New 2025 National Veterinary Compensation Survey

We surveyed veterinarians across the country to understand what they are actually earning, what benefits they value most, and which workplace factors are driving job satisfaction, burnout, and turnover.

We found the expected and the unexpected in our respondents’ answers. Per the results provided by Veterinarians and Associate Veterinarians, the following are highlights:

•  The average base salary for Veterinarians / Associate Veterinarians is $133,000.
•  The highest reported base salary was $275,000 in Los Angeles and the lowest was $88,500 in North Carolina.

Compensation includes base salary, yes, but we found additional noteworthy items of interest across benefits and company culture:

• Clinics that invest in CE, licensing, and structured benefits consistently pay higher salaries and retain doctors longer.
• Compensation now varies more by culture, leadership, and support systems than by geography alone.
• Burnout and turnover risk remain high, but are dramatically lower in clinics with clear communication, fair scheduling, and mentorship.
• Many practices are unintentionally offering outdated or incomplete benefit packages that make hiring harder than it needs to be.

If you, as an owner, are looking to stay competitive in this current market, our findings are a roadmap. Click here to read the full 2025 National Veterinary Compensation Survey

https://dvmrecruitingservices.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/NATIONAL-VETERINARY-COMPENSATION-SURVEY.pdf

If you review our survey results and discover that, as an owner, you need assistance staying competitive and finding the strongest candidates for your practice, give us a call! We can help! If you are a veterinarian seeking to improve salary, compensation package or culture through a change in practice, we can help with that too! We’ve been in the recruiting business for more than 30 years, and since 2020, my team and I have submitted over 756 veterinarians to over 300 privately owned clinics. We understand the special requirements of finding the right doctor for private practices, and my team has consistently put our method to work for our clients, resulting in a 90 percent success rate in presenting quality candidates. Allow me the chance to explain how we go about finding the right match for your practice. I look forward to our conversation.

Regards