Veterinarian Salary by State (2026)

Name: Veterinarian annual wages by US state, May 2025
Creator: NueCareer
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Veterinarians earn the most in California at $163,920 a year and the least in South Dakota at $88,650 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $130,100. All 50 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.

Highest median: $163,920
National median: $130,100
Lowest median: $88,650
States reporting: 50

Top 5 states for Veterinarians

1. California$163,920 median · $148,049 adjusted · 9,170 employed
2. Maryland$163,170 median · $155,461 adjusted · 1,430 employed
3. Washington$160,510 median · $149,991 adjusted · 2,390 employed
4. New Jersey$160,140 median · $147,181 adjusted · 1,910 employed
5. Arizona$152,020 median · $150,998 adjusted · 2,080 employed

Lowest-paying states for Veterinarians

50. South Dakota$88,650 median · $100,072 adjusted · 280 employed
49. Puerto Rico$89,810 median · no price parity · 180 employed
48. Wyoming$97,240 median · $104,908 adjusted · 140 employed
47. Oklahoma$98,090 median · $111,665 adjusted · 1,150 employed
46. Montana$99,390 median · $105,013 adjusted · 510 employed

Veterinarian salary in every state

Sort by any column. Employment is the number of veterinarians OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.

Annual wages by state, sortable by median, quartiles, employment and cost-of-living adjusted median
#
1	California	$163,920	$125,460	$211,840	9,170	$148,049
2	Maryland	$163,170	$133,040	$189,450	1,430	$155,461
3	Washington	$160,510	$124,990	$197,370	2,390	$149,991
4	New Jersey	$160,140	$126,480	$202,930	1,910	$147,181
5	Arizona	$152,020	$125,210	$205,030	2,080	$150,998
6	Massachusetts	$140,260	$121,670	$175,250	1,920	$132,625
7	District of Columbia	$134,530	$132,520	$193,860	190	$122,410
8	Illinois	$133,580	$102,630	$168,050	2,330	$133,636
9	Pennsylvania	$133,520	$107,810	$166,230	3,490	$136,843
10	Minnesota	$133,110	$109,260	$164,690	2,140	$134,971
11	New York	$131,830	$105,750	$173,720	3,390	$122,154
12	Vermont	$131,820	$110,410	$170,570	280	$134,568
13	Florida	$131,660	$83,790	$166,370	5,360	$127,314
14	Texas	$131,330	$107,880	$164,000	6,270	$135,312
15	Colorado	$130,840	$102,090	$162,110	2,340	$126,965
16	Maine	$130,600	$104,620	$155,000	600	$134,570
17	Hawaii	$130,120	$103,760	$134,000	370	$118,344
18	New Mexico	$129,390	$96,980	$171,140	460	$140,318
19	North Carolina	$129,240	$98,240	$165,430	2,940	$137,014
20	West Virginia	$128,990	$82,770	$161,940	390	$144,128
21	Oregon	$128,880	$98,570	$154,410	1,660	$124,689
22	New Hampshire	$128,190	$97,620	$161,180	650	$123,064
23	Virginia	$126,730	$98,630	$177,650	2,700	$125,346
24	Georgia	$126,590	$103,080	$155,270	2,670	$131,463
25	Rhode Island	$126,570	$108,820	$139,730	430	$123,749
26	Connecticut	$126,190	$104,780	$167,390	950	$121,793
27	Nevada	$125,550	$119,500	$159,900	680	$125,576
28	Michigan	$125,390	$100,950	$162,030	2,030	$130,320
29	Ohio	$125,060	$88,750	$156,330	3,430	$134,801
30	Iowa	$124,610	$94,640	$152,140	1,000	$141,986
31	Indiana	$124,530	$99,800	$155,980	1,500	$133,431
32	Louisiana	$124,370	$78,660	$141,140	950	$140,998
33	Tennessee	$124,350	$104,890	$151,770	1,730	$135,354
34	Utah	$123,990	$99,560	$168,690	640	$125,415
35	South Carolina	$122,130	$96,920	$157,220	1,380	$130,273
36	Idaho	$116,170	$101,510	$137,010	540	$121,652
37	Missouri	$114,660	$97,280	$149,250	1,920	$126,254
38	Wisconsin	$108,780	$98,950	$132,880	1,830	$115,607
39	Arkansas	$107,710	$97,930	$122,140	540	$123,894
40	Kansas	$107,080	$86,250	$129,870	1,000	$118,888
41	Alabama	$105,630	$95,310	$136,690	1,020	$118,922
42	Mississippi	$105,370	$85,780	$129,370	480	$121,180
43	Kentucky	$104,100	$73,920	$136,550	1,190	$115,463
44	Nebraska	$103,500	$85,660	$138,170	780	$114,869
45	North Dakota	$102,180	$88,610	$115,210	270	$114,862
46	Montana	$99,390	$66,830	$130,870	510	$105,013
47	Oklahoma	$98,090	$71,560	$129,300	1,150	$111,665
48	Wyoming	$97,240	$80,230	$132,890	140	$104,908
49	Puerto Rico	$89,810	$64,230	$131,410	180	N/A
50	South Dakota	$88,650	$74,860	$114,400	280	$100,072

How the cost-of-living adjustment works

The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.

For Veterinarians, that changes the ranking: California leads on raw pay at $163,920, while Maryland leads once prices are taken into account at $155,461.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.

Veterinarian pay by state: FAQ

Which state pays Veterinarians the most?

California reports the highest median wage for Veterinarians at $163,920 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by Maryland ($163,170) and Washington ($160,510).

Which state pays Veterinarians the least?

South Dakota reports the lowest median for Veterinarians at $88,650 a year, $75,270 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Where do Veterinarians earn the most after cost of living?

Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts Maryland first at $155,461 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $163,170. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.

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