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Assessing the Salary of a Chiropractor

By Michael Dorausch, D.C.

The purpose of this article is to hopefully answer some of the many questions people have asked me over the years (now 17) regarding the earning potential that a doctor of chiropractic has.

Please note that this article is a continual work in progress and in being so it has unfinished parts. As I gather and filter through more information I will include it. If after reading through the article you feel there is a particular issue that could have been discussed, feel free to email me and I’ll consider getting into it with greater detail. In an effort to help everyone, I am addressing some of your e-mail questions on the chiropractic salaries pages. Your personal information will be kept private but the subject of your question may appear on the site. Thanks to all who have been emailing me with feedback.

Take note that I’m a full-time chiropractor in active practice. I am not a recruiter for any chiropractic school or agency and I have no desire to sell you on anything, other than yourself. If you like the content you’ve read here, find your own way to say thank you.

Chiropractors in practice

Before we get into the meat and potatoes (or tofu and broccoli) of this article let me first say that if you are considering becoming a chiropractor solely based on the thought that you can make lots of money, you may be setting yourself up for a massive let down. I have heard far too many stories of people getting into chiropractic for all the wrong reasons. When they failed, their misery and anger was directed at the very same profession that provided them an opportunity to not only live a very successful and financially rewarding life, they missed out on the unique lifestyle factor that chiropractic offers.

Pause and think about the above paragraph for a moment. I believe my advice applies to any career you may be considering. I am not you and I don’t know what it’s going to take to motivate you towards being a successful and productive individual, regardless of your chosen profession.

I can tell you this about the lifestyle chiropractic has provided me, yet it’s a bit off topic from income levels. On the day I’m writing this, I worked a total of 3.5 hours in the office. That’s my typical Tuesday (has been for nearly 20 years). I also got to meditate, go out to breakfast with a friend, go hiking with a friend, walk my dogs at the beach, have lunch with a friend, go running and workout.

We have three or four types of people primarily reading this content. The first is someone in the general public that is considering going to chiropractic school and has some questions about how much money can be made. From the e-mails I’ve received, most of your in your late teens and early 20s, but I’ve had inquiries from people of all ages. Read the entire series, there is some great information for you.

The second is a current chiropractic student or recent graduate that is seeking some answers to questions they didn’t get answers to in school. Hopefully, I get a question or two answered for you. There is also more than nine years of articles in our chiropractic news archives.

The third is the doctor in practice that may just be curious to see where they are on the earnings scale. You already know there are many different ways people practice chiropractic. If you’re an all cash wellness office don’t try to compare yourself to a no cash personal injury clinic.

The fourth is someone that does not fit into any of the above categories. If that is you and you don’t find what you are looking for, email me and I’ll see what I can do about it. Some of you may find the answers to what you’re looking for and I am working to develop subsections of this article for each individual group mentioned above so that you can hopefully get to the information you’re seeking more rapidly.

Nearly all the data supplied here is going to relate to the United States although I do communicate regularly (and get practice information from) chiropractors in Australia, Canada, Spain, South Africa, Panama, Costa Rica, Denmark, and other locations around the globe.

Okay, let’s get to the big question that most people are asking.

How much money can a chiropractor make?

Dr. Michael Dorausch has authored hundreds of articles related to health care. He is a US trained chiropractor and maintains an active practice in the beach communities (Venice, Playa Vista) of Los Angeles, California. Dr. Dorausch communicates regularly with some of the top earning chiropractors in the field. He also receives and answers e-mails regularly from chiropractic students and those that are new to the profession, many of which are related to the topic addressed here.

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