How Much Does a Medical Assistant Make?
Medical assistants — sometimes referred to as MAs for short — perform a variety of duties, generally in doctor’s offices and other primary care facilities. Clinically, they’re trained to measure patients’ vital signs, draw blood, and assist physicians with in-office procedures. Administrative tasks a medical assistant can perform include recording patients’ health histories, scheduling appointments, and maintaining inventory supplies.
If you’re interested in working in a medical assistant role, you may wonder what the pay is for this position. Here we do a deep-dive into this subject so you know how much medical assistants make, factors that can impact their wages, the current job outlook for MAs (spoiler: it’s looking good!), and steps you can take to begin to pursue this healthcare role.
Medical Assistant Wages (Annually, Hourly, and Monthly)
As of May 2023, the median pay for medical assistants was $42,000 per year according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), or $20.19 per hour.1 As a median, half of the workers in this role made more, and half made less.
Additionally, the lowest 10% (lowest decile) of medical assistants had a median annual wage of less than $33,500 as of May 2023 while the highest 10% (highest decile) of earners had a median annual wage of over $56,480.2 UMA graduates in the 2022-2023 cohort of its Medical Assistant diploma program reported to UMA that they earned a median hourly wage that is approximately at or slightly higher than the BLS’s lowest decile.3
The BLS indicates that medical assistants generally work full-time4 Based on the median pay, this would equate to monthly earnings of around $3,500 before taxes and all other deductions. Monthly pay would be reduced for MAs working part-time or earning less per hour.
Medical Assistant Wages by State
Medical assistant pay can vary depending on the state in which you work. The median annual wages for medical assistants by state, as of May 2023, were as follows:5
State | Median Annual Wages |
---|---|
Alabama | $34,160 |
Alaska | $52,530 |
Arizona | $43,140 |
Arkansas | $35,560 |
California | $50,900 |
Colorado | $46,270 |
Connecticut | $46,630 |
Delaware | $41,340 |
Florida | $40,530 |
Georgia | $39,640 |
Hawaii | $47,840 |
Idaho | $42,110 |
Illinois | $42,790 |
Indiana | $42,260 |
Iowa | $42,660 |
Kansas | $39,020 |
Kentucky | $37,090 |
Louisiana | $33,610 |
Maine | $44,580 |
Maryland | $44,100 |
Massachusetts | $48,570 |
Michigan | $39,840 |
Minnesota | $49,740 |
Mississippi | $34,630 |
Missouri | $39,230 |
Montana | $43,230 |
Nebraska | $42,280 |
Nevada | $41,390 |
New Hampshire | $45,490 |
New Jersey | $45,190 |
New Mexico | $39,020 |
New York | $47,350 |
North Carolina | $40,880 |
North Dakota | $40,320 |
Ohio | $39,620 |
Oklahoma | $37,480 |
Oregon | $49,390 |
Pennsylvania | $42,090 |
Rhode Island | $43,580 |
South Carolina | $38,520 |
South Dakota | $37,760 |
Tennessee | $38,860 |
Texas | $38,870 |
Utah | $41,290 |
Vermont | $44,710 |
Virginia | $42,010 |
Washington | $53,780 |
West Virginia | $34,660 |
Wisconsin | $45,160 |
Wyoming | $40,810 |
Puerto Rico | $27,060 |
Washington D.C. | $50,110 |
Other Factors That Can Impact Medical Assistant Wages
How much you can earn in a medical assistant role can also vary based on a variety of other factors. They include your level of education or experience, and whether you work in a rural or urban area.
Even the healthcare setting within which you work can impact your medical assistant wages. The BLS reports that, as of May 2023, MAs working in outpatient care centers had the highest median annual wage at $46,090 per year. This was followed by MAs employed by hospitals ($44,350), then physician’s offices ($40,670), and — last but certainly not least — those who work in offices of other health practitioners ($36,480).6
Earning your certification may impact your earnings as a medical assistant as well. In its 2023 CMA Compensation and Benefits Report, the American Association of Medical Assistants indicated that full-time medical assistants with the Certified Medical Assistant (CMA) designation earned roughly $0.80 per hour more than those without this certification.7
Medical Assistant Job Outlook
Now is a good time to get into healthcare in general as 1.9 million new positions are projected to open each year between 2023 and 2033.8 But what’s the outlook for medical assistants specifically?
