Average Salary

• In 2009, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics gathered wage information from over 200,000 radiologic technologists and technicians. It calculated that the average salary for the profession was $54,180 per year. This translates into a monthly pay packet totalling $4,515, and an hourly pay rate of $26.05. The bureau's figures correspond roughly with the average reported by wage comparison website Salary.com in 2011, which put the figure at $48,409. Radiologic technologists are also likely to receive additional benefits, such as health insurance coverage and paid vacation time.
  
  

Salary by Industry Sector

• A radiologic technologist's salary will be affected by the sector of the health-care industry she works in. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that, as of 2009, scientific research and development services offered the highest average wages, at $64,800 a year. Speciality hospitals were listed at an annual average of $58,320, while their general medical and surgical equivalents offered $54,770. Medical and diagnostic laboratories offered a rate comparable with that for positions in federal government agencies -- $57,250 and $56,140 respectively -- while outpatient care centers were listed at $52,950.
  
  

Salary by Location

• A second factor to influence a radiologic technologist's salary is geographical location. Wage comparison website SalaryExpert.com, in a survey of pay rates in several major cities, found that the average salary in Boston, Massachusetts was $89,035, and in New York city was $75,544. In contrast Orlando, Florida, was listed at $52,711. The Bureau of Labor Statistics put the San Jose, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara district of California as the most lucrative metropolitan area for a radiologic technologist to work in, with average pay of $78,300, compared to $44,660 in Jackson, Tennessee. It also listed Massachusetts as the state in which, across all industry sectors, a technologist would earn the highest wages -- $68,530. In contrast, West Virginia offered $41,400.
  
  

Outlook

• The bureau estimates that demand for radiologic technologists will increase by approximately 17 percent in the decade from 2008 to 2018. This is a faster growth rate than that predicted for the country as a whole, expected to be between 7 and 13 percent over the same time. Demand will be fuelled by the diagnostic needs of an expending aging population. Furthermore, X-rays are increasingly used to monitor the progress of treatments as well as diagnosis. As such, salary levels should remain attractive, particularly for those with experience of more than one imaging technology.