Oregon is offering $600,000 to help people breathe. Rhode Island is offering $175,000 for the same service. The Pulmonology job market currently features 78 listings spread across 30 states, with 26 positions disclosing salary information. The data reveals a specialty where employment type matters more than geography, and where the gap between part-time and full-time compensation has become a chasm wide enough to fit three median American household incomes.
👉 Explore Pulmonology job market insights and trends

The Pulmonology Job Market at a Glance

Total listings: 78. Listings with salary data: 26. Full salary range: $175,000 to $600,000. National average range: $305,885 to $333,077.

The spread is dramatic, but the story behind it is simple. Part-time roles from Medrina anchor the floor at $175,000 to $200,000, while full-time placements through CompHealth dominate the upper tiers. The result is a bifurcated market where compensation correlates less with cost of living or regional scarcity and more with whether the word “part-time” appears in the job description. The national average sits just above $300,000, but that figure obscures more than it reveals (because averages always do when the range spans $425,000).

States represented:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• California
• Colorado
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Illinois
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• North Carolina
• New Jersey
• New York
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Washington D.C.
• Wisconsin

👉 Browse Pulmonology physician job opportunities

How States Stack Up

Overperformers: Oregon leads at $600,000 to $600,000, though the figure rests on a single disclosed listing among three total postings. California follows at $400,000 to $450,000, also based on one salary disclosure. New York averages $350,000 to $361,000 across five listings with full transparency, making it the most reliable high-pay market in the dataset. Washington D.C. and Connecticut both clock in at $350,000 to $400,000, rounding out the top tier.

Near-average performers: Missouri averages $334,000 to $397,500 across two disclosed salaries, slightly above the national mean. Colorado sits at $320,000 to $380,000 for a single posting. Minnesota averages $312,500 to $332,500 across two salary-disclosed listings out of three total. New Jersey lands at $300,000 to $350,000, hugging the national average with minimal drama.

Underperformers: Rhode Island and Massachusetts both average $175,000 to $200,000, reflecting part-time Medrina roles rather than full-time physician employment. Illinois averages $248,889 to $268,333 across nine disclosed salaries, weighed down by a concentration of part-time postings in the Chicago suburbs.

Volume leaders: Illinois leads with nine listings, followed by Texas and Arizona with six each, New York and Indiana with five each, and Alabama and Florida with five and four respectively. Texas, Arizona, Indiana, Florida, and Alabama disclosed zero salary data, leaving their compensation competitiveness unknown. Illinois leads in volume but lags in pay, a combination that should concern recruiters banking on market activity to drive candidate interest.
👉 Compare Pulmonology compensation and opportunities by region

What This Means If You’re a Physician

If your priority is maximum compensation: Oregon, California, and New York represent the top tier, with the highest-paying listing found in Fergus Falls, Minnesota at $450,000 to $465,000 for a full-time CompHealth placement. Oregon’s $600,000 figure is based on a single listing, so treat it as an outlier until confirmed by additional data.

If your priority is maximum optionality: New York offers five listings with full salary transparency and an average range of $350,000 to $361,000. Illinois provides nine opportunities, though compensation trends significantly lower due to part-time prevalence. Texas and Arizona each offer six listings but disclose no salary information, requiring direct negotiation.

If your priority is balance: Missouri, Colorado, and Minnesota offer near-average compensation with lower listing volume, suggesting less competition and potentially more negotiating leverage. New Jersey sits at $300,000 to $350,000 and may appeal to physicians seeking proximity to major metro areas without the full coastal premium. The cost-of-living mismatch worth scrutiny: Massachusetts and Rhode Island pay $175,000 to $200,000 in high-cost markets, a figure that makes little sense unless the role is genuinely part-time or serves as supplemental income.
👉 Search Pulmonology jobs by location and compensation

What This Means If You’re a Recruiter

Salary transparency rate: 33.3% (26 listings with disclosed compensation out of 78 total). This is low enough to create friction in candidate pipelines and high enough to establish clear market benchmarks that will shape expectations regardless of whether individual employers disclose.

The volume-pay misalignment in Illinois is the most significant pipeline risk in the dataset. Nine listings with an average range of $248,889 to $268,333 will struggle to compete against New York’s five listings averaging $350,000 to $361,000. Recruiters in high-volume, low-disclosure states like Texas, Arizona, Indiana, Florida, and Alabama will need to lead with scope, leadership opportunities, lifestyle, or partnership tracks, because compensation silence in a transparent market reads as compensation weakness.

The part-time distortion is real. Medrina’s $175,000 to $200,000 postings pull state averages down and create misleading comparisons, but they also reveal a structural reality: part-time Pulmonology work exists, and it pays roughly half of what full-time roles command. Recruiters should segment messaging accordingly.
👉 Post Pulmonology positions on PhysEmp

What’s Driving the Numbers

Employment type commands the largest premium in the Pulmonology market. Full-time placements through staffing firms like CompHealth consistently offer $350,000 to $465,000, while part-time roles through Medrina cluster at $175,000 to $200,000. The gap is not subtle. It suggests that employers willing to offer full-time employment, benefits, and partnership pathways can command significantly more physician commitment and likely better continuity of care. Part-time roles may serve a niche, but they price themselves into a category that competes poorly for talent.

Geography matters less than expected. Oregon’s $600,000 listing and California’s $400,000 to $450,000 range suggest coastal premiums, but New York’s $350,000 to $361,000 average and Missouri’s $334,000 to $397,500 range indicate that competitive pay exists across diverse markets. The absence of disclosed salaries in Texas, Arizona, and Florida makes it impossible to assess whether Sunbelt markets are competing on compensation or relying on lifestyle and tax advantages to attract candidates. Either way, silence is a strategy, and it is unclear whether it is working.

High volume does not guarantee high pay. Illinois leads in listings but trails in compensation, a dynamic that should concern both recruiters and health systems. If the market is flooded with lower-paying part-time roles, full-time candidates may skip the state entirely, assuming all opportunities trend low. The reputational spillover from part-time postings is a risk that has not yet been priced in.

Salary transparency creates competitive pressure. States and employers that disclose compensation are setting the terms of negotiation for those that do not. A physician evaluating an undisclosed Texas listing will anchor expectations to New York’s $350,000 to $361,000 range or Minnesota’s $450,000 to $465,000 top-end offer. Recruiters in non-disclosing states are negotiating in the shadow of disclosed data whether they acknowledge it or not.

The Bottom Line

The Pulmonology job market is geographically broad, modestly transparent, and structurally divided between full-time roles that pay competitively and part-time roles that do not. Physicians seeking top-tier compensation should focus on full-time placements in New York, Oregon, California, and select Midwest markets like Minnesota and Missouri. Those prioritizing volume and optionality will find the most opportunities in Illinois, Texas, and Arizona, though compensation visibility remains inconsistent. Recruiters in high-volume, low-disclosure states face an uphill battle unless they can articulate non-financial value propositions that justify the silence.

There is a lot of money available for ensuring people can breathe, but only if you are willing to do it full-time.
👉 Browse all Pulmonology physician jobs
👉 Upload your CV to get matched with opportunities
👉 Set alerts for new Pulmonology roles

Salary data based on 26 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.