Audiologist Wages Fall Short of Doctoral-Level Healthcare Peers, Study Finds

A new analysis of U.S. healthcare wages suggests that audiologists continue to earn substantially less than many other doctoral-level healthcare professionals, despite the profession’s transition to doctoral-level entry requirements nearly two decades ago. Published October 6, 2026, in Seminars in Hearing , the study by Victor Bray, PhD, and Amyn M....

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✦ The floor

Discussion

Signed responses from readers of the wire.

✦ Clinical Takeaway ✦

No actionable change to clinical practice; this is a workforce economics finding that is more relevant to professional advocacy, salary negotiation, and policy discussions than to day-to-day patient care.

✦ Why It Matters ✦

Persistent wage inequality relative to other doctoral-level clinicians may undermine recruitment, retention, and the long-term workforce sustainability of the audiology profession.

✦ Key Points ✦

01U.S. audiologists earn significantly less than other doctoral-level healthcare professionals.
02The wage gap exists despite audiology requiring an Au.D. (doctoral degree) for entry for ~20 years.
03Comparators include physicians, dentists, pharmacists, and other doctoral healthcare roles.
04Findings have implications for workforce recruitment, retention, and professional advocacy.
05The analysis is described as a formal study, suggesting quantitative wage data were used.

✦ Claims & Evidence ✦

ClaimEvidenceSupport

Audiologists earn significantly less than other doctoral-level healthcare professionals in the U.S.

studypartially supported

Audiology transitioned to Au.D. entry-level requirements approximately two decades ago.

studysupported

✦ Research metadata ✦

Publication type: research_article
Evidence level: 2b
Population: U.S. audiologists and other doctoral-level healthcare professionals
Intervention: Comparison of wages across doctoral-level healthcare professions
Comparator: Physicians, dentists, pharmacists, and other doctoral-level healthcare professionals

Primary outcomes

Wage levels of audiologists relative to other doctoral-level healthcare professionals

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