Your Medical Billing & Coding Salary Guide

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Medical billing and coding is a stable, in-demand job that can be perfect for those who enjoy working in an office setting with the potential to work remotely. As a medical coder, you’ll play a vital role in healthcare, ensuring patients are billed accurately and insurance claims are filed appropriately. But what does it take to become a medical coder? What’s the salary like? Learn everything you need to know in our comprehensive guide to becoming a medical billing and coding professional. You’ll learn about topics like

What is medical coding?

Medical coding is the process of translating procedures, diagnoses, prognoses, medical services, and medical equipment into codes using numbers and letters. These codes are used by medical professionals, healthcare administrators, and insurance companies to properly process invoices and accurately bill the appropriate parties for medical costs.

Because the job involves specialized knowledge, such as an understanding of different codes and how to use them, most medical coders need some formal education in the field. Usually, this education can be completed as a career diploma or certificate within a little more than a year. Once you’re working in the field, you may also be required to pursue continuing education on a regular basis to stay up to date with the newest codes, policies, and medical procedures.

While you don’t necessarily need experience in the medical field before becoming a medical coder, many coding professionals start out as nurses, medical office assistants or managers, or in other healthcare jobs before transitioning to coding. If you don’t have experience in the medical field before working as a medical coder, earning your certification can help you stand out when applying for jobs.

Becoming a medical coder can be a rewarding job for those who want to work in healthcare but don’t want to work directly with patients. Medical coders can find jobs in doctors’ offices, hospitals, healthcare systems, insurance companies, and more! Since the day-to-day job of medical coders is more administrative than clinical, many in the field also work from home on flexible schedules.

Medical coding vs. medical billing

Often used interchangeably, medical coding and medical billing are very different jobs. While medical coding involves translating information from medical records into code, medical billing uses those codes to properly and accurately create invoices and bills for insurance companies and patients. Together, both jobs play a vital role in ensuring that the revenue side of healthcare runs smoothly!

If you’re trying to decide which career is right for you, consider a few factors like

• Whether or not you want to work with patients. Medical coders rarely, if ever, work with patients, while billers will interact with patients for billing and insurance reimbursement purposes.
• How much math plays a part in your work. Medical billers use math much more than a coder would since they’re tasked with calculating billing statements and other financial documents.
• Certification. There are different types of certifications for billers versus coders, as well as certifications that cover both specialties.

You can also narrow down your career choice by doing a quick job search for both positions. Are there more medical coding jobs in your area? Or more remote work options? How many medical billing jobs are available near you and what kind of environment would you be required to work in? Understanding the job outlook in your area can help you make a clear decision about which role might be the best fit for you.

Medical billing and coding salary

As of 2026, the median medical billing and coding salary was $50,250 per year or $24.16 per hour, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

What are the highest paying states for medical billers and coders?

The salary for medical billing and coding professionals can vary by state. This is due to the demand for medical coders, the overall economy of the state, and other factors such as the number of jobs available in the field. As of May 2026, according to occupational employment and wage statistics, the five states that offer the highest salary for medical billers and coders include

1. District of Columbia. Washington, D.C. has the highest medical billing and coding salary nationwide. Medical billing and coding specialists can earn an average of $76,990 per year.
2. California. In California, medical coders earn an average salary of $68,080 per year.
3. Washington. In Washington state, the average medical coding and billing professional can expect to earn around $68,020 per year.
4. Hawaii. Medical coders and billers in Hawaii can earn an average yearly salary of $64,690.
5. New York. Most medical coders in New York can earn an average salary of $64,550 per year.

How to increase your salary as a medical coder or biller

To increase your salary as a medical coder or biller, you should earn more credentials, gain more work experience, or both.

Experience is the most common way to earn a higher salary in any industry! The longer you stay with a particular employer, the more you’ll know about how they run their business, different policies, and how to best use your medical billing and coding skills on the job. By proving that you’re dedicated to your work and to learning and growing in the field, you can increase your salary over time. And, if you decide to look for a coding position elsewhere, the experience you’ve gained in your previous coding jobs could help you stand out from other applicants and qualify for a higher starting pay.

Certification is also a great way to earn more money - and stand out when you’re applying for jobs. In fact, having nationally recognized credentials on your resume can have a pretty significant impact on your pay. According to the American Academy of Professional Coders’ (AAPC) 2026 Medical Coding and Billing Salary Report, medical records specialists like those in coding and billing earn as much as 20.7% more per year than those in the field who aren’t certified.

Read more: 10 Top Healthcare Certifications That Pay Well

Can you earn more money in medical coding if you go back to school?