The BLS projects a growth rate of 15% from 2023 to 2033, which is a rate that is “much faster than average for all occupations” and would equate to roughly 119,800 projected openings per year, on average, over the decade.9
The projected increase in demand for medical assistants is due partly to people leaving the workforce, but also because of an aging population. Older individuals often require more medical care, resulting in a greater need for healthcare workers such as medical assistants to help meet this growing demand.
Ready to Pursue a Career as a Medical Assistant?
If you think that a medical assistant role may be a good fit for you, Ultimate Medical Academy offers a Medical Assistant diploma program. This course includes online coursework, on-campus lab sessions, and hands-on training via a 220-hour externship. UMA’s Medical Assistant diploma program can be completed in 15 months10 and also prepares learners to sit for the Registered Medical Assistant (RMA) exam, if eligible.
Why choose UMA? We’re proud to offer a variety of support services to our 14,000+ students and 85,000+ alumni. Unsure how to pay for your education? Our Student Finance advisors are here to chat. Need help with a specific course? Our Academic Services team can set you up with one-on-one tutoring. Ready to find a job but want help with your resume or to prepare for an interview? Our Career Services team is glad to step in.
At UMA, we are here for you because we know that if we care for you, you can better care for others. Contact us today and let’s talk about what you want to achieve in your healthcare career. If there’s anything we can do to help, we’ll make it happen!
FAQs:
- What do medical assistants do? These healthcare professionals perform both clinical and administrative duties. Some tasks medical assistants may be assigned include measuring patients’ vital signs, drawing blood, updating health records, and assisting physicians with in-office procedures.
- How do you become a medical assistant? Most employers require or prefer job applicants with some type of postsecondary education, such as completing a diploma or associate degree program.11 These training programs provide the information and technical skills needed to work in this important healthcare role.
- How long does it take to become a medical assistant? Medical assistant training programs generally take one to two years to complete. As an example, UMA’s Medical Assistant diploma program can be completed in 15 months10
- What is a CMA in healthcare? CMA stands for Certified Medical Assistant. To earn this designation, you must pass a certification exam that tests your competency in areas important to the medical assistant role. The CMA certification may be required by specific employers.
Where national data regarding earnings or employability within a particular field are cited, individual readers should take note that national averages may not accurately reflect the earnings of workers in their particular part of the country, and may include earners at all stages of their career, not just entry-level wages for recent graduates.
1 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Medical Assistants. Summary. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-1
2 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023. Medical Assistants. https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes319092.htm
3 UMA’s 2022-2023 graduate earnings estimate is based on wage information obtained from UMA’s graduates from the cohort. Earnings information was typically obtained by a self-report from the graduate, and occasionally from the graduate’s employer or other sources.
4 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Medical Assistants. Work Environment. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-3
5 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023. Medical Assistants. https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes319092.htm
6 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Medical Assistants. Pay. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-5
7 American Association of Medical Assistants. 2023 CMA (AAMA)® Compensation and Benefits Report. https://www.aama-ntl.org/docs/default-source/about-the-profession-and-credential/cb-survey.pdf
8 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Healthcare Occupations. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/home.htm
9 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Medical Assistants. Job Outlook. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-6
10 Completion time varies depending on individual student.
11 Bureau of Labor Statistics. Occupational Outlook Handbook. Medical Assistants. How to Become a Medical Assistant. https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/medical-assistants.htm#tab-4
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About the Author
Christina DeBuskChristina DeBusk is a freelance writer who has been providing health and wellness content to healthcare organizations such as the American Chiropractic Association and International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA) since 2011. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Sociology from Central Michigan University, minoring in psychology. She has also earned several ISSA certifications, including Certified Personal Trainer and Certified Nutrition Specialist, achieving the status of Elite Trainer.