How Much Do Dialysis Physicians Earn in Japan? 2025 Physician Income Data
Physicians working in dialysis medicine 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 rare specialty-specific benchmark for doctors working in dialysis medicine.
Among the dialysis medicine respondents:
Median annual income: ¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
Proportion earning ¥20 million or more: 45.00%
¥20 million threshold: approximately £96,000
Dialysis medicine respondents: 20
The figures include income from a physician's main workplace as well as additional or side work.
For a dialysis physician trying to understand how their own earnings compare with the available Japanese market data, that distinction is essential.
What is the median income for a dialysis physician in Japan?
The reported median annual income for dialysis medicine 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 physician's principal hospital or clinic.
Physicians in Japan may earn income through more than one clinical role, so compensation from a primary employer does not necessarily represent their full annual earnings.
For someone working in dialysis medicine, the ¥19 million figure is therefore best used as a benchmark for overall professional income.
It should not be interpreted as an expected base salary.
45% of dialysis physicians reported earning ¥20 million or more
The survey provides another important benchmark for physicians working in dialysis care.
45.00% of dialysis medicine respondents reported annual income of at least ¥20 million (approximately £96,000).
That means almost half of the dialysis physicians included in the survey reported total professional earnings at or above this level.
For an individual physician assessing their current compensation, these two figures can be considered together:
Median annual income: ¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
Earning ¥20 million+ (approximately £96,000+): 45.00%
They provide a useful indication of the income distribution within the surveyed dialysis medicine group.
Why does side work matter when looking at dialysis physician income?
An important feature of the Japanese physician labour market is the role of additional clinical work.
Doctors may work at more than one hospital or clinic, undertake additional shifts or receive income through other paid medical activity.
The Physician Career Research Institute therefore reports annual physician income including side work.
This matters when interpreting the dialysis medicine figure.
A physician receiving less than ¥19 million from their main employer may still reach or exceed the survey benchmark once additional professional income is included.
Equally, the survey does not suggest that a dialysis physician should expect a basic salary of ¥19 million.
The figure reflects a wider definition of annual professional earnings.
For dialysis physicians evaluating a role, it can therefore be useful to separate:
income from the principal employer;
additional clinical income;
supplementary shifts or secondary positions; and
total annual professional earnings.
The ¥19 million benchmark relates most closely to the final category.
How should a dialysis physician interpret the ¥19 million figure?
There is an important methodological point behind the reported median.
Physicians did not report their income as a precise individual number.
Instead, the survey collected earnings in income bands.
The reported median of ¥19 million (approximately £91,000) represents the midpoint of the relevant ¥18 million–¥20 million income range.
It should therefore be viewed as an approximate compensation benchmark rather than an exact mathematical median calculated from precise salary records.
For a physician using the survey to assess their own compensation, this means the figure is most useful as a reference range.
Someone earning around ¥18 million to ¥20 million in total professional income would broadly sit around the reported median band for the dialysis medicine respondents.
How strong is the dialysis medicine sample?
The wider Physician Career Research Institute survey included 2,055 physicians, but the specialty-level dialysis medicine analysis was based on 20 respondents.
That is an important limitation.
The study only published specialty-level figures for specialties with at least 15 respondents, so dialysis medicine met the threshold for inclusion.
However, 20 physicians remain a relatively small sample.
The figures are therefore useful as a specialist benchmark, but they should not be treated as a definitive national estimate for every dialysis physician working in Japan.
Individual income may vary considerably depending on:
career stage;
seniority;
employer;
working hours;
geographic location;
additional clinical roles; and
the amount of side work undertaken.
For dialysis physicians, the data are best used as one reference point rather than a guaranteed expectation.
Is ¥19 million a salary figure?
No.
For dialysis physicians, the most important distinction is that the survey reports annual income including additional work, not a contractual basic salary.
That makes it useful for answering:
“What might my total annual professional income look like?”
It is less suitable for answering:
“What salary should a hospital offer me?”
Those are different questions.
A physician reviewing a new role in dialysis medicine should therefore consider both their guaranteed compensation and the potential additional income available through other clinical work.
What should dialysis physicians take from the latest data?
The 2025 survey provides two clear compensation benchmarks for physicians working in dialysis medicine in Japan.
Median annual professional income, including side work, was:
¥19 million (approximately £91,000)
And:
45.00% of respondents reported earning ¥20 million or more (approximately £96,000+).
For a dialysis physician assessing their current income, these figures provide a useful indication of where their total annual earnings may sit relative to the surveyed group.
However, the relatively small sample of 20 dialysis physicians means the figures should be interpreted cautiously.
The most useful question is therefore not simply:
“What is the salary for a dialysis physician in Japan?”
It is:
“What is my total annual professional income as a dialysis physician, including additional clinical work, and how does it compare with the ¥19 million benchmark?”
That provides a more meaningful way for dialysis physicians to use the available 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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