Physician Job Market Analysis Report: Hematology Oncology
PhysEmp Market Intelligence | PhysEmp.com
The Hook
Somewhere in Redding, California—a town best known for its proximity to Mount Shasta and its triple-digit summers—a single Hematology Oncology listing is quietly offering up to $870,000 per year.
In Brattleboro, Vermont, a listing from the same staffing firm tops out at $350,000.
Same specialty. Same recruiter. A $520,000 difference.
The Hematology Oncology market currently spans 317 active listings across 47 states, with disclosed compensation ranging from $250,000 to $870,000.
The thesis is simple: This is a specialty where geography, not credentials, appears to determine whether you clear half a million dollars or nearly a million.
The National Snapshot
- Total listings: 317
- Listings with disclosed salary: 63
- Full national salary range: $250,000–$870,000
- National average salary range: $497,651–$585,636
Sixty-three data points out of 317 is not a large sample, but it is what the market has chosen to disclose.
Within that sample, most salaries cluster between approximately $475,000 and $550,000—comfortable, if unremarkable, for a specialty that manages blood cancers for a living.
The tails are where things get interesting.
The floor sits at $250,000, likely reflecting a part-time, locums, or otherwise atypical role. The ceiling rises above $800,000.
States Represented
California, Minnesota, Colorado, Vermont, New York, Massachusetts, Ohio, Illinois, Nevada, Washington, Missouri, New Jersey, Michigan, Florida, Maryland, New Mexico, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, North Dakota, Virginia, Oregon, North Carolina, Montana, New Hampshire, Indiana, Arkansas, Connecticut, Utah, Alaska, Wyoming, Tennessee, Georgia, Texas, Mississippi, Kentucky, Idaho, Alabama, Iowa, South Dakota, South Carolina, Kansas, Arizona, Louisiana, Delaware, Maine, Oklahoma, and Rhode Island.
State-by-State Analysis
Overperformers
Massachusetts
Average salary range: $450,000–$800,000
The upper bound suggests academic, leadership, or expanded program scope.
Missouri
Average salary: $650,000
The data is limited, but the number is the number.
Maryland
Average salary: $650,000
One disclosed listing places Maryland firmly among the highest-paying states.
Montana
Average salary: $650,000
Proof that “rural” and “underpaid” are not synonyms.
Nevada
Average salary: $625,000
One listing. Small sample, real dollars.
Michigan
Average salary range: $600,000–$650,000
Michigan is quietly one of the stronger multi-listing markets.
Minnesota
Average salary range: $587,500–$597,500
Across four disclosed listings, Minnesota has one of the tightest and most credible high-end compensation bands in the dataset.
Illinois
Average salary range: $556,250–$731,250
Illinois is the rare market that pairs meaningful listing volume with meaningful upside.
California
Average salary range: $551,116–$650,671
The state average is anchored in part by the unusually high-paying Redding listing.
Oregon
Average salary range: $575,000–$675,000
One disclosed listing places Oregon comfortably above the national average.
Near-Average Markets
Ohio
Average salary range: $520,000–$545,000
Textbook mid-market compensation.
West Virginia
Average salary: $550,000
The disclosed range is flat on both ends—no drama, no ambiguity.
Colorado
Average salary range: $491,750–$557,250
Colorado straddles the national mean.
Washington
Average salary range: $475,000–$550,000
Close enough to the national average to call it typical.
North Dakota
Average salary: $500,000
A flat disclosed salary at the lower end of the national average range.
Wyoming
Average salary: $500,000
See North Dakota.
Underperformers
Vermont
Average salary range: $250,000–$350,000
Vermont establishes the national floor, although the compensation likely reflects an atypical work structure.
New Jersey
Average salary: $350,000
A difficult compensation figure for the tri-state area.
Florida
Average salary range: $400,000–$425,000
Florida combines relatively high listing volume with below-average disclosed compensation.
New York
Average salary range: $421,250–$542,250
New York has the largest transparent sample in the dataset, yet its average falls below the national range.
Volume Leaders
- New York: 31 listings
- California: 19 listings
- Florida: 17 listings
- Oregon: 15 listings
- West Virginia: 13 listings
- Wisconsin: 12 listings
- Indiana: 12 listings
- North Carolina: 12 listings
- Pennsylvania: 11 listings
- Washington: 11 listings
- Massachusetts: 10 listings
- Michigan: 10 listings
- Ohio: 10 listings
- New Mexico: 10 listings
- Virginia: 10 listings
New York and Florida lead on volume and lag on disclosed pay.
