Grey’s Anatomy: Which Character Has The Best Paid Job?

Medicine is a lucrative profession that only attacks the brightest of minds. As expected, the salaries of doctors and surgeons are usually higher than those of many other professionals. As a medical drama, Grey’s Anatomy is full of surgeons. Even though they like to live modestly, their bank accounts are undoubtedly quite healthy.

However, not all positions in the medical field are equal, and some doctors handle more sensitive cases than others, and, as a result, they get paid a little bit more. Being in a leadership position in a hospital also enables a doctor to earn a little bit more than their similarly-skilled colleagues. So, who has more dollars than they can count, and how much does Meredith Grey make?

Updated on December 12th, 2021 by Kayleigh Banks: With so many major characters having left Grey Sloan Memorial, including Jackson Avery and Tom Koracick, fans have seen huge changes to the power hierarchy. With so many job positions available, fans have seen a few characters either receive promotions or change specialties in order to find their passion for the job again. Ultimately, this means that several characters salaries, including Jo Wilson, have changed dramatically (with some becoming even richer and more successful than others). 

Taryn Helm

While Taryn Helm hasn’t had many independent storylines of their own, one thing that fans have noticed is that she is going to be one of the most promising surgeons in the years to come. As a resident, Helm has had the pleasure of learning from some of Grey’s Anatomy’s best general surgeons, including Meredith Grey, Richard Webber, and Miranda Bailey.

Although she might only be earning around $64,000 a year (according to the medical site, The Do), many fans believe that she will eventually be earning five times as much in the years to come if she continues to succeed with her career.   

Jo Wilson

Although Jo had once been a top General surgeon and attending, the 17th season saw her decide to drop this specialty in favor of becoming an OB/GYN. Ever since Jo has become a resident again, viewers are delighted to see how she has become a lot happier and passionate about her career (especially since Jo had been through a lot of heartbreaking events in her life).

While Jo wouldn’t be earning as much as her other colleagues and friends since her salary is set around $296,101 a year, this isn’t something she would really care about. Although she does have enough money saved up in case of emergencies, Jo isn’t greedy or shallow. For her, helping someone or bringing new life into the world means a lot more to her.

April Kepner

After a lengthy absence, April recently returned to the show in its seventeenth season. She had previously resigned from her position as the attending trauma surgeon in order to focus on charity work across clinics for the homeless in Seattle.

She also served as Chief Resident during her first stint in the series. A trauma surgeon in America makes an average of $418,674 a year. The fact that April is willing to let go of that much money to help less-fortunate citizens is admirable.

Owen Hunt

Owen is currently serving as the Head of Trauma after leaving his previous position of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital’s Chief of General Surgery. His career is full of highlights; he was an army surgeon many years ago, but he was discharged after his entire platoon ended up dead.

The surgeon is known for his ability to improvise. He is able to use simple items such as pens during surgery when the proper equipment is unavailable. Since the average salary of a trauma surgeon is around $418,674, it’s likely that Owen just gets a bit more than that since he is the Head of the department.

Alex Karev

Alex did a great job as the Chief of Surgery at Pacific Northwest General Hospital. However, he soon found that he had to resign himself from this position when the Catherine Fox Foundation bought the hospital and only kept parts of it open. Since Alex had been fired from Grey-Sloan Memorial, many fans wondered where his career would take him next.

Eventually, Alex revealed to his loved ones that he was leaving and had taken a position at Shawnee Memorial as an attending Pediatric surgeon. This would mean that he would be earning around $464,762 a year. Considering how hard he worked to make him one of the most prestigious surgeons, Alex deserved every bit of success that headed his way.

Miranda Bailey

Miranda Bailey is the current Chief of Surgery at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, a position she inherited from Owen, who stepped down. She had initially been passed over for the position by Richard, but she eventually got it. Miranda has had an interesting career.

Yet, she is also charitable, as she once opened a free clinic at Seattle Grace to care for patients who couldn’t afford treatment. Other than that, she’s been focused on her job, which does pay well, with an average annual sum of $477,033.

