Healthcare Administration Salary: How Much Can You Make?
As the field of healthcare only continues to grow, the need for healthcare administrators does too. Healthcare administration is an important role in the healthcare industry, and many people are drawn to it because it is a rewarding career path with the ability to make a real impact in healthcare. It also comes with many benefits, including upward mobility and potentially high salaries. So how much do healthcare administrators make?
In this guide, we’ll explore how much healthcare administrators make, salaries by city and state, some of the highest-paying healthcare administration careers, and more!
Popular Online Healthcare Leadership Programs
The University of Scranton offers multiple online degrees in the growing healthcare industry. The comprehensive coursework is based on real-world scenarios and is equally rigorous and rewarding. The return on investment will be as big as the change you can make in a variety of healthcare leadership roles!
Enrollment: Nationwide
Enrollment: Nationwide
At Purdue Global, discover a faster, more affordable way to earn your Nursing degree. Purdue Global is committed to keeping your tuition costs as low as possible and helping you find the most efficient path to your degree.
Enrollment: Nationwide, but certain programs have state restrictions. Check with Purdue for details.
WGU's award-winning online programs are created to help you succeed while graduating faster and with less debt. WGU is a CCNE accredited, nonprofit university offering nursing bachelor's and master's degrees.
Enrollment: Nationwide
AONL’s Certified Nurse Manager and Leader (CNML®) credential is designed exclusively for nurse leaders in the nurse manager role and is the only of its kind. With the CNML certification, you will become recognized as a leader in your health care community. AONL also offers the Transition to Nurse Manager Practice program where incoming and new nurse managers can build the leadership skills necessary for their new role.
Enrollment: Nationwide
Enrollment: Nationwide
How Much Do Healthcare Administrators Make?
Healthcare administrators have the potential to make substantially high salaries. A hospital CEO, for example, could make millions, while many other healthcare admin jobs can earn six-figure salaries.
Here is a sampling of some of the healthcare administrator salaries you might find in the field:
Private Practice Office Manager
As a private practice office manager, you would essentially be in charge of running a medical practice for a provider. According to the BLS, a medical and health services manager makes an average salary of $110,680, although that could vary widely. A smaller office, for instance, may not earn you as high of a salary as a multi-facility one.
Nursing Home Administrator
A nursing home administrator would hold a senior-level position at a nursing home, managing other people in leadership roles and working on the business end of directing the facility. Nursing home administrators or directors are one of the highest-paid healthcare administration roles. According to Salary.com, a nursing home administrator makes an average of $130,619.
Health Services Manager or Administrator
This role could be a Nurse Manager, who oversees a particular unit or floor of the hospital, or an administrator in another department of the hospital, such as employee health or infection control. According to the BLS, medical and health service managers make an average of $110,680 per year.
Health Information Manager
A health information manager has a very specialized role in the healthcare industry. In this position, you would be overseeing other health informatics specialists who are responsible for working with medical records and data. According to the BLS, computer and information systems managers make an average of over $169,510 per year.
Hospital Director/CEO
Obviously, a hospital CEO is at the very top of the healthcare administration tier and is in charge of an entire healthcare facility. According to the Economic Research Institute, a hospital director makes an average of over $374,000 every year, although annual wages can easily reach over 1 million dollars for large hospital operations.
>> Related: 10 Highest Paying Healthcare Administration Jobs
Popular Online Healthcare Leadership Programs
The University of Scranton offers multiple online degrees in the growing healthcare industry. The comprehensive coursework is based on real-world scenarios and is equally rigorous and rewarding. The return on investment will be as big as the change you can make in a variety of healthcare leadership roles!
Enrollment: Nationwide
Enrollment: Nationwide
At Purdue Global, discover a faster, more affordable way to earn your Nursing degree. Purdue Global is committed to keeping your tuition costs as low as possible and helping you find the most efficient path to your degree.
Enrollment: Nationwide, but certain programs have state restrictions. Check with Purdue for details.
WGU's award-winning online programs are created to help you succeed while graduating faster and with less debt. WGU is a CCNE accredited, nonprofit university offering nursing bachelor's and master's degrees.
Enrollment: Nationwide
AONL’s Certified Nurse Manager and Leader (CNML®) credential is designed exclusively for nurse leaders in the nurse manager role and is the only of its kind. With the CNML certification, you will become recognized as a leader in your health care community. AONL also offers the Transition to Nurse Manager Practice program where incoming and new nurse managers can build the leadership skills necessary for their new role.
Enrollment: Nationwide
Enrollment: Nationwide
Healthcare Administration Salaries by City & State
One of the biggest factors for a healthcare administration salary is location. Here’s how much healthcare administrators make in each state according to the BLS.
