How Much Does a Rad Tech Make in the United States in 2026?

Hospitals, clinics, and imaging centers depend on radiologic technologists for the images doctors read to make a diagnosis. A radiographer, also called an x-ray tech, positions patients, runs the equipment, and keeps radiation exposure low. Typical pay is $38.52 an hour, or $80,110 a year, according to the latest government wage data (May 2025).

That figure is a midpoint. What a radiology technologist takes home depends on the state, the type of facility, years on the job, and any added certifications. The field employs 230,490 people nationwide across hospitals, physician offices, and outpatient centers, so real paychecks cover a wide range.

A typical Rad Tech earns $38.52 per hour, or $80,110 over a full year of full-time work. Divided out, the annual figure comes to about $6,676 a month or $1,541 a week before taxes. Both assume steady full-time hours.

The range runs from $55,980 a year at the entry end to more than $118,660 for the top 10% of earners. Experience, setting, and state account for that $62,680 gap. A new graduate in a rural clinic and a senior tech in a California hospital sit at opposite ends of it.

New graduates start at the bottom of the range, where entry-level positions typically offer around $26.91 an hour, or $55,980 a year. After a few years of steady work and reliable call coverage, pay tends to move toward $31.16 an hour, or $64,810, and then toward the $80,110 typical mark. Early raises come from time served more than from new credentials.

Experienced Rad Techs often clear $47.47 an hour, or $98,750 a year. The top 10% of earners make over $57.05 an hour, or $118,660. Techs in that group usually hold more than one modality certification, work in a high-paying state, and have spent years covering nights, weekends, and call.

Typical annual pay was $60,510 in 2019; by 2025 it reached $80,110. That is a gain of $19,600, or 32.4%, over the period. The most recent year accounted for $2,450 of that, a 3.2% rise. Both endpoints are national medians.

Of the $19,600 total, $18,740 arrived between 2021 and 2025; the years before that were close to flat. Demand for imaging staff outran the supply of trained techs, and wages followed. National figures still move slowly, and a single hospital in a single town may not track them.

Where you work is often the single biggest factor in pay. California leads the states at $121,260 a year, or $58.30 an hour, followed by Massachusetts at $103,620, the District of Columbia at $102,770, Oregon at $102,290, and Washington at $102,090. Metro pay runs higher still: Vallejo, California tops the list at $160,380, with San Jose at $154,850, San Francisco at $141,780, Santa Rosa at $137,530, and Sacramento at $135,880.

Pay is lowest in Mississippi at $59,300 a year, or $28.51 an hour, with Alabama at $60,700 and Arkansas at $63,640. The spread from the top-paying state to the lowest is $61,960. The biggest workforces sit in California with 20,900 techs, Texas with 20,250 at $78,630, and Florida with 16,470 at $76,750. High-paying states also cost more to live in, so weigh rent and taxes. The table below lists every state.

Most Rad Techs work in hospitals. General medical and surgical hospitals employ 135,290 of them at a typical $38.75 an hour, or $80,610 a year. Physicians' offices come second with 38,350 workers, where typical pay is $35.84 an hour and $74,540 a year, about 7 percent below the national figure.

The best-paying common setting is the federal executive branch, where typical pay runs $46.87 an hour, or $97,490 a year, about 22 percent above the national figure. Outpatient care centers follow at $40.73 and $84,720, staffing roles under employment services at $38.80 and $80,710, and diagnostic laboratories at $37.69 and $78,400. The table below shows each setting.

Hospital imaging runs around the clock, so the schedule itself affects pay. Evening, night, weekend, and on-call differentials are common, and they are paid on top of the base rate. A tech who regularly covers overnight or holiday shifts can end the year well above a colleague on straight days. The amounts vary by employer.

ARRT certification, the R.T.(R) credential, is the national standard for radiographers. Most states license radiologic technologists and require ARRT certification or a state exam, though a few do not license at all; confirm the rules with your state. An associate degree is the most common entry path, usually about two years, though bachelor's programs exist.

Added modality certifications tend to raise pay. CT, MRI, mammography, and interventional radiography are the usual next steps, and techs who hold two or more can cover more of a department's schedule. Employers in short-staffed departments often pay more for that flexibility. Lead tech and shift supervisor duties can add to the base rate as well.

Radiography opens the door to better-paid imaging work. MRI Technologist pays $95,480, $15,370 more than the $80,110 a Radiologic Technologist earns, after post-primary MRI certification that commonly takes one to two years. Nuclear Medicine Technologist pays $101,370, $5,890 more, through a certificate or degree program of commonly one to two years. Radiation Therapist pays $105,310, another $3,940, through a certificate or bachelor's program, commonly one to four years.

Most techs make these moves while working. Programs often allow part-time study, and some employers offer tuition help, though the details vary by hospital. Years spent positioning patients, managing contrast, and reading orders carry over directly into MRI or nuclear medicine work.

Rad Techs typically earn $80,110 a year, up from $60,510 in 2019, and BLS expects modest growth with about 13,000 openings a year through 2035. Where you land in that range depends mostly on your state, your setting, and the certifications you add. Next steps: check your state's salary page for local figures, and look up licensing requirements where you plan to work.