Doctors may not have chosen medicine for purely financial reasons. However, earning a decent salary certainly can help to give you (and your family) a good quality of life! After all those years of study, exams and on calls, wouldn’t you like to be compensated fairly?
There are wonderful benefits to working abroad (aside from financial reasons). These include :
Improved professional skills
Renewing your passion for medicine
Personal Development
Learning new non-medical skills
However, in this article, I am going to explore in more depth, the financial remuneration that you can expect to receive in some of the highest paying countries for medics.
All salaries are shown in dollars, for comparative purposes.
NO. 10: DENMARK
Average yearly salary (specialists): $91,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $109,000
Denmark is one of the few countries in this list that pay their GP’s better than their specialists.
Reasonably close to home and a gateway to explore the rest of the Scandinavian countries.
NO. 9: SWITZERLAND
Little swiss town with gothic church on Lake Lucerne and Alps mountain, Switzerland.
Average yearly salary (specialists): $130,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $116,000
Switzerland is a country that offers breathtaking landscapes, amazing opportunities for outdoor sports and umm… chocolate!
Divided into French and German speaking parts, great for those with language skills.
Beware though, it is very expensive!
NO. 8: IRELAND
Average yearly salary (specialists): $143,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $90,000
Ireland scores consistently highly on best paying countries for both specialists and GP’s.
Close to home and full of natural beauty – if you can cope with the inclement weather!
NO. 7: FRANCE
Average yearly salary (specialists): $149,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $92,000
There’s a pharmacy on practically every corner in Paris. France treats and pays their doctors very well!
If you are francophone and love cheese, wine and delicious patisserie, France could be for you.
NO. 6: UNITED KINGDOM
Average yearly salary (specialists): $150,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $118,000
Many of you will be reading this blog post because you want to get away from the UK….
However, I think it’s great to show where it ranks for medics’ pay in the grand scheme of things.
NO. 5: CANADA
Average yearly salary (specialists): $161,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $107,000
Dramatic landscapes, cultural cities, clean air, great work-life balance. Probably not for the faint hearted during winter.
United Nations ranked Canada as one of the best countries in the world in which to live. It is recognized worldwide for its exceptional quality of life, progressive political environment and one of the healthiest economies in the world.
NO. 4: BELGIUM
Average yearly salary (specialists): $188,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $61,000
Another close to home option that offers amazing salary opportunities for specialists (not so much GP’s).
Divided into French and Flemish speaking parts. And offering such local delicacies as mussels, frites, waffles, and Belgian beer. A much cheaper alternative to London!
NO. 3: UNITED STATES
Average yearly salary (specialists): $230,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $161,000
The United States offer great opportunities and pay for their doctors. A country of great diversity, there are many options to travel both within the USA and to Central & South America and Mexico.
Only problem is having to do extra exams as a medic.
NO. 2: AUSTRALIA
Average yearly salary (specialists): $247,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $91,000
A perennial favourite of doctors going to work overseas and it’s easy to see why!
Great weather, high salaries, opportunities to travel and a real focus on work-life balance.
NO. 1: NETHERLANDS
Average yearly salary (specialists): $253,000
Average yearly salary (GP’s): $117,000
A surprise winner – Netherlands tops our list.
Close to home, good quality of life, and home to the charismatic city of Amsterdam. Is this making you want to get your clogs on?
Source: 10 highest paying countries for doctors - Medic Footprints