Internal Medicine Physician Salary (2026)

The 2024 median base salary for a Internal Medicine physician in the United States is approximately $275K, with the typical 25th-to-90th-percentile band running from $245K to $345K. These figures are composite benchmarks drawn from MGMA, AAMC, and AMGA compensation surveys and reflect base compensation only — productivity bonuses, signing bonuses, call stipends, partnership distributions, and quality incentives sit on top of base and materially shift total cash compensation in every Internal Medicine offer I close.

Internal Medicine compensation at a glance

Median base (2024): $275K
Typical range (25th–90th): $245K – $345K
National demand: very high
Primary board: American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM)
Common practice settings: outpatient clinic, multispecialty group, hospital-employed primary care
Geographic concentration of top offers: every metro and rural market in all 50 states

What drives Internal Medicine compensation up or down

An IM offer I close in a metro market this year usually lands between $250K and $290K base for clinic-only, with the wRVU productivity model the dominant comp structure for hospital-employed groups. The candidates who push hardest, and win, are the ones who model what their realistic 18-month wRVU number is and negotiate the conversion factor and threshold rather than the base. I see conversion factors between $48 and $62 per wRVU depending on payer mix; an extra dollar on the conversion factor is worth more long-term than a $20K base bump.

General internal medicine remains one of the most-recruited specialties in the country, serving as the entry point for adult primary care and gatekeeping referrals to subspecialists. Recruitment volume tracks closely with population aging.

Internal Medicine salary by state

Base ranges for Internal Medicine run inside the $245K–$345K band in most states, with rural and HPSA-designated counties producing offers at or above the upper end once signing bonuses, loan repayment, and rural premiums are stacked. Click a state below for the in-state Internal Medicine comp picture, anchor employers, and incentive stacking.

How recruiters benchmark a Internal Medicine offer

When I scope a Internal Medicine engagement, I pull MGMA and AMGA percentiles for the region, layer in the specific employer's historical comp band, and pressure-test against active Internal Medicine candidates we are already working. The $245K–$345K range above is the national reference; the actual offer for a given Internal Medicine role is built bottom-up from RVU model assumptions, call rotation, and ramp expectations. For Internal Medicine candidates evaluating an offer, the three numbers I tell people to focus on are base, wRVU conversion factor, and call-coverage stipend — not the headline salary alone.

Talk to a Internal Medicine recruiter about your number

Email hire@physicianrecruitment.com or call 1-888-812-3452 for a 30-minute confidential Internal Medicine compensation benchmarking call. We provide Internal Medicine candidates a written market analysis of any offer at no cost.