So how much does a resident doctor make? Short version: most residents in the U.S. earn somewhere around $60,000 to $95,000 a year, and the number climbs a few thousand dollars with each year of training. That's gross. What you actually take home after taxes and deductions is a good bit lower. I know because I've opened every one of my own paychecks on camera, and I'll walk you through the exact figures below.
My resident salary, PGY by PGY
These are my own paychecks — the actual gross salary on paper and what landed in my account after taxes and deductions. Every program and state pays differently, so read these as one real data point, not the national average.
| Training year | Where | Gross salary | Take-home / month (after taxes) |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PGY-1 (intern) | Nevada | $60,700 / yr | ~$3,884 / mo (~$1,942 bi-weekly) |
Transitional year. ~$300/mo meal stipend on top. Lived at home — no rent yet. |
| PGY-2 | California | $89,311 / yr | ~$5,620 / mo | Moved for anesthesiology residency. ~$67K/yr take-home — roughly $22K/yr lost to taxes. |
| PGY-2 (after raise) | California | ~$93,000 / yr | ~$5,772 / mo | Annual bump. Plus an employer-paid mandatory retirement contribution (~$577/mo into the fund). |
Every figure here is a number I've stated on my own channel while opening the actual paycheck. If your program pays differently, that's normal — pay swings with specialty, state, and cost of living.
Gross vs. net — what residents really take home
The salary on the offer letter is the gross number. What actually hits your bank account is the net: what's left after federal tax, state tax, health insurance, and, in my case, a mandatory retirement contribution. On my California salary of $89,311, my monthly paycheck after taxes was about $5,620. Multiply that out and I take home roughly $67,000 a year, which means somewhere around $22,000 goes to taxes before I ever see it.
Residents are salaried — so there's no overtime
Residency hours are capped at an average of 80 per week, but the pay is the same whether the week runs 40 hours or 80. There's no overtime. On a heavy critical-care month working a stretch of 24-hour shifts and 12-hour days, I did the math on my own paycheck and it came out to about $17 an hour. On a lighter month it's closer to $23. Either way, once you divide a resident's salary by the hours actually worked, the effective rate lands a lot lower than people expect for a licensed doctor.
Then rent happens
The take-home only tells half the story, because cost of living eats the rest. I split a three-bedroom house in San Diego with my roommate. Total rent is $4,250 a month, and my share is about $2,550. That's close to half of one paycheck gone before anything else, and it's a big reason a $89K salary in California doesn't stretch as far as it sounds.
Why the pay is so low — and where it goes
Residency is paid training. You're a real, licensed doctor, but you're still learning your specialty under supervision, and resident salaries have stayed low for a long time. The payoff comes on the other side: pay jumps dramatically once you finish training and become an attending. For context, the average anesthesiologist earns well over $500,000 a year, but that's years down the road from where the paychecks above sit.
I share all of this because when I was a student, nobody would tell me these numbers. Money felt like a taboo topic in medicine, and I think that mostly protects the people who benefit from you not knowing. So take what helps, leave the rest. :)
Resident doctor salary — FAQ
How much does a resident doctor make?
Most resident doctors in the U.S. earn roughly $60,000 to $95,000 a year gross, and pay usually rises a few thousand dollars with each year of training. In my own case, my first-year (intern) salary in Nevada was $60,700, and when I moved to California for anesthesiology residency my salary was $89,311, rising to about $93,000 after a raise. That's the gross figure — take-home after taxes is meaningfully lower.
How much does a first-year resident make in California?
It varies by program, but as a real data point: my salary as a California resident was $89,311 a year. My monthly paycheck after taxes came out to about $5,620 — roughly $67,000 a year in take-home. California programs tend to pay more than lower cost-of-living states, but rent eats into it fast; my share of a San Diego apartment is about $2,550 a month.
Gross vs. net — what do residents actually take home?
Gross is the salary on paper; net is what actually lands after federal and state taxes, health insurance, and (in my case) a mandatory retirement contribution. On my $89,311 salary I take home about $5,620 a month, around $67,000 a year, meaning roughly $22,000 disappears to taxes before I see a dollar of it.
Do residents get paid overtime?
No. Residents are salaried, not hourly, so there's no overtime no matter how long the week runs. Hours are capped at an average of 80 per week, but the paycheck is identical at 40 hours and at 80. On a heavy 80-hour critical-care month, my pay worked out to about $17 an hour.
Why do resident doctors get paid so little?
Residency is paid training. You're licensed, but still learning your specialty under supervision, and resident salaries are largely funded through Medicare at levels that have barely moved in decades. Divide the salary by the hours actually worked and the effective rate can land near minimum wage. Pay climbs sharply once training ends and you become an attending. The average anesthesiologist, for example, earns well over $500,000 a year.
The paycheck series, on camera
Don't take my word for it. I open every one of these checks on video. Watch the numbers (and the cost of living) change from intern year to now.
These are my own paychecks and my own choices, shared so the training years are less of a mystery — not financial advice, and every program and state pays differently. Take what helps, leave the rest. :)
The money talk continues in Vitals
My Sunday letter — a little health, some motivation, the occasional honest money breakdown. Free, every week.
Get Vitals — it's free