Healthcare Administration Salaries by State
State | Annual Salary | Monthly Pay | Weekly Pay | Hourly Wage |
---|---|---|---|---|
Oregon | $45,661 | $3,805 | $878 | $21.95 |
Alaska | $45,622 | $3,801 | $877 | $21.93 |
North Dakota | $45,475 | $3,789 | $874 | $21.86 |
Massachusetts | $45,283 | $3,773 | $870 | $21.77 |
Hawaii | $44,539 | $3,711 | $856 | $21.41 |
Washington | $44,399 | $3,699 | $853 | $21.35 |
Nevada | $43,137 | $3,594 | $829 | $20.74 |
South Dakota | $42,979 | $3,581 | $826 | $20.66 |
Colorado | $42,922 | $3,576 | $825 | $20.64 |
Rhode Island | $42,292 | $3,524 | $813 | $20.33 |
Connecticut | $42,142 | $3,511 | $810 | $20.26 |
New York | $41,508 | $3,459 | $798 | $19.96 |
Mississippi | $41,230 | $3,435 | $792 | $19.82 |
Vermont | $40,496 | $3,374 | $778 | $19.47 |
Delaware | $40,440 | $3,370 | $777 | $19.44 |
Virginia | $39,894 | $3,324 | $767 | $19.18 |
Illinois | $39,715 | $3,309 | $763 | $19.09 |
Maryland | $39,175 | $3,264 | $753 | $18.83 |
Kansas | $38,795 | $3,232 | $746 | $18.65 |
Nebraska | $38,366 | $3,197 | $737 | $18.45 |
California | $38,339 | $3,194 | $737 | $18.43 |
New Jersey | $38,060 | $3,171 | $731 | $18.30 |
Missouri | $38,057 | $3,171 | $731 | $18.30 |
Pennsylvania | $38,026 | $3,168 | $731 | $18.28 |
Wisconsin | $37,722 | $3,143 | $725 | $18.14 |
South Carolina | $37,714 | $3,142 | $725 | $18.13 |
Maine | $37,476 | $3,123 | $720 | $18.02 |
Oklahoma | $37,154 | $3,096 | $714 | $17.86 |
New Hampshire | $36,962 | $3,080 | $710 | $17.77 |
North Carolina | $36,935 | $3,077 | $710 | $17.76 |
Idaho | $36,651 | $3,054 | $704 | $17.62 |
Minnesota | $36,468 | $3,039 | $701 | $17.53 |
Wyoming | $36,407 | $3,033 | $700 | $17.50 |
Texas | $36,382 | $3,031 | $699 | $17.49 |
New Mexico | $36,226 | $3,018 | $696 | $17.42 |
Indiana | $35,948 | $2,995 | $691 | $17.28 |
Kentucky | $35,813 | $2,984 | $688 | $17.22 |
Michigan | $35,540 | $2,961 | $683 | $17.09 |
Ohio | $35,439 | $2,953 | $681 | $17.04 |
Arizona | $35,205 | $2,933 | $677 | $16.93 |
Iowa | $34,886 | $2,907 | $670 | $16.77 |
Montana | $34,675 | $2,889 | $666 | $16.67 |
Alabama | $34,242 | $2,853 | $658 | $16.46 |
Arkansas | $33,889 | $2,824 | $651 | $16.29 |
Utah | $33,873 | $2,822 | $651 | $16.29 |
Tennessee | $33,833 | $2,819 | $650 | $16.27 |
Georgia | $31,899 | $2,658 | $613 | $15.34 |
Louisiana | $31,840 | $2,653 | $612 | $15.31 |
West Virginia | $29,368 | $2,447 | $564 | $14.12 |
Florida | $28,231 | $2,352 | $542 | $13.57 |
Source Zip Recruiter
Highest Paying Cities for Healthcare Administrators
Here BLS's list of how much healthcare administrators make in the the highest paying cities for healthcare administrators:
Metropolitan area | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
Trenton, NJ | $ 93.14 | $ 193,730 |
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | $ 89.69 | $ 186,560 |
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | $ 86.22 | $ 179,330 |
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $ 84.92 | $ 176,640 |
Napa, CA | $ 83.04 | $ 172,730 |
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH | $ 79.78 | $ 165,940 |
Danbury, CT | $ 79.76 | $ 165,910 |
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA | $ 79.32 | $ 164,990 |
California-Lexington Park, MD | $ 78.48 | $ 163,250 |
Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $ 77.44 | $ 161,070 |
Healthcare Administration Salaries by Place of Employment
According to the BLS, the highest-paid healthcare administrators work for the government, while the lowest-paid work in nursing and residential care facilities. The BLS lists place of occupation and salary as follows for medical and health services managers:
- Hospitals: Average salary of $128,740
- Government: Average salary of $125,590
- Outpatient care centers: Average salary of $104,710
- Physician offices: Average salary of $102,360
- Nursing and residential care facilities: Average salary of $97,490
How to Increase Your Salary as a Healthcare Administrator
Although on average, you can expect to earn a reasonable salary as a healthcare administrator, there are always ways that you can increase your salary. Now that you know how much you can make as a healthcare administrator, the best way to increase your salary in any role is to increase your value by adding additional skills to your resume. You can do this by:
- Pursuing advanced education: For instance, if you are a nurse looking to become a department manager, you can pursue your MSN or MBA in order to gain more managerial and leadership skills.
- Finding a mentor: If there is someone in your field that you aspire to be like, speak up! Ask them if they would be willing to take you on as a mentor so you can learn from them.
- Learning advanced skills: Even if you don’t pursue another separate degree, you can add technical skills or certifications to your resume that can help increase your value as an administrator.
- Get involved: Whether it’s a new field you’d like to move into or an advancement in your current role, it can help to get involved in new ways. That might mean volunteering to supervise the team leadership conference or signing up for more community events–there are many different options you could pursue depending on your current role and where you would like to advance to in order to raise your salary.
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