The national ceiling for Dermatology compensation currently sits at $800,000—a figure that would make most subspecialists pause mid-procedure. The market spans 297 listings across more than 40 states, with 109 disclosing actual salary data. What emerges is a specialty where geography matters as much as skill: the difference between Delaware and Illinois is $315,000 at the average low end, and no one is pretending that’s about cost of living.
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The Dermatology Job Market at a Glance

Total listings: 297. Listings with salary data: 109. Full compensation range: $175,000 to $800,000. Average range: $418,527 to $544,991.

The floor is a part-time outlier. The ceiling is a full-time unicorn in the Hudson Valley. Everything in between tells the real story: most full-time Dermatology positions settle between $400,000 and $600,000, with the upper Midwest and Northeast consistently breaking through while the Southeast and certain coastal markets (Florida, we see you) anchor the middle. The $418,527 average low end is deceptively precise—it reflects a market where $400,000 has become the psychological baseline, and anything meaningfully below it requires explanation. The $544,991 average high end suggests that most employers are comfortable in the mid-five hundreds, but not eager to go further without a compelling reason.

States represented:

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Delaware
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Montana
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia
• Washington
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

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How States Stack Up

Overperformers: Illinois leads decisively at $550,000 to $640,000 across five listings—this is not a data fluke, it’s a market statement. Washington commands $484,500 to $606,000, proving the Pacific Northwest pays for more than lifestyle. New Mexico averages $400,000 to $750,000, though two listings make this more intriguing than conclusive. Minnesota delivers $450,000 to $633,333, a quiet Midwest premium that shouldn’t surprise anyone who has recruited there. New York ranges $429,167 to $587,500 across 12 listings, and while the average low is merely solid, the high end and $800,000 ceiling keep it in the top tier. Pennsylvania shows $487,500 to $500,000 on limited data, but the floor alone puts it above most competitors. Arizona offers $400,000 to $675,000, though only two salary listings temper confidence. Connecticut averages $416,667 to $600,000, a respectable showing for a high-cost state. Indiana posts $400,000 to $612,500, an unexpected performance from a state not typically associated with compensation leadership.

Near-average: California sits at $470,001 to $575,716 across 14 listings—28 total jobs, but the pay is thoroughly middle-of-the-pack. Georgia averages $400,000 to $460,000, landing squarely on the national baseline. Maryland shows $400,000 to $490,000, neither compelling nor concerning. North Carolina offers $400,000 to $425,000, a flat and predictable range. Michigan averages $450,000 to $500,000, steady but unspectacular. New Jersey ranges $380,029 to $547,286 across 14 salary listings, and despite 19 total jobs, it underperforms its cost of living. Florida posts $385,417 to $480,000—28 listings, 12 with salary data, and a clear message that volume does not equal premium. Texas averages $387,500 to $475,000 across four salary-disclosing listings out of 15 total, another high-volume, moderate-pay market. Virginia shows $400,000 to $416,667, unremarkable in every respect. Ohio averages $450,000 flat, which reads more like a standard offer than a competitive range.

Underperformers: Oregon averages $350,000 to $400,000, a meaningful step below the national baseline. Tennessee shows $350,000 to $500,000, but the low end is the problem. Delaware sits at $300,000 to $325,000, the lowest average range in the dataset and difficult to justify outside of part-time or unique practice models. Wyoming ranges $300,000 to $650,000, but one listing makes this more curiosity than trend.

Volume leaders: Florida and California each posted 28 listings, followed by New York with 25, New Jersey with 19, Texas with 15, and Illinois with 14. Florida leads in volume but lags in pay. California matches Florida’s job count but delivers only mid-tier compensation. Illinois combines meaningful volume with top-tier salary, a rare and valuable alignment.
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What This Means If You’re a Physician

If your priority is maximum compensation: Target the $800,000 listings in Hudson, NY and Southampton, NY, both full-time Dermatology roles with no disclosed scope limitations. Illinois should be your second call—$550,000 to $640,000 average ranges with five salary-disclosing listings suggest a market willing to pay at the top end consistently, not just in isolated cases. Washington and Minnesota both offer strong high-end averages above $600,000 and are worth serious consideration if you are willing to leave the coasts.

If your priority is maximum optionality: Florida and California each offer 28 listings, giving you the widest selection of practice settings, patient populations, and employment models. New York adds 25 listings with materially higher pay than the other two volume leaders. Texas provides 15 opportunities at moderate compensation, and New Jersey offers 19 listings but at a cost-of-living-to-salary ratio that should give you pause.

