2025 MGMA Management and Staff Compensation Data Report

Key Insights: 2025 Management and Staff Compensation Data Report

A structural reset is underway for pay benchmarks across management, administrative, and clinical support roles in America’s medical practices, according to the latest benchmarks from the 2025 MGMA DataDive Management and Staff Compensation survey data set, compiled from more than 4,300 medical groups nationwide.  

A new report detailing key findings from this year’s data, titled Talent Tug-of-War: Budget Breakers and Opportunity Makers, spotlights a sharp rise in healthcare management and support staff pay, surpassing most increases seen in the past decade. These shifts mark a new reality that practices cannot ignore when planning budgets or hiring strategies. 

Recruiting is harder, competing offers are inflating salaries, and experienced staff are increasingly hard to replace. The latest upward trend in compensation is not a response to short-term labor disruptions, but rather a reflection of longer-term recalibration of the workforce. In addition to sustained wage pressures, medical groups require new frameworks in planning, budgeting, and retention strategies to navigate regional pay disparities and skillset-specific bidding wars.  

Pay Growth Accelerating 

Between 2015 and 2024, wages rose significantly across all areas of ambulatory care. The biggest jumps were seen in management and nursing roles: 

• Executive Management: +45.6% median compensation growth (2015–2024) 
• Senior Management: +38.8% 
• General Management: +39.6% 
• Supervisors: +36.3% 

Administrative support roles also saw major gains: Pay for general accounting staff jumped 52.1% for the decade, and managed care administrative roles rose 39.1% — clear signs that practices are placing more value on staff who handle finances and payer operations. 

The largest increases were seen in clinical roles: 

• Triage Nurses: +84.2% growth in median compensation over 10 years 
• Registered Nurses: +64.5% 
• Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs): +49.0% 
• Patient Care Assistants (PCAs): Down -0.4% YoY (2023–2024), though still up over five years 

These gains aren’t just about salary — they also reflect growing use of hiring bonuses, retention perks, and richer benefits to hold onto essential staff. 

Three Warning Signs for Practice Leaders 

What stands out in this year’s findings is not just the size of compensation increases, — it’s the clear signal that legacy compensation models are breaking down: 

• Tenure compression: Some long-serving staff now earn less than newer hires doing the same job. This “loyalty pay gap” can lead to morale issues and departures if left unaddressed. Reconciling these imbalances can be a major part of retaining institutional knowledge. 
• Diminishing returns on degrees: While advanced degrees still offer a pay bump, that edge is shrinking. The ROI on master’s and doctoral degrees has declined. Many practices may instead prioritize certifications or practical experience — such as payer contract analysis, AI know-how, or expertise in chronic care management — over generalized advanced degrees alone. 
• Geographic pay divides: Practices in the Western United States are paying significantly more than those in the South and East, making it harder for some regions to recruit. To stay competitive, lower-paying regions may lean more heavily on remote/hybrid flexibility, signing bonuses, and other incentives to be competitive. 
  

Budget Implications and Compensation Strategy Evolution 

For managers and executives planning next year’s budgets, the old rules may no longer apply. Traditional merit increases of 2% to 3% likely won’t keep pace with market trends — shortages of qualified healthcare workers will persist even as other sectors are experiencing a “pink-slip economy” that softens the job market. MGMA’s report outlines several strategies emerging among leading practices: 

• Re-benchmarking pay bands annually to align with national and regional data 
• Investing in strategic skill-building programs for staff taking on more complex roles (e.g., payer contract analysts, data operations, patient access leaders) 
• Using flexible pay strategies, such as bonuses tied to billing cycle performance or patient access metrics 
• Targeted equity adjustments to address loyalty pay gaps 

Leaders must also account for cost-of-living increases and growing competition from retail clinics and virtual care providers — both of which influence candidate expectations and turnover risk. 

A Defining Moment for Workforce Strategy 

The Talent Tug-of-War report arrives at a critical time: Medical groups are facing escalating costs, staffing instability, and evolving care delivery expectations. MGMA’s advice to healthcare leaders? Don’t just chase the market. Build a forward-looking strategy that makes your organization a place where talented staff want to stay.