Insights / Highest-paying healthcare jobs / Oregon
5 highest-paying healthcare jobs in Oregon
Oregon's highest dollar is pharmacists. The widest step above the country on this list is registered nurses.
Finance localized the pharmacist offer and left the nurse range on a national midpoint, because pharmacists were at the top of the page.
Pharmacists lead the medians at $165,960 against $140,910 nationally, 1.18 times the country, with a 75th percentile of $182,040.
Physician assistants are next at $155,780 against $135,880, and nurse practitioners are at $155,680 against $132,300.
Registered nurses are fourth in dollars and first in the comparison: $129,010 against $97,550, 1.32 times the country.
Dental hygienists are $122,080 against $98,100, 1.24 times the country, and their 75th percentile is only $126,460.
The sort follows the median.
The posting that needs a local number may be further down the page.
Each occupation
1Pharmacists
- State median
- $165,960
- 75th percentile
- $182,040
- U.S. median
- $140,910
- State vs U.S.
- 1.18
2Physician Assistants
- State median
- $155,780
- 75th percentile
- $169,550
- U.S. median
- $135,880
- State vs U.S.
- 1.15
3Nurse Practitioners
- State median
- $155,680
- 75th percentile
- $168,700
- U.S. median
- $132,300
- State vs U.S.
- 1.18
4Registered Nurses
- State median
- $129,010
- 75th percentile
- $134,420
- U.S. median
- $97,550
- State vs U.S.
- 1.32
5Dental Hygienists
- State median
- $122,080
- 75th percentile
- $126,460
- U.S. median
- $98,100
- State vs U.S.
- 1.24
Ranked table
Swipe the table sideways. The same figures are in the blocks above.
| Rank | Occupation | State median | 75th percentile | U.S. median | State vs U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pharmacists | $165,960 | $182,040 | $140,910 | 1.18 |
| 2 | Physician Assistants | $155,780 | $169,550 | $135,880 | 1.15 |
| 3 | Nurse Practitioners | $155,680 | $168,700 | $132,300 | 1.18 |
| 4 | Registered Nurses | $129,010 | $134,420 | $97,550 | 1.32 |
| 5 | Dental Hygienists | $122,080 | $126,460 | $98,100 | 1.24 |
Takeaways
- The physician-assistant 75th percentile is $169,550. The nurse-practitioner 75th percentile is $168,700.
- The registered-nurse 75th percentile is $134,420, close to the nurse median, so the RN band is high and tight.
- Oregon is 3 of 51 on the leading median. That rank is a pharmacist rank.
- A national nurse midpoint ignores the widest gap on the sheet.
For recruiters
- Localize registered nurses because of the gap, not because of their rank.
- Do not let the pharmacist dollar set the language for hygienists. Their band tops out quickly.
FAQ
- Are these posted wages or open jobs?
- No. The table is a government survey or a designation file.
- What should a recruiter do first?
- Follow the recruiter note on this page.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Related hiring pages
Methodology
Rows are the 5 occupations on the 25-occupation hiring list with the highest Oregon OEWS median, limited to occupations that also publish a 75th percentile. OEWS May 2025. A comparison of 1.00 matches the U.S. median. Sorted by the leading median, Oregon is 3 of 51. A row links to the Oregon metro page with the highest public market difficulty score for that occupation when one is published, and otherwise to the occupation page on the hiring grid. An unpublished percentile or employment count is shown as unpublished rather than replaced with a zero. The wages are annual OEWS figures. They are not job listings and they are not an employer's current offer. Read the comparison beside the dollar figures: a high state wage can still sit under the national median for that occupation, and a lower state wage can still sit above it. Rounded figures in the prose: $165,960 is stated as about $166.0K. a comparison of 1.18 is stated as 18 percent. $140,910 is stated as about $140.9K. $182,040 is stated as about $182.0K. $122,080 is stated as about $122.1K. a comparison of 1.24 is stated as 24 percent. Rounded figures in the prose: $155,780 is stated as about $155.8K. $129,010 is stated as about $129.0K. a comparison of 1.32 is stated as 32 percent. $155,680 is stated as about $155.7K. $169,550 is stated as about $169.6K. $126,460 is stated as about $126.5K.
Sources
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