How Much Do Cardiologists Earn in Japan? 2025 Physician Income Data
Cardiologists in Japan reported a median annual income of ¥19 million (approximately £91,000) in the latest specialty-level physician income survey from the Physician Career Research Institute.
The 2025 survey, based on responses from 2,055 physicians overall, provides a useful benchmark for cardiologists assessing their own professional earnings.
Among the cardiology respondents:
Median annual income: ¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
Proportion earning ¥20 million or more: 44.00%
¥20 million threshold: approximately £96,000
Cardiology respondents: 75
Importantly, these figures include income from a cardiologist’s main workplace as well as additional or side work.
For cardiologists looking at compensation in Japan, that distinction is central to understanding what the reported income figure actually represents.
What is the median income for a cardiologist in Japan?
The reported median annual income for cardiologists was:
¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
This should be interpreted as total annual professional income including side work, rather than simply the salary paid by a cardiologist’s main hospital or clinic.
That matters because physicians in Japan may receive income from more than one clinical role.
A cardiologist may, for example, have a primary hospital position while also undertaking additional paid clinical work elsewhere.
The ¥19 million figure is therefore best understood as a benchmark for total professional earnings.
It should not be read as an expected base salary.
44% of cardiologists reported earning ¥20 million or more
The survey provides another useful benchmark for cardiologists:
44.00% of cardiology respondents reported annual income of ¥20 million or more (approximately £96,000+).
That means more than four in ten cardiologists in the survey reported total annual professional income at or above this level.
For a cardiologist assessing their own compensation, the two most useful figures are therefore:
Median annual income: ¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
Earning ¥20 million+ (approximately £96,000+): 44.00%
Together, these provide a practical indication of where an individual cardiologist’s total income may sit relative to the surveyed group.
Why does side work matter for cardiologist income?
One of the most important features of the survey is that it includes additional professional income.
Physicians in Japan may undertake paid work outside their primary position, including additional shifts or clinical work at other hospitals and clinics.
For cardiologists, this means that income from a principal employer may not tell the full story.
A cardiologist receiving less than ¥19 million from their main hospital could still reach or exceed the reported median once other professional earnings are included.
Equally, the survey does not mean that a hospital should be expected to offer a cardiologist a basic salary of ¥19 million.
The figure represents a broader measure of annual professional income.
For cardiologists evaluating their compensation, it can therefore be useful to separate:
base salary from the main employer;
additional clinical work;
other professional income; and
total annual earnings.
The survey’s ¥19 million benchmark relates most closely to the final category.
What does the ¥19 million median actually mean?
There is an important methodological point behind the reported figure.
Survey respondents did not provide one exact income number.
Instead, income was collected in bands.
The reported median of ¥19 million (approximately £91,000) represents the midpoint of the ¥18 million–¥20 million income band.
That means the figure should be treated as an approximate benchmark rather than a precise mathematical median calculated from exact salary records.
For cardiologists using the data to assess their own position, it may therefore be more useful to think of the benchmark as:
roughly ¥18 million–¥20 million in total annual professional income
rather than focusing too narrowly on ¥19 million as an exact amount.
How strong is the cardiology sample?
The wider survey included 2,055 physicians, with 75 respondents in cardiology.
That provides a meaningful specialty-specific sample, although it is still a survey rather than a complete national census of cardiologists.
The figures should therefore be used as an informed benchmark rather than a definitive statement of what every cardiologist in Japan earns.
Individual income may vary depending on:
career stage;
seniority;
employer;
working hours;
hospital or clinic setting;
geographic location; and
the amount of additional work undertaken.
For a cardiologist, the value of the dataset is in providing a current reference point against which their own total annual income can be considered.
Is ¥19 million a cardiologist salary?
No.
The cleanest interpretation is:
¥19 million is the reported median total annual professional income for the surveyed cardiologists, including side work.
It is not a published base salary.
That distinction becomes especially important when looking at a new employment opportunity.
A cardiologist considering a new role may therefore want to ask:
What is the guaranteed base salary?
What additional paid clinical work is available?
How much income is typically earned outside the principal role?
What does realistic total annual professional income look like?
Those questions provide a more meaningful comparison with the survey than base salary alone.
What should cardiologists take from the latest data?
For cardiologists in Japan, the 2025 survey provides two clear compensation benchmarks.
Median annual professional income, including side work, was:
¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
And:
44.00% of cardiologists reported earning ¥20 million or more (approximately £96,000+).
For an individual cardiologist, these figures offer a useful reference point when assessing total annual earnings.
The key is to compare like with like.
A base hospital salary should not be compared directly with a figure that includes additional professional work.
For cardiologists, the more useful question is therefore not simply:
“What is a cardiologist’s salary in Japan?”
It is:
“What is my total annual professional income as a cardiologist, including additional clinical work, and how does it compare with the ¥19 million benchmark?”
That is the most meaningful way to use the available cardiology compensation data.
Source: Physician Career Research Institute / Mediwel, 2025 Physician Income Survey.
Currency note: Sterling equivalents are approximate conversions using the JPY/GBP exchange rate on 11 September 2026. At that rate, ¥19 million is approximately £91,000 and ¥20 million approximately £96,000. GBP figures are included for reader context only and were not reported by the original Japanese survey.
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