Psychiatrist Salary Guide and Career Outlook


The difference between psychiatrists and psychologists is very slight. The primary distinction is that the former must go to medical school, complete a residency, and will ultimately write prescriptions. The psychiatrist salary is generally higher than psychologists. Their pay is over $100,000 in the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. The salary is still handsome in the United Kingdom, India, and South Africa in comparison to other careers in those countries.

This article covers the salary ranges for psychiatrists in different countries, how industry and experience impact it, working schedule and job outlook. At the conclusion of this article, you should have a much better understanding of what a psychiatrist career is like from a global perspective.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make per Year by Country?

Psychiatrist Salary US Canada UK Australia New Zealand India South Africa
Hourly Pay $117.00 C$74.00 ($56.33) E33.00 ($35.37) AU$70.00 ($52.91) NZ$96.15* ($69.84) Rs 393.99 ($5.79) R288.46* ($21.41)
Annual Pay $189,825 C$173,679 ($132,311) E53,472 ($57,319) AU$121,405 ($91,757) NZ$200,000 ($145,279) Rs 819,512 ($12,040) R600,000 ($44,540)

* These hourly rates are estimated from the annual salary.

Psychiatrist Salary Influencing Factors

Different sources will provide various data points for salary. However, these are the median and hourly rates for each country in part.

1. Location

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in the US?

A psychiatrist salary in the United States ranges from $96,182 to $258,103 with a bonus up to $38,000. The hourly rate for these professionals is $48.97 to $198.92 with overtime up to $221.92. The total salary is $97,033 to $293,713.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in Canada?

The psychiatrist salary per hour in Canada is between C$20.43 to C$243.70. Some individuals charge an overtime rate of C$62.50. Their annual salary is C$67,531 to C$296,928 with a bonus up to C$24,566. Their full pay is C$55,731 to C$301,378 dollars.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in the UK?

The 10th percentile of psychiatrists in the United Kingdom will make E8.05 an hour, and the 90th percentile will make E110.26. The equivalent annual rate for these professionals is E25,760 to E104,789. The bonus is up to E10,300, and their commission is E5,750. At the end of the year, psychiatrists will earn from E25,891 to E126,523.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in Australia?

The hourly rate for psychiatrists in Australia is AU$38.59 to AU$533.00. Those who report an overtime rate state that it is $75.00 an hour. The annual salary is AU$77,541 to AU$247,662. Additional income comes from a bonus of AU$9,000 and a profit share of AU$35,500. These incomes make the final salary higher than the base salary at a range from AU$78,967 to AU$278,604.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in New Zealand?

The salary data for New Zealand comes from the Careers Government New Zealand site. Training psychiatrists will make from NZ$70,000 to NZ$175,000 while experienced ones see a salary from NZ$151,000 to NZ$600,000.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in India?

The psychiatrist salary in India ranges from RS 120,267 to Rs 1,795,997. They earn a bonus of Rs 150,000. An estimated hourly rate is Rs 58.01 to Rs 863.46. Their total reported salary is Rs 122,748 to Rs 1,791,979.

How Much Does a Psychiatrist Make in South Africa?

There is minimal data available on the salary ranges for psychiatrists in South Africa. The reported data shows a median salary of R600,000 with the 25th percentile earning R120,000 and the 75th percentile earning more than R1,000,000.

2. Experience

Psychiatrists in Australia see the peak of their income at around 20 years of experience. After this, the pay declines slightly. In Canada, the experience-income growth curve shows a slight increase for the first five years and a sharper increase for the next 15 years. However, the increases taper off after. The impact of experience on pay for psychiatrists in the United Kingdom shows modest growth for the first 5 and post-20 years of employment and steeper growth between 5 and 20 years.

Interestingly, the pay increases by experience in the United States is very modest throughout their career. In New Zealand, there is a huge difference in pay from trainee psychiatrists to more experienced ones. This difference in pay is seen in other countries as well where resident or training psychiatrists make significantly less than fully practicing psychiatrists.

3. Industry

The most common industry for psychiatrists in the United States is physician offices. After, potential locations are psychiatric hospitals, outpatient care centers, medical hospitals, and state government institutions. However, the highest paying careers are in home health care and research and development. The two overlapping industries between the highest concentration and highest paying are state government and outpatient care centers.

In New Zealand, psychiatrists will work in a hospital as a junior doctor and then register with the Medical Council of New Zealand.

Schedule & Working Hours

According to the American Psychiatric Association, psychiatrists will work an average of 48 hours a week. Resident or training psychiatrists will work more than this.

These professionals have a lot of flexibility in where and how they work. Their schedule will partially be dictated by where they work. For example, psychiatrists who work in a hospital or for a mental institution may need to work in the evening or weekend while those in private practice will have regular office hours.

Bonuses & Benefits

A psychiatrist education implies a major investment. Therefore, they are likely to see a lot of benefits such as excellent retirement, life insurance, stock options, disability, flexible spending accounts for health care and child care, and many more. However, this depends on if they are self-employed or not. Self-employed psychiatrists will have a higher income, but will also have to purchase these benefits for themselves.

The table below shows health care benefits received by country.

Country United States Canada United Kingdom Australia New Zealand India South Africa
Medical 78 61 55 59 53 67
Dental 65 48 17 32 33
Vision 51 43 17 23 33
None 20 35 45 45 47 33

Career Outlook

The psychiatrist job outlook seems positive for the future. However, the general growth for physicians is 14 percent through the year 2024. As the clarity around what causes mental health illnesses continues to increase, it is likely that more people will seek the help of psychiatrists to write the necessary prescriptions.

Two factors that could temper growth are the advancement of technology and government policies around health care. Technology should not impact psychiatry as much as other physician careers because much of their job is talking to and with their patients. However, government policies can impact how many people can afford to see a psychiatrist.

Conclusion

A psychiatrist career is in the mental health field and involves close work with psychologists. They have to invest in their education to practice and can specialize in different career paths. The psychiatrist salary can be potentially high and offers a lot flexibility. However, it is quite challenging and they need to have excellent communication skills.

Recent Posts