Arizona Robbins

Arizona is also a board member. Her daily job is that of Head of Fetal Surgery and the Attending Pediatric Surgeon, which she accrued after the death of Dr. Jordan Kenley. Her salary ranges between $480,000 and $500,000.

Arizona is said to have been extremely bright from a young age. Not only was she the best student in her class, but she was also Chief Resident at Johns Hopkins Hospital during her fifth year in medical school. When she first gets hired, Richard tells Bailey “she’s the best that anyone’s seen in a long time.”

Atticus Lincoln

Although Atticus Lincoln might not have been on the show as long as the other surgeons, it’s not surprising that he is close to becoming one of the most likable characters on Grey’s Anatomy. Ever since he appeared in season 15, fans have been highly impressed by his talents and skills as Link has proven to be one of the best and most underrated surgeons the show has ever had.

Although there haven’t been as many Orthopedic cases as General ones, Link’s specialty is still the toughest and most complicated so it shouldn’t be a shock that he earns around $504,250 a year.

Richard Webber

Richard has been a boss for most of his career. That means he’s been earning well for most of his life. At the moment, he is a Residency Program Director and attending general surgeon at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. He is also the Chief Medical Officer at the Catherine Fox Foundation.

Previously, he served as Chief of Surgery at both Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital and Seattle Grace Hospital. The average salary for a Residency Program Director is $190,000, while the salary for a Chief Medical Officer is $420,290 on average. In total, Richard makes about $610,290. That’s definitely a respectable sum.

Meredith Grey

The Head of General Surgery and board member at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital has had quite the dream career. She begins her professional journey as a surgical intern at Seattle Grace Hospital as a surgical intern where life is a bit easy for her compared to other interns, as her mother is respected in the industry.

She then joins the neurosurgery team, but, after making a mistake and being outed by a drunk Alex, she opts to specialize in general surgery. The average salary for a Head Of General Surgery salary in the United States is $477,033. Senior doctors who serve on hospital boards earn up to an additional $340,000 a year. This brings the total to $817.033.

Cristina Yang

Before her departure from the show, Cristina was a Chief Medical Officer and a Cardiothoracic attending of Grey-Sloan Memorial. While it is unknown what her new salary would be at the Klausman Institute, Cristina would still have a reasonable amount saved up due to the fact that she earned an average $488,700 as a cardiothoracic surgeon and $420,290 as a Chief Medical Officer a year. This means she would have been earning around $908,990 a year.

Cristina decided to become a surgeon after her father bled to death in front of her. Early in her career, she joins Seattle Grace as a surgical intern. She then joined The Mayo Clinic on a cardiothoracic surgery fellowship. She then rejoins Seattle Grace before going to work in Switzerland thanks to her ex-fiancé Preston Burke.

Derek Shepherd

Derek has quite the resume. A world-famous neurosurgeon, he serves as the Head of Neurosurgery, as well as the board director at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital before his untimely death. Being a star surgeon has its advantages. It’s said that his services resulted in $2 million dollars worth of yearly revenue for the hospital.

He even manages to develop brain sensors, a feat that catches the attention of the President of the United States, who requests him to spearhead a sensitive brain mapping project. The former Head of Neurosurgery made an average of $630,801 a year, but being on the board brings in an additional $340,000. His participation in special projects takes him near the million-dollar mark.

Jackson Avery

After joining Grey Sloan from Mercy West Medical Center during the merger of the two hospitals, Jackson went on to become the attending ENT (Otolaryngology Department) and the Head of Plastic Surgery. This was a position that earned him $407,148 a year.

However, after Jackson decided to leave Seattle to take over the Catherine Fox Foundation, he is likely the richest character in the entire show. Since the company owns “30% of the hospitals in the USA,” controls “480 million dollars for the advancement of medicine” and Jackson is a founding member and the Chairman, it’s likely that he will be earning a few millions.

About The Author

Philip Etemesi
(1212 Articles Published)

Philip Etemesi is an author, journalist, screenwriter and film critic based in Nairobi. Kenya. As a child, he preferred watching movies like The Goodfellas instead of Home Alone. His girlfriend constantly has to pull him from the front of the TV but he just keeps returning. Stubborn dude! An animal lover, Philip also has a pet giraffe called Refu.

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