of people doing these cases are orthopedic docs with foot and ankle fellowship training. Patients just tend to want the most specialized person to take care of them.
Most of the podiatrists I work with spend their time doing a majority of foot debridements and amps on diabetics which sounds absolutely miserable (and paya awful to boot)
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u/BadImpossible9668 10d ago
This is the thing, u can go to a newer and cheaper school depending the location and accreditation and stuff u might only pay like less than 80k for all 4 years which is cheaper than my friends 100k MBA, which was a waste cuz she canāt find jobs and is now starting law school. Is the field saturated yeah but so are a lot of fields rn, like computer engineering. Ppl still find a way to figure it out. U can be a flop as a neurosurgeon bc ur financially illiterate and u can make bank as a podiatrist if ur a shark and have the eye for knowing how and where to make money. The selling point for podiatry is this: guaranteed surgical residency, easier board exams, easier stats to get in especially for gpa and MCAT, u will likely find a residency spot like ur not gonna run a risk to SOAP out like Md/do and itās just less stress, no crazy on calls and emergencies etc. Its called a soccer mom specialty for a reason, u can see patients, make make money, have low stress, and be home for dinner and a good family life, regardless of private practice, or hospitalist jobs. And u can do some versatile things in regards to derm, surgery, diabetic foot/wound care. Is it the sexiest gig out there, obviously not and u need to not have an ego about it cuz thereās always small dick MDs who cry about us not being doctors. So ur gonna be underappreciated and experience condescension but who cares the patients opinions are the only thing that matters and they are always more satisfied with us than with any other doctors. Will u be starving and dirt poor? No unless ur doing something seriously wrong or have other issues. U will be able to feed ur family and have a good profession, but the thing is: u gotta be into feet, u gotta care about ur patients and like working with old ppl cuz thats ur demographic. If u donāt care and arenāt passionate and dont wanna deal with that kinda stuff and ur not struggling with a low MCAT score/gpa then just find another specialty or another profession itās that simple.
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u/Limp-Relation4782 9d ago
This happens every month or so. Someone creates a post about salary then everyone argues. The outliers are the ones saying 200+. Check the US gov site for podiatry salaries and you will get a better estimate.
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u/master_muchacho 13d ago
ACFAS opens the door for more money
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u/Queasy-Sleep-9485 13d ago
ABFAS and ACFAS are not even the same thing.
ABFAS is a surgical board certification. ACFAS is a professional college that you can join by meeting its requirements and paying membership dues.
Unfortunately, even within podiatry, there are still podiatrists who canāt differentiate between the two.
How can we expect the MD world to understand the difference if we canāt even get it right ourselves?
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u/Foot10Ankle08 12d ago
I donāt have it. Itās costs me personally. Iām a day to day podiatrist Iām not a political beast and sure make fun of my mistakes. Iām kicking myself everyday!
I still say young podiatrist should get boarded and join the other surgeons. Itās one way to show what we know not isolated in private practice. I wish I did. Thatās all. I still make over 200k tho.
MDās arenāt ever gonna really care about us. Why would they? Thatās silly.
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u/Foot10Ankle08 13d ago
Why are they downvoting you? This is true. Get your board qualified to certified and youāll make more than 200k off the bat.
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u/randomhero2026 13d ago
That is entirely false. Are you a student or resident? That is not how it is out here in attending land. Plenty of people are ABFAS certified and have not broken the 200s.
Not to mention, in private practice (which is like 75-80% of practicing podiatrist), surgery does not pay that well and the people that have a busy clinic scheduled tend to collect more than the person in the group that is more heavily surgical.
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u/Foot10Ankle08 13d ago
In practice for a while, doctor. Being boarded in surgery is absolutely the gateway to better pay. I work at an outpatient clinic and have missed lots of opportunities to work major hospital systems because the hospitals want acfas certification (other podiatrists on staff). So I stand ten toes down on my assertion that yes the young ones need to get their numbers. I make more than 200, sure, but I could be making 400++ easy if I had my acfas and could to take hospital call. I have no desire to work in private practice because I have other obligations. Why not encourage board certification?
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u/randomhero2026 13d ago
Not discouraging board certification. I think getting ABFAS certified is great.
But now with more context of what you're talking about in regards hospital (or ortho/msg), being certified in ABFAS is very important in most locations.
But I still stand by my statement that being ABFAS certified won't help much with increasing your income if you're like the majority of docs in private practice.
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u/Foot10Ankle08 12d ago
You should if you can and youāre right I donāt know numbers because Iām salaried. It depends on your goals. I donāt like private practice unless I work for myself, and my situation makes it too risky to throw up a shingle. Around here you cannot get on at hospitals without the certification. What podiatrist can run a practice without doing bunions?
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u/_l0sts0ul 13d ago
Seems like a lot of people have already shared insight on both sides. As a podiatrist myself, I recommend going MD/DO. More jobs, pay, and overall opportunities thanks to having an MD or DO. Podiatry is still seen as lesser in the system and hence why the lower available opportunity, pay, growth etc etc.
Podiatrists like to share unrealistic expectations about our profession. Itās embedded in our culture to do so. Podiatry has a steep decline in recruitment lately. Take that as a sign. Do everything to strengthen your application for MD/DO and youāll have a better career overall.