Yes, you can earn more money as a medical coding or billing specialist if you have more education on your resume. While a degree is definitely not a requirement to get an entry-level medical coding job, in the long run, furthering your education can positively impact your earning potential. Going back to the AAPC’s 2026 Medical Coding and Billing Salary Report, medical records specialists with a bachelor’s degree reported earning around 10.9% more than colleagues with no college degree in 2025. On average, that’s a difference of about $3 dollars more per hour.

Average medical billing and coding salary by workplace size

Another factor in determining your potential salary as a medical coder is the size of the practice or business you work for. Larger practices or medical facilities are likely to pay more for experienced coders than smaller practices due to the revenue they bring and the increased workload you may be expected to take on.

Medical coders who work for larger healthcare systems can expect to earn more than someone working for a small doctor’s office with an average annual salary of $67,657, according to the Medical Coding and Billing Salary Report.

What is the typical salary for medical billing and coding specialists with experience?

Typically, salary levels increase about $5,000 for every four years of work experience you have on average. From the beginning of your career to the end, assuming you spend about 30 years in the field, you could see as much as 77% salary growth over that time.

How to become a medical coder

To become a medical coder, you first need a high school diploma or GED. These are necessary for taking the next steps toward a rewarding, in-demand career in healthcare. From there, you’ll want to pursue a diploma or certificate program in medical billing and coding.

Note: A high school diploma increases your potential to earn more income*. If you haven’t earned yours yet, it’s never too late! Learn more about our self-paced, online high school diploma.

Medical billing and coding involves understanding medical terminology, diagnoses, diseases, and the proper codes used to bill insurance companies and patients. While you’re not expected to memorize every medical code and term, knowing how to properly use them and look them up is vital to being successful on the job.

Besides technical skills like understanding and translating codes, a successful medical biller or coder needs to have soft skills such as being detail-oriented, adaptable, and personable.

According to Jaime Nguyen, MD, MS, MPH and Director of Allied Health Programs for Penn Foster, in order to be a great medical biller and coder “you have to really enjoy detail and like communicating with people. And like communicating with different parties, and really wanting to help people. If I’m a patient and I’m ill, one of the most stressful pieces of [the process] is understanding the financial piece of it. How much is my insurance going to cover, how much am I going to owe for this medical bill?

A great medical biller or coder should be able to explain what is covered by the patient’s insurance and what the patient is responsible for.”

Further, a great medical biller or coder should love learning and be willing to be a lifelong learner! Says Nguyen, “Many of the code sets get updated every single year. You have to be up to date on them and the regulations and willing to learn them. Otherwise, you may not be billing for medical services correctly and be either underbilling or overbilling.”

In addition to training and education, earning industry-recognized certifications can be beneficial to your career. While certification isn’t required for the job, “I can’t imagine a potential employer hiring someone without certification,” Nguyen said.

Medical billing and coding requirements

The requirements for becoming a medical biller and coding include both soft skills and career-specific technical skills. Soft skills are things that every employer looks for and can be transferrable to any career or job.

Hard skills, or job-specific skills, are those things you need to know for the specific role you’re working in.

Soft skills for medical coders

Successful medical billers and coders should have the following soft skills to be successful on the job:

• Communication skills. Medical coders need to have strong verbal and written communication skills in order to effectively do their job. On a regular basis, coders will need to communicate with physicians, medical providers, patients, and insurance company representatives in order to ensure codes and bills are processed properly and accurately.
• Customer service skills. While medical coders don’t necessarily work directly with patients on a regular basis, there may be times when you’ll need to speak with patients or insurance company representatives to discuss billing and procedures. Strong customer service skills can make the process much easier!
• Detail-orientation. When working with complicated coding procedures, being detail-oriented can help you keep everything in order and process codes and bills correctly.
• Adaptability. Being able to adapt to different environments and working processes is important when you’re a medical coder. It’s especially vital because codes are updated each year and successful coders need to be willing to adapt to these new codes as soon as they can.

Industry-specific skills for medical coders

Medical coders need a certain set of skills to do their jobs effectively. These skills include

• Knowledge of medical terminology and body systems. In order to properly code medical procedures and diagnoses, you need a strong understanding of medical terminology and the body systems that doctors and medical professionals will be referring to.
• Understanding of codes and medical coding. Medical billers and coders need to know ICD and CPT codes in order to properly do their jobs.
• Understanding of medical office procedures. Whether or not you work in a medical office or work from home, you’ll need to know basic medical office procedures such as using certain office software, scheduling software, and more.
• Knowledge of electronic medical records and how to use them. Electronic medical records are used to record patient histories and have a shareable record that physicians and other healthcare providers can reference. As a medical coder, you’ll need to understand how to access and update electronic medical records with billing information.

Is medical coding hard?

