Careers / Medical Transcriptionists
Medical Transcriptionists — Career Decision Dashboard
United States
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Report generated from official BLS OEWS and O*NET data — United States.
Median annual wage
$40,410
United States, 2025
Employment
41,550
United States, 2025
Typical education
Post-Secondary Certificate
Job Zone 3
Skills identified
35
10 related careers
Career overview
Transcribe medical reports recorded by physicians and other healthcare practitioners using various electronic devices, covering office visits, emergency room visits, diagnostic imaging studies, operations, chart reviews, and final summaries. Transcribe dictated reports and translate abbreviations into fully understandable form. Edit as necessary and return reports in either printed or electronic form for review and signature, or correction.
- O*NET code
- 31-9094.00
- Job zone
- 3
- Experience required
- None
Typical tasks
- Return dictated reports in printed or electronic form for physician's review, signature, and corrections and for inclusion in patients' medical records.
- Produce medical reports, correspondence, records, patient-care information, statistics, medical research, and administrative material.
- Identify mistakes in reports and check with doctors to obtain the correct information.
- Review and edit transcribed reports or dictated material for spelling, grammar, clarity, consistency, and proper medical terminology.
- Transcribe dictation for a variety of medical reports, such as patient histories, physical examinations, emergency room visits, operations, chart reviews, consultation, or discharge summaries.
- Distinguish between homonyms and recognize inconsistencies and mistakes in medical terms, referring to dictionaries, drug references, and other sources on anatomy, physiology, and medicine.
- Set up and maintain medical files and databases, including records such as x-ray, lab, and procedure reports, medical histories, diagnostic workups, admission and discharge summaries, and clinical resumes.
- Translate medical jargon and abbreviations into their expanded forms to ensure the accuracy of patient and health care facility records.
Choose a location
Salary analysis — United States
10th percentile
$28,250
25th percentile
$34,150
75th percentile
$48,000
90th percentile
$55,950
Most important skills
- Active Listening4.1
- Reading Comprehension4.0
- Writing3.9
- Monitoring3.1
- Judgment and Decision Making3.0
- Time Management3.0
- Speaking3.0
- Critical Thinking3.0
- Active Learning2.9
- Social Perceptiveness2.8
- Complex Problem Solving2.6
- Coordination2.5
What skills do you need?
Select the skills you already have
Skills listed are those O*NET rates at importance 3.0 or above for this occupation. Set your own level on the same 0–7 O*NET scale.
Skill coverage
0%
0 of 8 identified skills
Matched
0
Missing
8
Your selected skills cover approximately 0% of the skills identified for this occupation in O*NET. This is a coverage measure of listed skills only — it is not a qualification, hiring or interview outcome.
Skills to develop
| Skill | Importance | Required level | Your level | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active Listening | 4.1 | 4.1 | Not selected | 4.1 |
| Reading Comprehension | 4.0 | 4.0 | Not selected | 4.0 |
| Writing | 3.9 | 3.6 | Not selected | 3.6 |
| Speaking | 3.0 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.0 | 3.1 | Not selected | 3.1 |
| Monitoring | 3.1 | 2.9 | Not selected | 2.9 |
| Time Management | 3.0 | 2.8 | Not selected | 2.8 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.0 | 2.6 | Not selected | 2.6 |
Ordered by required level gap multiplied by O*NET importance. No prediction or recommendation is implied.
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Compare with Medical TranscriptionistsHow salary varies by location
| Location | Median | Employment | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | $58,240 | 680 | 2025 |
| San Jose, CA | $57,420 | 200 | 2025 |
| Norwich, CT | $55,890 | 30 | 2025 |
| Portland, ME | $55,320 | 30 | 2025 |
| Hartford, CT | $54,830 | 100 | 2025 |
| Rapid City, SD | $53,840 | 30 | 2025 |
| Santa Rosa, CA | $53,330 | 50 | 2025 |
| Nashville, TN | $50,400 | 310 | 2025 |
| Madison, WI | $50,310 | 80 | 2025 |
| MN | $50,030 | 270 | 2025 |
| Chico, CA | $50,020 | 120 | 2025 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $49,780 | 190 | 2025 |
| Wilmington, NC | $49,590 | 30 | 2025 |
| Bridgeport, CT | $49,560 | 110 | 2025 |
| WI | $49,150 | 590 | 2025 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $48,960 | 130 | 2025 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $48,890 | 140 | 2025 |
| Evansville, IN | $48,840 | 70 | 2025 |
| ME | $48,600 | 80 | 2025 |
| Modesto, CA | $48,490 | 50 | 2025 |
Career transition paths
Compare the skills of a career you hold today with Medical Transcriptionists to see shared skills, target-only skills and skill overlap.
Build a transition comparisonCareer and skills data: O*NET 31.0.
Salary and employment data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025 (May 2025 release).
Figures are periodic published survey snapshots, not real-time market rates.