Somewhere in Idaho, a single Psychiatry listing sits at $400,000 flat. Somewhere in Pacoima, California, another one starts at $208,000. Both are real. Both are current. Both are looking for the same credential. The national Psychiatry market, polled August 2026, contains 493 active listings spread across 47 states, from Alaska to Delaware, with a full compensation range that spans $125,000 to $550,000 — a spread wide enough to drive a hospital system through. The thesis is simple: Psychiatry is one of the most geographically democratic specialties in medicine, and one of the least predictable on price.
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The Psychiatry Job Market at a Glance

Total listings: 493
Listings with disclosed salary: 154
Full national salary range: $125,000 to $550,000
National average range: $294,186 to $336,241

The spread is the story. A $425,000 gap between the floor and ceiling in a single specialty is not a rounding error — it is a structural feature. Psychiatry now spans telehealth side gigs, correctional contracts, academic appointments, private practice buyouts, and executive medical director roles, and the pay reflects every one of those realities simultaneously.

Most listings cluster in the $270,000 to $415,000 band, which is where the honest middle of the market lives.

States represented: CA, NY, PA, IL, NC, IN, WI, MA, KS, MN, CT, TX, MO, FL, TN, GA, MD, AL, SC, WA, AZ, OH, ND, NM, VA, NH, OR, KY, NJ, CO, IA, HI, MS, UT, ID, WV, MI, AK, NV, AR, OK, DE, ME, MT, NE, LA, SD.
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How States Stack Up

Overperformers:

• Idaho ($400,000 flat) — one listing, one number, no negotiation theater required.
• Delaware ($350,000 to $400,000) — a single posting punching well above the state’s population weight.
• North Carolina ($360,000) — one salary-disclosed listing tops the average, though 23 others stayed quiet.
• South Carolina ($350,000) — a Southeast standout among salary-disclosing markets.
• Massachusetts ($330,000 to $350,000) — Boston academic prestige with pay to match.
• Alabama ($325,000 to $340,000) — quietly competitive.
• Ohio ($319,083 to $342,494) — Midwest respectability, priced correctly.
• Nevada ($315,000 to $340,000) — small sample, strong signal.
• Washington ($309,000 to $347,000) — Pacific Northwest holding its ground.
• California ($307,911 to $379,382) — high volume and high pay, which is not supposed to happen but does.
• Illinois ($307,353 to $328,235) — solid on both sides of the ledger.

Near-average:

• Hawaii ($300,000 to $310,000) — paradise, priced at par.
• Colorado ($300,000) — one listing, exactly average.
• Minnesota ($298,643 to $321,857) — the platonic ideal of a benchmark state.
• New Jersey ($290,000 to $326,667) — steady.
• Connecticut ($287,667 to $307,111) — the actual midpoint of American Psychiatry.

Underperformers:

• Maryland ($270,000 to $316,250) — DC-adjacent, pay is not.
• New York ($269,702 to $304,764) — 60 listings, below-average floor (see: rent).
• Pennsylvania ($262,500 to $331,000) — 27 listings, weak low end.
• Missouri ($250,000 to $270,000) — the national basement.

Volume leaders: California (61), New York (60), Pennsylvania (27), Illinois (24), North Carolina (24), Indiana (19), Wisconsin (18), Massachusetts (17), Minnesota (16), Kansas (16), Connecticut (15), Texas (14), Missouri (13), Florida (12).

New York is a high-volume market that pays below the national floor. Idaho is a one-listing market that pays $400,000. Do with that what you will.
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What This Means If You’re a Physician

If your priority is maximum compensation:
The highest disclosed listing nationally reaches $550,000. Below that, a CompHealth position in Brooklyn, NY tops out at $432,000 — which is impressive until you remember Brooklyn. A cluster of The Inline Group roles across Los Angeles, Culver City, Anaheim, and Baldwin Park reach up to $415,000. Idaho, Delaware, and North Carolina lead on average pay but offer one listing each. This is a treasure hunt, not a job search.

If your priority is maximum optionality:
California (61) and New York (60) are the only two-digit-volume markets that also disclose salary at scale. California is the rare state where volume and pay both cooperate.

If your priority is balance:
Illinois, Minnesota, Connecticut, and Ohio offer reasonable listing counts, transparent pay, and averages that sit near or above the national midpoint. Nobody writes songs about them. That is the point.

Cost-of-living flag: New York’s below-average floor in the country’s most expensive metro deserves scrutiny before signing.
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What This Means If You’re a Recruiter

Salary transparency rate: 154 of 493 listings = 31.2%. Roughly two out of three Psychiatry postings currently disclose no compensation. In a specialty where burnout, telehealth arbitrage, and 1099 flexibility have made candidates fluent in comp math, opacity is a filter — and not the flattering kind. Pipelines shrink when pay is hidden.

Volume-pay misalignments are stark: Indiana (19 listings, zero disclosed), Wisconsin (18, zero), Kansas (16, zero), Texas (14, zero), Florida (12, zero), Georgia (10, zero), Tennessee (10, zero). If you are recruiting into these states without a published number, you are leading with mission, setting, autonomy, or call structure — whether you meant to or not. Choose your lead deliberately.
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What’s Driving the Numbers

Scope and employer type command a premium. The $550,000 ceiling and the $432,000 Brooklyn CompHealth listing are not community mental health jobs. Locum, executive, and specialized inpatient roles sit at the top of the range. Public-sector and community psychiatry sit at the bottom. Same license, different economics.

Part-time and specialized roles distort the floor. The $125,000 low and The Inline Group’s $208,000-to-$292,000 Pacoima listing almost certainly reflect part-time, hybrid, or scope-limited positions rather than a full-time offer to a board-certified psychiatrist. The floor is real, but it is not comparable.

Underserved markets price in scarcity. Idaho, Delaware, South Carolina, and Alabama all pay above the national average with minimal listing volume. When there is one job and one candidate slot, the number goes up. This is scarcity pricing, not generosity.

The volume-pay relationship breaks, except in California. New York, Pennsylvania, and Missouri all show that high or moderate volume can coexist with below-average pay. California is the anomaly — the only large market where a big posting count and a strong average range travel together.

The Bottom Line

Psychiatry in 2026 is a market defined by demand that outstrips supply almost everywhere, and by employers who cannot quite agree on what that means for a paycheck. The floor is soft, the ceiling is generous, the middle is honest, and roughly 69% of postings would rather not talk about money at all. California is the rare state that gets volume and pay right simultaneously. Everywhere else, you are choosing one.

Psychiatry pays well for listening to problems — provided you are willing to solve the problem of where you live.
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Salary data based on 154 listings with disclosed compensation. Figures may reflect part-time or specialized roles. This report is informational and should not replace professional judgment or financial planning.