Gynecologists make about $134 per hour in the U.S., based on federal wage data for obstetricians and gynecologists.
Curious about hourly pay for this specialty? You’re not alone. Pay varies by state, setting, and schedule, but there’s a clear national benchmark you can use to gauge offers and contracts. Below you’ll find the latest hourly figure, state and setting standouts, and simple ways to translate annual pay into an apples-to-apples hourly rate.
How Much Money Do Gynecologists Make Per Hour? — State And Setting
The latest federal survey shows a national mean hourly wage for obstetricians and gynecologists near $134. That figure comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS program), which samples employers across states and practice types. You can also spot where pay runs higher, such as Washington and Connecticut, and how setting shifts the rate.
| Category | Location/Setting | Mean Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|
| National Mean | United States | $133.97 |
| Employer Type | Offices of Physicians | $138.55 |
| Employer Type | Outpatient Care Centers | $138.04 |
| Employer Type | General Medical & Surgical Hospitals | $125.26 |
| Top Paying State | Washington | $175.03 |
| Top Paying State | Connecticut | $170.07 |
| Top Paying State | Colorado | $169.81 |
| Top Paying State | North Dakota | $167.97 |
| Top Paying State | Indiana | $159.55 |
| High-Pay Metro | Seattle–Tacoma–Bellevue, WA | $182.92 |
Those numbers come directly from the OEWS tables. For source details and full breakouts, see the Bureau’s page for obstetricians and gynecologists and its notes on methodology and estimates. The federal series lists national, industry, and state data points, and explains how hourly and annual estimates are built from employer surveys.
What Drives The Hourly Number You’ll See
Pay reflects a mix of market demand, scope of practice, and time in the hospital or clinic. In this specialty, procedures, surgery, and call coverage shape the schedule. That shows up in the rate a group or hospital puts on the table. Here are the levers that raise or lower what ends up in the contract:
Setting And Case Mix
Outpatient groups that run high surgical volume or advanced GYN procedures often post higher rates than general hospital employment. A hospitalist model tied to labor and delivery may include strong shift rates and add-ons for nights or weekends. A faculty role trades a piece of pay for teaching time and academic titles.
Call Burden And Coverage Windows
OB call is real work. If the group splits call evenly and backs it with in-house coverage, the rate usually reflects that. If the call pool is thin, stipends go up. If the group uses midwives or hospitalists to lighten night work, base pay may be steadier, while call pay lands on a smaller slice.
Productivity And Pay Plans
Many contracts blend a base with RVU or collections incentives. A base anchors stability, while RVUs reward volume and specific procedures. If the RVU threshold sits high, total hourly take-home can dip during ramp-up and rise once your panel builds.
Location And Recruiting Pressure
Rural or undersupplied metros often post higher hourly quotes to fill roles. That aligns with the state list above, where smaller markets or states with fewer specialists show bigger wages.
Translating Annual Pay Into A Real Hourly Rate
If a contract lists only an annual figure, you can convert it into an effective hourly rate by dividing pay by your expected hours. The federal series already reports hourly pay, but many offers still show annual totals. Here’s a quick way to standardize:
- Estimate weekly hours, including clinic, OR time, and charting.
- Multiply by working weeks per year (48–52 is common, depending on PTO).
- Divide annual pay by total hours. That’s your apples-to-apples rate.
To make the math concrete, the national annual mean listed alongside the hourly figure is $278,660. The table below shows what hourly rate that equals under different schedules. This doesn’t change the federal $133.97 benchmark; it only shows how schedules can make identical salary totals feel different in practice.
Effective Hourly Rate At Common Schedules
| Schedule | Hours/Year | Break-Even Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 40 hrs/week × 48 weeks | 1,920 | $145.14 |
| 50 hrs/week × 48 weeks | 2,400 | $116.11 |
| 60 hrs/week × 48 weeks | 2,880 | $96.78 |
| 50 hrs/week × 52 weeks | 2,600 | $107.95 |
| 60 hrs/week × 52 weeks | 3,120 | $89.34 |
| Clinic 36 + Call 12 = 48 hrs/week × 50 weeks | 2,400 | $116.11 |
| Shift-Based 12-hour Blocks (170 shifts/year) | 2,040 | $136.52 |
These scenarios show why two offers with the same yearly pay can feel different once you factor in charting time, add-on clinics, or extra OR blocks. Match the hours to your reality, not only what appears on a template schedule.
