Research Summary. After extensive research by the Zippia data science team, we identified these details of medical assistant salary by state for the United States:
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Alaska has the highest medical assistant salary of $46,918
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West Virginia has the lowest medical assistant salary of $26,886
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The national average salary for medical assistants is $34,900
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The national hourly pay for medical assistants is $16.78
You can read more on the specific methodology.
Background
Without fail, in surveys across basically every demographic, the number one most important aspect of a job for most people is the salary — how much do medical assistants get paid where I live?
And while there are many things to go into how much you, specifically, can expect to make, there’s really good data for average salaries for medical assistant by state across America broken down by seniority level. So while your city may be slightly different than the state average, these averages give you a rough sense of what to expect for your salary.
The state with the best salary for medical assistants after this adjustment? That would be Alaska.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the top ten states for medical assistant salaries:
Let’s take a look at how we got here and a full ranking of all the states.
Highest-Paid Medical Assistants By State
| Rank | State | Average Medical Assistant Salary | 10th Percentile | 90th Percentile |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | $46,918 | $41,000 | $52,000 |
| 2 | Washington | $45,025 | $36,000 | $55,000 |
| 3 | Oregon | $42,184 | $33,000 | $52,000 |
| 4 | California | $40,210 | $31,000 | $51,000 |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $39,735 | $31,000 | $49,000 |
| 6 | Hawaii | $38,808 | $32,000 | $46,000 |
| 7 | Minnesota | $38,059 | $30,000 | $46,000 |
| 8 | Rhode Island | $37,330 | $29,000 | $47,000 |
| 9 | Connecticut | $37,024 | $29,000 | $46,000 |
| 10 | New York | $36,678 | $28,000 | $46,000 |
| 11 | New Hampshire | $36,601 | $29,000 | $45,000 |
| 12 | Illinois | $36,360 | $29,000 | $45,000 |
| 13 | Wisconsin | $36,240 | $29,000 | $44,000 |
| 14 | Colorado | $36,240 | $29,000 | $44,000 |
| 15 | Vermont | $36,062 | $29,000 | $44,000 |
| 16 | Iowa | $35,614 | $28,000 | $44,000 |
| 17 | Arizona | $35,359 | $27,000 | $44,000 |
| 18 | North Dakota | $35,204 | $28,000 | $43,000 |
| 19 | New Jersey | $34,881 | $27,000 | $44,000 |
| 20 | Maryland | $34,644 | $27,000 | $44,000 |
| 21 | Montana | $34,360 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 22 | Idaho | $34,346 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 23 | Utah | $34,164 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $34,152 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 25 | Maine | $33,983 | $27,000 | $41,000 |
| 26 | Michigan | $33,979 | $27,000 | $42,000 |
| 27 | Nevada | $33,779 | $26,000 | $42,000 |
| 28 | New Mexico | $33,662 | $26,000 | $42,000 |
| 29 | Nebraska | $33,490 | $27,000 | $41,000 |
| 30 | Indiana | $33,203 | $26,000 | $41,000 |
| 31 | Delaware | $33,136 | $26,000 | $42,000 |
| 32 | Missouri | $32,633 | $26,000 | $40,000 |
| 33 | North Carolina | $32,548 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 34 | South Dakota | $32,506 | $26,000 | $40,000 |
| 35 | Pennsylvania | $32,310 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 36 | Virginia | $32,184 | $25,000 | $40,000 |
| 37 | Ohio | $32,021 | $25,000 | $39,000 |
| 38 | Kansas | $31,891 | $25,000 | $39,000 |
| 39 | Texas | $31,744 | $25,000 | $39,000 |
| 40 | Tennessee | $31,550 | $25,000 | $39,000 |
| 41 | Kentucky | $31,411 | $25,000 | $39,000 |
| 42 | Georgia | $31,004 | $24,000 | $38,000 |
| 43 | Florida | $30,960 | $24,000 | $39,000 |
| 44 | South Carolina | $30,226 | $24,000 | $37,000 |
| 45 | Mississippi | $30,151 | $24,000 | $37,000 |
| 46 | Arkansas | $29,839 | $24,000 | $37,000 |
| 47 | Oklahoma | $29,732 | $23,000 | $36,000 |
| 48 | Louisiana | $28,417 | $22,000 | $35,000 |
| 49 | Alabama | $27,203 | $21,000 | $33,000 |
| 50 | West Virginia | $26,886 | $21,000 | $33,000 |
Methodology: Medical Assistant Salary By State
To better understand medical assistant pay by state, Zippia has aggregated data across a multitude of channels including the BLS, FLC, and OPM. We then supplement that data with actual listed salaries from job posts. Finally, the data science team calculates a weighted average of these inputs to create an average pay for medical assistants by state.
We took the average annual salary data for medical assistants from these estimates and ranked every state on this criteria with the state with the highest salary ranking as highest average salary for medical assistants.
Medical Assistant Salary By State FAQs
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What is the highest-paid state for medical assistants?
The highest-paid state for medical assistants is Alaska with an average salary of $46,918 per year.
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What city pays medical assistants the most?
Vancouver, WA pays medical assistants the most with an average salary of $45,301 per year.
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What is the worst state for medical assistants?
The worst state for medical assistants is West Virginia with an average salary of $26,886 per year.
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
