The highest-paying jobs in Madison include a range of industries, including healthcare, technology, and finance. If you’re looking for a high-paying career in the Madison area, this list will help you narrow down your search to the best-paid professions available.
We cover the 20 highest-paying jobs in Madison in 2024 using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Most of the high-paying positions in Madison require extensive experience, but there are also some well-paid entry-level roles for job seekers with the right educational background.
Overall, the highest-paying job in Madison is Anesthesiologist, with an average annual salary of $493,805 and an entry-level salary of $242,000.
Whether you’re considering a career change, thinking about moving to Madison, or a recent graduate planning for your future, this guide to the highest-paying jobs and best-paid industries in Madison can help you figure out your next move.
Here’s a quick look at the top 10 highest-paying jobs in Madison, Wisconsin:
Detailed list of highest paying jobs in Madison
| Rank | Job Title | Average Salary | Entry Level Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anesthesiologist | $493,805 | $242,000 |
| 2 | Cardiothoracic Surgeon | $342,866 | $175,000 |
| 3 | Physician | $301,345 | $159,000 |
| 4 | Cardiologist | $297,898 | $152,000 |
| 5 | Nephrologist | $280,287 | $167,000 |
| 6 | Hospitalist | $274,520 | $181,000 |
| 7 | Neurologist | $273,757 | $152,000 |
| 8 | Operator And Truck Driver | $272,520 | $144,000 |
| 9 | Neuro-Ophthalmologist | $258,180 | $135,000 |
| 10 | Staff Physician | $238,479 | $142,000 |
| 11 | Medical Director | $237,944 | $153,000 |
| 12 | Primary Care Physician | $233,736 | $135,000 |
| 13 | General Internist | $232,792 | $145,000 |
| 14 | Staff Psychiatrist | $220,026 | $142,000 |
| 15 | Internal Medicine Physician | $218,797 | $134,000 |
| 16 | Ophthalmologist | $207,663 | $115,000 |
| 17 | Chief Of Pediatric Urology | $207,550 | $99,000 |
| 18 | Family Practice Physician | $203,521 | $126,000 |
| 19 | Interventional Radiologist | $200,591 | $77,000 |
| 20 | Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist | $178,221 | $107,000 |
How we determined the highest paid jobs in Madison for 2024
To figure out the highest-paying jobs in Madison, we looked at the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Foreign Labor Certification Data Center (FLC), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and others.
Zippia’s data science team then supplements that data by continuously scanning through millions of job postings each day to find published salaries. We match these published salaries to the companies, locations, and job titles in other datasets.
Finally, we calculate a weighted average of these inputs to produce an estimated salary for the particular job title in Madison.
In total, the team looked at the salary data set for all over 1,000 job titles in Madison to identify the jobs that get paid the most.
Editor’s Note: Article updated for 2024. This is our eighth time ranking the highest paying jobs in Madison.

