Physicians deciding where to practice, and where they can build long-term financial stability, may find themselves looking to the Midwest and Mountain West.
New rankings from WalletHub, Medscape and Marit Health point to states like Montana, Indiana and Wyoming as top places for physicians, citing a mix of strong opportunity, favorable practice environments and faster paths to financial independence.
Here’s a breakdown of the best states for physicians:
Wallethub
In its annual ranking published March 18, WalletHub compared all 50 states and the District of Columbia across two key dimensions: opportunity and competition, and medical environment. Those dimensions are evaluated using 19 metrics, ranging from average annual wage to the quality of the public health system and hospital safety grades.
Here are the 15 best states for physicians:
- Montana
- Indiana
- South Dakota
- Iowa
- Utah
- North Carolina
- Minnesota
- North Dakota
- Tennessee
- Wisconsin
- Idaho
- Missouri
- Louisiana
- South Carolina
- Alabama
Marit Health
Here’s a breakdown of the 10 best states for physicians to reach financial independence, drawn from factors including average salary, state taxes, cost of living and malpractice environment.
1. Wyoming
Average salary: $506,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 9.1 years
State taxes: 0%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Favorable
Malpractice environment: Favorable
2. Wisconsin
Average salary: $481,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 11.7 years
State taxes: 7.65%
Cost of living: Neutral
Quality of life: Favorable
Malpractice environment: Favorable
3. Florida
Average salary: $457,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 11.4 years
State taxes: 0%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Unfavorable
4. New Hampshire
Average salary: $429,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 14.1 years
State taxes: 0%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Favorable
5. Illinois
Average salary: $448,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 12.5 years
State taxes: 4.95%
Cost of living: Neutral
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Unfavorable
6. Iowa
Average salary: $474,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 10.8 years
State taxes: 5.7%
Cost of living: Neutral
Quality of life: Favorable
Malpractice environment: Favorable
7. South Dakota
Average salary: $549,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 8.6 years
State taxes: 0%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Favorable
8. Pennsylvania
Average salary: $434,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 13.0 years
State taxes: 3.07%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Unfavorable
9. Mississippi
Average salary: $528,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 8.7 years
State taxes: 5%
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Favorable
Malpractice environment: Favorable
10. North Dakota
Average salary: $530,000
Estimated years to financial independence: 9.7 years
State taxes: 2.9
Cost of living: Favorable
Quality of life: Neutral
Malpractice environment: Favorable
Medscape
Medscape’s report , published March 11, analyzed factors including physician burnout rate, compensation, state tax burden, living cost, malpractice premiums and community health across eight regions in the U.S.
Here are the best and worst states to practice in, by region.
New England region
Best: Massachusetts
Worst: Maine
Mid-Atlantic region
Best: Delaware
Worst: Maryland
South Atlantic region
Best: North Carolina
Worst: West Virginia
East North Central region
Best: Indiana
Worst: Michigan
East South Central region
Best: Tennessee
Worst: Alabama
West North Central region
Best: North Dakota
Worst: Kansas
West South Central region
Best: Texas
Worst: Arkansas
West region
Best: Utah
Worst: Nevada
Pacific region
Best: Oregon
Worst: California
The Commonwealth Fund
“2025 Scorecard on State Health System Performance” from Commonwealth Fund evaluates all 50 states and the District of Columbia using 50 indicators spanning healthcare access and affordability, prevention and treatment, avoidable hospital use and costs, health outcomes, healthy behaviors, and equity. Most of the data reflects performance in 2023.
Here are the 10 best states for healthcare:
1. Massachusetts
Access and affordability: 1
Prevention and treatment: 2
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 35
2. Hawaii
Access and affordability: 2
Prevention and treatment: 45
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 3
3. New Hampshire
Access and affordability: 3
Prevention and treatment: 9
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 21
4. Rhode Island
Access and affordability: 6
Prevention and treatment: 16
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 33
5. District of Columbia
Access and affordability: 4
Prevention and treatment: 1
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 16
6. New York
Access and affordability: 16
Prevention and treatment: 26
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 31
7. Maryland
Access and affordability: 17
Prevention and treatment: 4
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 12
8. Vermont
Access and affordability: 5
Prevention and treatment: 11
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 26
9. Washington
Access and affordability: 15
Prevention and treatment: 23
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 5
10. Colorado
Access and affordability: 23
Prevention and treatment: 7
Avoidable hospital use and cost: 1
