Salary and Benefits

DVMs—both owners and associates—and RVTs have reported increased salaries since 2019.

Among DVMs

For the first time since the inaugural survey, a majority (62%) of non-owner DVMs reported earning more than $120,000, with a full third (35%) reporting earning $160,000 or more—more than double the number of non-owner DVMs who reported making more than $160,000 in 2019. The lowest income range, less than $80,000 annually, also saw a drop from 17% in 2019 to 12% in 2022. The percentage of non-owner DVMs reporting income in this range has dropped by nearly two-thirds since 2013, when 38% of non-owners reported income under $80,000.

While earnings are driven largely by hours (part-time non-owners primarily make under $120,000 per year while full-time non-owners make more than $120,000) salary increases are evident for both full-time and part-time nonowners. The percent of full-time, non-owner DVMs who reported salaries over $160,000 rose from 18% in 2019 to 43% in 2022. While there was a smaller increase among part-time non-owners, the percentage reporting income between $81,000 and $120,000 annually rose from 28% in 2019 to 39% in 2022.

Practice owner salaries have also increased, though not quite to the same extent. For the first time since 2013, more than half of practice owners (53%) reported income over $160,000, up from 38% in 2019. The proportion of non-owners who reported income under $80,000 annually dropped by half from 17% in 2019 to 8% in 2022.

2019 Combined Owner/Non-Owner Salary Among DVMs

Salary by Gender

Looking at salary by gender, a pay gap persists but has decreased among DVM non-owners/ associates more than it has among practice owners. In 2022, 71% of male associates reported salaries over $121,000 per year compared to 65% of women, while in 2019, 54% of male associates reported salaries over $121,000 compared to just 33% of women.

2022 Combined Owner/Non-Owner Salary Among DVMs

2022 Salary by Years of Experience Combined Owner/Non-Owner Salary Among DVMs

Among DVM practice owners, 80% of male owners in 2022 reported salaries over $121,000 compared to 55% of women in the same range, while in 2019, 62% of male owners reported salaries over $121,000 compared to 48% of women. This marks a 25-point gap in 2022, compared to a 14-point gap in 2019.

Among associates, pay equity improves with years of experience. Among those making more than $161,000 per year, there is only an eight-point gap between the percentage of male associates with more than twenty years of experience (45% of whom are in this salary range) and female associates with the same level of experience (37% of whom are in this range). Among owners, the gap is fairly consistent regardless of years of experience.

Salary Among RVTs

More than two-thirds of RVTs (71%) still report salaries under $61,000 annually, though this number has steadily decreased since the first RVT survey in 2016 (down from 85% reporting salaries less than $61k annually in 2019, and 90% reporting that in 2016). The $41,000 to $60,000 annual income range is now the most commonly reported among RVTs, with 39% saying their salary falls within this band.

Benefits Among DVM Associates

Benefits Among DVM Owners

Salary Among RVTs

Benefits

Benefits have remained fairly consistent for DVMs since the 2019 survey. Continuing education registration fees remain the most reported common benefit, with 80% of non-owner DVMs saying they receive this benefit and 74% of owners saying they receive it.

Non-owner DVMs reported a small increase in benefits like vacation, health, dental, and vision insurance, and particularly in 401(k)s, where the percentage reporting this benefit increased from 59% in 2019 to 72% in 2022. Owner DVMs remained slightly more consistent, but there was also an increase among owners who reported maintaining a 401(k)—from 30% in 2019 to 49% in 2022.

Benefits Among RVTs

Benefits

Among

RVTs

Benefits have also remained consistent among RVTs, with vacation being the most common (77%), followed by health insurance (75%) and continuing education registration fees (71%). RVTs have also reported increases in receiving benefits like licensing fees being paid (70%, up from 58% in 2019) and the availability of retirement funds like 401(k)s (67%, up from 56% in 2019).

Revenue and Profits

Veterinary practice owners in California have reported increased revenue in 2022 compared to the 2019 survey. This year, 33% of practice owners reported annual gross revenue of more than $2 million dollars per year, a seven-point increase since 2019 (26%). Only a quarter of practice owners reported gross annual revenue under $800,000 per year, while the percentage reporting income between $801,000 and $2,000,000 remained consistent with 2019 at 37%.

Percentage of Owners Reporting Increased Profitability

The percentage of practice owners who reported a profitability increase over the last two years has also improved since 2019, with nearly two-thirds (63%) reporting increased profitability compared to 57% in 2019.