AMGA 2026 Medical Group Physician Assistant Compensation
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How much are physician assistants earning in 2026?
Physician assistants (PAs) continue to play an expanding role across the US healthcare system, with new data from the AMGA 2026 Medical Group Compensation and Productivity Survey highlighting how compensation varies by specialty while demand for experienced advanced practice clinicians (APCs) remains strong.
As hospitals, physician groups and health systems increasingly rely on physician assistants to improve patient access and support multidisciplinary care, understanding salary benchmarks has become increasingly valuable for professionals reviewing employment contracts, negotiating compensation or planning their next career move.
The latest AMGA data shows that surgical physician assistants remain the highest-paid PA specialty, while compensation growth differs considerably between primary care, medical specialties and surgical practice.
Key Findings: Physician Assistant Compensation in 2026
According to the AMGA 2026 Medical Group Compensation and Productivity Survey:
Specialty | Median Compensation | Salary Growth |
Physician Assistant – Primary Care | $156,894 | +1.3% |
Physician Assistant – Medical Specialty | $146,873 | -1.0% |
Physician Assistant – Surgical | $159,659 | +6.2% |
Additional benchmarks include:
Primary Care PA wRVU change: -1.8%
Medical Specialty PA wRVU growth: +2.6%
Surgical PA wRVU growth: +3.8%
The AMGA survey includes compensation data from 451 medical groups and health systems representing nearly 188,000 providers, making it one of the largest compensation benchmarking resources for physicians and APCs in the United States.
Physician Assistant Salary by Specialty
Compensation differs noticeably depending on clinical setting.
Physician Assistant Specialty | 2025 | 2026 | Annual Change |
Medical Specialty | $148,429 | $146,873 | -1.0% |
Primary Care | $154,818 | $156,894 | +1.3% |
Surgical | $150,326 | $159,659 | +6.2% |
The strongest salary growth occurred among surgical physician assistants, whose median compensation increased by more than $9,300 over the previous year.
Meanwhile, physician assistants working in medical specialties experienced a modest decline in median compensation despite increases in productivity, highlighting how compensation trends can differ significantly across specialties.
For physician assistants evaluating new opportunities, this reinforces the importance of comparing salaries within their own specialty rather than relying on overall APC averages.
Physician Assistant Productivity Trends: Are wRVUs Increasing?
Many physician assistant compensation models now include productivity incentives linked to work relative value units (wRVUs).
The AMGA survey reports the following productivity changes:
Specialty | 2025 wRVUs | 2026 wRVUs | Change |
Medical Specialty PA | 2,808 | 2,881 | +2.6% |
Primary Care PA | 4,959 | 4,868 | -1.8% |
Surgical PA | 1,760 | 1,827 | +3.8% |
The data highlights several different trends across specialties.
Medical specialty physician assistants generated higher productivity despite a slight reduction in compensation.
Primary care physician assistants experienced declines in measured productivity while compensation still increased modestly.
Surgical physician assistants saw both compensation and productivity increase, reflecting continued demand within surgical services.
These differences demonstrate that salary growth is influenced by more than productivity alone, with recruitment pressures, workforce shortages and regional demand all likely contributing factors.
What Does Compensation Per wRVU Mean for Physician Assistants?
Compensation per wRVU measures how much clinicians are paid for each unit of productivity generated.
The AMGA data shows:
Specialty | 2025 | 2026 | Change |
Medical Specialty PA | $52.54 | $53.06 | +1.0% |
Primary Care PA | $31.83 | $34.00 | +6.8% |
Surgical PA | $85.65 | $85.35 | -0.4% |
The compensation-per-wRVU ratio can provide valuable insight when reviewing productivity-based employment contracts.
For example:
Primary care physician assistants saw the largest increase in compensation per wRVU despite lower productivity.
Surgical physician assistants maintained the highest compensation per wRVU overall, although the ratio declined slightly year-over-year.
Medical specialty physician assistants recorded modest growth in compensation per unit of productivity.
Understanding this metric can help physician assistants assess whether productivity expectations are appropriately rewarded.
Why Physician Assistants Should Pay Attention to Compensation Benchmarks
Compensation benchmarking is increasingly important as physician assistant roles continue to expand across healthcare.
Contract negotiations
National salary data can support discussions around:
Base salary
Productivity incentives
Annual pay reviews
Bonus opportunities
Employment offers
Benchmarking against national compensation figures provides useful context when reviewing contracts.
Career planning
Compensation varies considerably depending on specialty.
Understanding current market trends can help physician assistants compare opportunities across:
Primary care
Medical specialties
Surgical practice
Hospital systems
Multi-specialty physician groups
Specialty selection may have a significant influence on long-term earning potential.
Understanding productivity expectations
As more employers incorporate productivity-based compensation models, physician assistants should monitor trends in:
Salary growth
wRVUs
Compensation per wRVU
These benchmarks help determine whether increasing workloads are translating into higher earnings.
The Outlook for Physician Assistant Compensation
Healthcare organisations continue to expand the use of physician assistants to improve access to care and support growing patient demand.
As workforce shortages affect many physician specialties, experienced physician assistants are becoming increasingly valuable across primary care, specialist medicine and surgical services.
The latest AMGA data shows that while compensation trends vary by specialty, physician assistants continue to see competitive salaries, particularly within surgical practice.
Summary
The AMGA 2026 Medical Group Compensation and Productivity Survey highlights continued demand for physician assistants across the US healthcare system.
Key findings include:
Primary Care PA median salary: $156,894 (+1.3%)
Medical Specialty PA median salary: $146,873 (-1.0%)
Surgical PA median salary: $159,659 (+6.2%)
While productivity trends differed across specialties, compensation remained strongest in surgical practice, reinforcing the importance of specialty-specific benchmarking.
For physician assistants reviewing contracts, negotiating salaries or planning career progression, these benchmarks provide a valuable snapshot of today's APC employment market.
Source
AMGA 2026 Medical Group Compensation and Productivity Survey. Data reflects 2025 compensation reported by participating medical groups and health systems.
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