How Much Money Do Gynecologists Make Per Hour? — Reading The Fine Print
You’ll see the exact phrase in job posts and resident group chats: How much money do gynecologists make per hour? The headline number is useful, yet the contract details decide what lands in your account. Work through these line items before you sign:
Base, RVU, And Floor Guarantees
Ask how the base interacts with RVUs. Does the base drop after year one? Do unused RVU credits roll? Is there a floor during parental leave or a lighter call period?
Call Pay And Stipends
Spell out in-house vs beeper call, weekday vs weekend rates, and backup call. If a hospital pays stipends, confirm how they split across the group and who qualifies.
Schedule Control
Find out who sets clinic templates, who assigns OR time, and how add-on cases are handled. Control over the day affects both pay and burnout risk.
Benefits With Real Dollar Value
Health plan tiers, retirement match, disability coverage, and CME funds all carry cash value. When you compare offers, convert each to an hourly equivalent so you compare apples to apples.
Signing, Relocation, And Loan Help
A signing bonus can sweeten a lower base, and relocation support can keep you from paying out of pocket to move. If there’s loan help, check vesting rules and clawbacks.
State And Metro Notes You Can Use
States at the top of the pay list often combine high demand with fewer OB-GYNs per capita. Washington, Connecticut, and Colorado stand out on the hourly chart. Some metros pay above their state average, especially where hospitals need steady labor and delivery coverage. Seattle’s metro number above $180 per hour is a clear standout in the federal tables.
Why Some States Pay Less
Large coastal metros with higher supply, tighter payer mixes, or heavy academic footprints may post lower hourly means. That doesn’t make a job there a poor choice; it just means total compensation depends more on schedule control, RVU targets, and call balance.
How To Use Federal Pay Tables During Negotiation
The OEWS snapshots are one of the cleanest ways to ground a pay talk. Here’s a simple approach that works well:
- Print the national and state tables for obstetricians and gynecologists.
- Circle the hourly mean for your state and setting. Bring it to the meeting.
- Ask the recruiter which number they use to benchmark offers. If they cite annual pay only, translate to hourly on the spot.
- Keep the conversation on schedule details that push your real hourly rate up: predictable OR time, protected charting blocks, and fair call splits.
The agency page for obstetricians and gynecologists lists the exact state and setting lines. If you want the nuts and bolts of how the survey works, the OEWS overview explains the data collection and how hourly figures are derived.
Early-Career Snapshot
Residents and fellows aren’t paid by the same market forces, since training programs use stipend scales. Annual totals and benefits are published each year by the AAMC’s resident/fellow stipend survey. That helps set expectations for post-training jumps in pay when you move into attending roles.
FAQs You Might Ask Yourself (Without Adding A Separate FAQ Block)
Is The Federal Hourly Number A Cap?
No. It’s an average. Groups above the 75th or 90th percentile may run higher. Some metros also show standouts well above the national line.
Can Shift-Based Roles Beat A Base-Plus-RVU Setup?
Sometimes. If shifts include night and weekend premiums, the blended hourly rate can exceed a traditional clinic model. Read the call and holiday language closely.
What About Part-Time Or Job-Share?
Part-time roles can keep the hourly rate stable while reducing annual totals. In a job-share, lock in how call and benefits track with your FTE so the real hourly rate doesn’t erode.
Method In Brief
The hourly and state figures cited here come from the federal OEWS series for SOC 29-1218 (obstetricians and gynecologists). That series surveys employers across the country and publishes both annual and hourly means, along with breakouts by industry and geography. The national hourly mean sits at $133.97, and the table lists states and settings with higher rates as published. Schedules and effective hourly conversions above are simple arithmetic to help compare offers.
Bottom Line On OB/GYN Hourly Pay
The quick answer many readers want is already up top. If you need just one number, the national mean is near $134 per hour. If you’re comparing offers, anchor on hourly pay by state and setting, then adjust for call, RVU thresholds, and schedule control. That turns a headline rate into a true picture of take-home value.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (Obstetricians and Gynecologists, May 2023 tables) and OEWS overview/methods linked above.