Yes, medical coding can be hard. With the amount of knowledge you need to work in an entry-level position, learning how to become a medical coder can seem daunting. And the learning doesn’t stop when you finish your diploma or training program. With codes and policies being updated every year, you’ll have to be prepared to relearn some codes and learn new ones regularly.

But if you’re interested in working in the healthcare industry, the hard work is worth it! Skilled, certified medical coders are in-demand so learning what you need to start a career in the field can be difficult, but in the end it’s something that can help you find the job you love. 

How long does it take to become a medical coder?

It can take anywhere from several months to almost two years to become a medical coder. The length of time it takes you to prepare for this career can depend on several factors, including where you decide to earn your diploma and whether or not you are planning to become certified.

Generally, taking an online medical billing and coding training program can provide the quickest route to becoming a professional medical coder. With a program like Penn Foster’s Medical Billing and Coding Career Diploma, you can work through your online coding classes at your own pace, around your schedule. That means, if you have the time, you can work on your studies every day and complete your program faster than the average 12-16 months it usually takes students.*

After completing your program, you can go right into preparing for and taking your certification exam! Once you add your diploma and certification to your resume, you’re ready to start applying for jobs.

How to get into medical coding

The best way to get your foot in the door as a medical coder is to get the right education, earn certification, and find an entry-level healthcare job. Many medical coders may not even start their careers by working in medical billing and coding; they get their start by working as a medical office assistant, transcriptionist, or another position. From there, with the right training and experience, they can move into a coding role.

For those who do begin their career in a medical coding role, they’ll often find themselves in very entry-level positions.

“To enter the field, most people have to start at entry-level and that usually means a medical office,” advises Jaime Nguyen.

“Being a medical biller and coder in a medical office is different from working in a hospital. Often, the natural trajectory when starting a career in the field for a medical biller or coder is in a medical office and then going into a larger healthcare system or hospital.”

How fast can you start a medical billing and coding career?

Generally, it’s possible for many people to start a medical billing and coding career within a year or less. However, the length of time it takes can really vary on a few different factors. When you’re trying to figure out how long it can take you to start a career in this field, you want to think about:

• The time it will take to complete any training program(s) you sign up for
• The time it will take to sit for and pass any certification exam(s)
• The time it will take to search job openings, draft resumes and cover letters, submit applications, attend interviews, and secure the job

Are online programs faster than in-person options?

Yes, online medical billing and coding programs can generally be faster than in-person options. On the other hand, they could also take longer. It all really depends on the program you choose, how much time you have to dedicate to your studies, and whether your program is self-paced or not. Additionally, if you’re a quick learner, it may take you less time to finish an online program than someone who may need to process what they learn over a longer period. At the end of the day, everyone learns differently, so there is really no firm yes or no answer here.

How quickly can you start earning as a medical biller or coder?

It is possible that you could start earning as a medical biller or coder within a year. However, again, the time it takes really depends on you, your training program, the certifications you pursue, the jobs you apply for, and other factors. If you want to make sure you can try to start qualifying for jobs and getting paid for medical coding as soon as possible, some tips to help include

1. Finding a self-paced, online training program.
2. Spending as much time as possible studying and taking exams in your program so you can finish as quickly as possible.
3. Preparing for and taking certification exams as soon as you are eligible.
4. Preparing resumes and cover letters for job applications in advance.
5. Applying for medical billing and coding jobs as soon as you are able.
6. Following up on applications regularly.
7. Practice interview techniques to increase your chances of getting the job.

There’s still no guarantee, of course, that the process will be super quick, but doing as much as you can to speed it up can be helpful!

Do medical coders work from home?

More than 50% of full-time medical coders currently work from home, with only 17% reporting that they worked completely on-site in an office or hospital setting. Since most of the work of a medical coder is administrative and doesn’t involve directly working with patients, there’s a lot of flexibility in where you work.

However, a medical coder new to the field may not have the option to work from home – at first. Generally, unless you are hired as a remote worker, it may take time and experience for you to be able to work remotely if your employer offers that option. But because of the use of electronic health records and advances in technology, the number of coders working from home can only be expected to grow.

“With experience, many medical billers and coders are able to work remotely, which attracts a lot of people to the field. With electronic health records, we now have secure access to patient’s medical records and are able to work from home. In fact, many billers and coders do work remotely in different settings, including hospitals and outsourcing companies,” Nguyen said. “But it all comes down to gaining enough work experience to have the privilege and responsibility of working from home.” 

Do you need to be certified to be a medical coding or billing specialist?

No, you don’t need to be certified to be a medical billing and coding specialist but not having certification can put you at a disadvantage when applying for jobs or even set you back when trying to get a pay raise. These days, 68% of employers actually require billing and coding specialists to have certification and 89% said that they would be more likely to hire someone with certifications over someone without, according to the National Healthcareer Association’s latest Industry Outlook Report.