Missouri, Maryland, and Montana lag on volume and lead on compensation.
The market is not being subtle.
What This Means for Physicians
If Your Priority Is Maximum Compensation
The highest-paying listing in the country is a Hematology Oncology role in Redding, California, posted by CompHealth, with a salary range of $770,000–$870,000 per year.
Redding is not San Francisco, which is precisely the point.
The compensation reflects scarcity, not prestige.
If Your Priority Is Maximum Optionality
New York, California, Florida, Oregon, and West Virginia offer the largest pools of open positions.
Candidates should understand, however, that New York and Florida are paying below the national average despite their volume.
More available jobs do not necessarily translate into stronger negotiating leverage.
If Your Priority Is Balance
Illinois and Michigan offer some of the strongest combinations of compensation and listing depth.
Illinois reports an average salary range of $556,250–$731,250, while Michigan reports $600,000–$650,000.
Massachusetts also pays well, but its $450,000 low end deserves scrutiny. The wide range suggests a mix of academic, community, administrative, and leadership roles grouped into a single state average.
What This Means for Recruiters and Healthcare Executives
Salary Transparency Remains Exceptionally Low
Only 63 of 317 listings disclose compensation, producing a transparency rate of approximately 19.9%.
That means roughly four out of every five Hematology Oncology postings ask candidates to inquire about compensation.
In a specialty where the disclosed ceiling reaches $870,000, that creates a candidate-pipeline problem.
Physicians who can already see the top of the market may reasonably assume that an undisclosed salary is an uncompetitive salary.
Volume and Compensation Are Misaligned
New York and Florida are the two most exposed markets:
- New York: 31 listings, average disclosed range of $421,250–$542,250
- Florida: 17 listings, average disclosed range of $400,000–$425,000
Recruiters in both states will need to lead with factors beyond base compensation, including:
- Lifestyle and location
- Patient-panel size
- Call expectations
- Tumor-board quality
- Academic affiliation
- Research opportunities
- Infusion-center support
- Advanced-practice-provider coverage
- Signing incentives
- Loan repayment
- Administrative or leadership scope
The compensation figure alone may not be enough to close a candidate.
Market Forces Shaping Hematology Oncology Recruitment
Scope and Leadership Appear to Command a Premium
The Massachusetts range of $450,000–$800,000 and the Illinois range of $556,250–$731,250 are unlikely to represent only standard community oncology positions.
The upper ends may reflect:
- Program directorships
- Academic appointments
- Hybrid clinical and research positions
- Service-line leadership
- Expanded administrative responsibilities
- Highly productive community practices
The state averages may therefore be pulled upward by a small number of high-scope positions rather than a broad market-wide repricing.
Part-Time and Specialized Roles Distort the Floor
A $250,000 Hematology Oncology role in Vermont is unlikely to represent a standard, full-time community practice offer.
It is more likely to be:
- Part-time
- Locums
- Narrowly scoped
- Low clinical full-time equivalency
- Academic with protected nonclinical time
The national floor should be interpreted accordingly.
The true floor for a full-time, employed Hematology Oncology physician likely sits closer to $400,000.
Underserved Markets Are Pricing in Scarcity
Missouri, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, and rural California are all clearing approximately $625,000 or more on limited disclosed listings.
Hematology Oncology has meaningful training bottlenecks, and hospitals in low-supply markets are paying the scarcity premium directly in compensation.
These organizations may not be able to compete on geography, prestige, or amenities.
They are competing with cash.
The Volume-Pay Relationship Has Inverted
In this dataset, the states with the most listings frequently pay less, while states with fewer openings frequently pay more.
The mechanism is not mysterious.
Desirable metropolitan markets attract more applicants and can often fill positions at lower compensation levels.
Less desirable or harder-to-recruit geographies must offer substantially more to fill a single position.
The market is functioning almost exactly as basic economics predicts, which is rarer than one might hope.
The Bottom Line
Hematology Oncology is a strong physician-employment market with 317 open listings, a credible national average approaching $550,000, and a disclosed ceiling within striking distance of seven figures.
The catch is that the highest compensation appears in states with relatively few jobs, while the highest-volume states frequently offer below-average pay.
Only one in five listings will tell candidates what the position pays before they pick up the phone.
The best-paying Hematology Oncology job in America is in a town most oncologists cannot find on a map—and that is not an accident.
Salary data is based on 63 job listings with disclosed compensation. Figures may reflect part-time, locums, academic, leadership, or specialized roles. This report is informational and should not replace professional judgment, contract review, or financial planning.