If your priority is balance: Illinois, Washington, and Minnesota combine above-average pay with reasonable listing volume and lower costs of living than the coasts. North Carolina offers 11 listings at $400,000 to $425,000—not thrilling, but stable and predictable in a low-cost region. Pennsylvania shows limited data but a strong floor of $487,500, worth investigating if you value the Mid-Atlantic without the New York or New Jersey price tag.

Cost-of-living mismatch alert: New Jersey averages $380,029 to $547,286 despite being one of the most expensive states in the nation—this is a gap worth scrutinizing before you sign. California’s $470,001 to $575,716 is respectable in absolute terms but underwhelming given housing costs in most markets where Dermatology jobs are concentrated. Florida’s below-average pay might work in Tallahassee; it will not work in Miami.
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What This Means If You’re a Recruiter

The salary transparency rate is 36.7% (109 listings with disclosed compensation divided by 297 total listings). That is low enough to create friction in candidate pipelines, particularly for mid-career and senior physicians who will not engage without a clear compensation range. If you are recruiting in a non-disclosing state or system, you are now competing against a third of the market that is willing to lead with numbers—and in a specialty where demand is high and supply is constrained, that is a meaningful disadvantage.

Candidate pipeline implications: Physicians are increasingly filtering by disclosed salary before geography or practice setting, and Dermatology is no exception. If your listing is in Florida, California, or Texas—high-volume, moderate-pay markets—you will need to lead with lifestyle, partnership track, or procedural autonomy, because compensation alone will not differentiate you. If you are recruiting in Illinois, New York, or Washington, your salary range is your opening line.

Volume-pay misalignment: Florida posted 28 listings but averages $385,417 to $480,000, below the national average low of $418,527. California matches Florida’s volume but pays only moderately better. Both states will require recruiters to emphasize non-compensation factors—weather, practice diversity, call schedule—because the salary story is not compelling. Illinois, by contrast, offers 14 listings at $550,000 to $640,000, a rare case where volume and pay align in the employer’s favor. If you are hiring in Illinois, your close rate should be higher than the national average, assuming you are disclosing salary upfront.
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What’s Driving the Numbers

Geography commands a larger premium than scope or specialization. The $232,500 gap between Delaware’s average low and Illinois’s average low cannot be explained by case mix, patient volume, or practice setting—it is purely a function of where the job is located. Dermatology is a specialty where the work is relatively consistent across markets (skin is skin), so compensation variation is driven almost entirely by regional demand, employer desperation, and cost-of-living expectations. The states that pay at the top end—Illinois, Washington, Minnesota—are not doing so because the work is harder; they are doing so because they have to.

Part-time roles distort the floor but not the narrative. The $175,000 listing in Thousand Oaks, CA is a part-time position and should be ignored when evaluating the California market. The $300,000 figures in Delaware and Wyoming likely reflect similar dynamics, though the data does not confirm hours worked. The relevant floor for full-time Dermatology is $400,000, and anything below that is either part-time, rural, or requires an explanation that most candidates will not wait around to hear.

High-volume markets do not pay premiums—they pay averages. Florida and California each posted 28 listings, but neither breaks into the top tier of compensation. Texas added 15 listings at below-average pay. The volume-pay relationship in Dermatology is inverse: the states with the most jobs are the states where employers feel least pressure to compete on salary, likely because lifestyle and climate are doing some of the recruitment work for them. Physicians who prioritize compensation should look to lower-volume, higher-pay markets like Illinois, Washington, and Minnesota, where employers cannot rely on sunshine to close candidates.

The $800,000 ceiling is real but rare. The highest advertised salary comes from two listings in New York’s Hudson Valley, both offering up to $800,000 for full-time Dermatology work. This is not a typo, and it is not a sign that the market is broadly moving toward eight-figure compensation—it is a sign that specific employers in specific markets are willing to pay extraordinary amounts to secure talent immediately. These listings should be understood as outliers that set the ceiling, not the benchmark. For most physicians, the realistic top end remains in the $600,000 to $650,000 range.

The Bottom Line

The Dermatology job market is geographically bifurcated, with the upper Midwest and Northeast paying materially more than the Sun Belt despite lower costs of living and comparable work. Physicians who prioritize compensation should focus on Illinois, Washington, and Minnesota; those who prioritize volume should focus on Florida, California, and New York; and those who want both should focus on Illinois and New York, the only two states where high pay and high volume coexist. The market ceiling is $800,000, the market floor for full-time work is $400,000, and everything in between is a negotiation about how much you value geography over money.

There is a lot of money available for ensuring people do not have melanoma, but where you do it matters more than how you do it.
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Salary data based on 109 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.