Surgical Assistants Salary in the United States
The median annual wage for surgical assistants in the U.S. is $66,800 ($32.11 per hour), according to the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 estimates.
- Median annual wage
- $66,800
- Mean annual wage
- $72,710
- Median hourly wage
- $32.11
- Employment
- 22,270
22,270 employed
Wage percentiles
| Percentile | Annual wage | Hourly wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $39,690 | $19.08 |
| 25th percentile | $50,170 | $24.12 |
| Median (50th) | $66,800 | $32.11 |
| 75th percentile | $88,010 | $42.31 |
| 90th percentile | $107,610 | $51.74 |
Highest-paying states for surgical assistants
| State | Median annual wage | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| District of Columbia | $123,390 | 90 |
| Arizona | $111,170 | — |
| Colorado | $107,440 | — |
| Nevada | $100,820 | 230 |
| New Jersey | $90,710 | — |
| South Carolina | $85,580 | 480 |
| Kentucky | $84,600 | 480 |
| Tennessee | $81,640 | 750 |
| Oregon | $80,450 | 220 |
| Illinois | $80,210 | 2,300 |
Lowest-paying states
- Oklahoma: $40,160 median annual wage
- Alabama: $41,710 median annual wage
- Utah: $44,990 median annual wage
- Missouri: $49,400 median annual wage
- Georgia: $49,520 median annual wage
About this occupation
Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons. May, in accordance with state laws, help surgeons to make incisions and close surgical sites, manipulate or remove tissues, implant surgical devices or drains, suction the surgical site, place catheters, clamp or cauterize vessels or tissue, and apply dressings to surgical site.
Typical tasks
- Cover patients with surgical drapes to create and maintain a sterile operative field.
- Coordinate or participate in the positioning of patients, using body stabilizing equipment or protective padding to provide appropriate exposure for the procedure or to protect against nerve damage or circulation impairment.
- Verify the identity of patient or operative site.
- Prepare and apply sterile wound dressings.
- Assess skin integrity or other body conditions upon completion of the procedure to determine if damage has occurred from body positioning.
- Clamp, ligate, or cauterize blood vessels to control bleeding during surgical entry, using hemostatic clamps, suture ligatures, or electrocautery equipment.
Education of the current workforce — typical entry: Postsecondary certificate
| Education level | Share of workers |
|---|---|
| Less than high school diploma | 0.8% |
| High school diploma or equivalent | 6.5% |
| Some college, no degree | 12.0% |
| Associate's degree | 8.5% |
| Bachelor's degree | 30.8% |
| Master's degree | 34.9% |
| Doctoral or professional degree | 6.5% |
Occupation profile data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor.
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About this data
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics — data period May 2025, retrieved August 13, 2026.
- CareerOneStop Occupation Profiles — data period 2026-08, retrieved August 14, 2026.
Figures are shown exactly as published by the source or derived by the documented formulas on our methodology page. Where a source suppresses an estimate, we show “—” rather than a substitute value.