There are several different certifications you can pursue to strengthen your resume and show employers you know your coding and billing, but a few of the most common and industry-recognized include

• Certified Billing & Coding Specialist (CBCS) exam offered by the National Healthcareer Association (NHA). The CBCS exam is an industry-recognized certification. To sit for the exam, candidates must have a high school diploma and have completed a training program in medical billing, medical coding, or medical records management. For those who graduate from the Medical Billing and Coding Program at Penn Foster, the cost of the exam and the exam prep package is covered by tuition.
• Certified Professional Coder (CPC) exam offered by AAPC (American Academy of Professional Coders). The CPC exam is another industry-recognized credential that can be beneficial to starting a medical coding career. The most popular coding certification, the CPC exam is right for coders who are interested in working in an outpatient setting. To sit for the exam, it’s recommended that you have at least two years of experience in the field, have taken an applicable training course, and you’re required to be a member of the AAPC.  For those who take our Medical Coding Professional Program, your tuition includes the cost of two exam attempts, a student AAPC membership, and the AAPC Practicode course.
  
  Read more: CPC Exam Guide: Requirements, Costs, and Tips to Pass on Your First Try
• Coding Associate (CCA) exams offered by the AHIMA (American Health Information Management Association). The CCA exam is perfect for those who want an entry-level credential. The exam tests for coding competency in a hospital or physician’s office. To sit for the exam, you need to have a high school diploma or equivalent and apply to sit for the test through AHIMA’s website at least 6 weeks in advance of your preferred testing date. Although not required, AHIMA recommends you have at least 6 months of on-the-job experience and have completed a recognized training program.

To sit for any certification exam, you’ll generally need to pay for the test and, depending on your level of skill and knowledge, any practice tests you need to prepare. Most exams range in cost from $200-400.

How to decide with coding certification is right for you

With several certification exams to choose from, you may be unsure which coding certification is the best one to take to reach your career goals. The best way to narrow down your options is to consider the pros and cons of each exam. You’ll want to consider things like

• Exam cost. Certification exams in any industry aren’t cheap. When deciding which exam is best for you, make sure you know how much each exam costs. Most range from $200 to $400 dollars for each exam. If you fail an exam, you’ll need to pay the same amount to retake it.
• Exam requirements. Do you meet the requirements for the exam you want to take? Some require you to have only a high school diploma while others require documented work experience, formal education in medical coding, or membership in the organization that offers the exam.
• Your career goals. Different exams can suit different career goals. Determine where you see your medical coding career path going. Do you want to work for physician’s offices, or would you prefer to work in a hospital or larger healthcare system?

Is medical billing and coding right for you?

Medical billing and coding is an in-demand career that’s expected to grow over the next decade. If you’re looking for a career in the medical field that is focused more on administrative duties and less on direct patient care, becoming a medical coder could be the perfect job for you.

Medical coding is a great fit for people who

• Like administrative work. Medical coding is an administrative role that involves paperwork, following office procedures, and other administrative tasks.
• Want to work in an office. If you want to work in an office setting, one in which you aren’t expected to be on your feet constantly, becoming a medical coding professional could be a great fit. Medical coders will often work at a desk for their entire shift.
• Want to work a steady schedule. Unlike other healthcare jobs that require more flexibility in scheduling, most medical coders can be confident they’ll work a steady 9-5 schedule. This schedule could be ideal for those who have a family to care for or just want to know what their work schedule will look like each week.
• Want the ability to work from home. Not all healthcare jobs will offer the opportunity to work remotely. However, as a medical coder, you might be able to work from home. Generally, once you’ve gained experience and your employer approves, you can begin working from home!
• Want to avoid patient care. If you want a healthcare job that allows you to help others without having to see patients, handle blood or other lab samples, or complete clinical duties, becoming a medical coder could be the right path for you. As a medical coder, you’ll deal with patients only in the context of billing and payments and many coders don’t have to interact with patients at all.

Medical Billing and Coding vs. Medical Coding Professional Programs: which is better?

Neither Penn Foster’s Medical Billing and Coding Diploma or Medical Coding training programs are necessarily better than the other; it just depends on what’s better for you and your career goals.

Generally, the Medical Billing and Coding Program could be considered a better fit if you’re looking for something that is much more entry-level and focuses on a broad range of healthcare knowledge, coding, and billing processes. This program can help you prepare for job titles like medical billing and coding specialist, medical records specialist, or medical billing specialist.

If you’re looking for something that’s a little more focused on the coding aspects of the field, the Medical Coding Professional Program might be the better fit. This program can help you prepare for job titles like certified professional coder or certified medical coder.

Read more: Full Medical Billing and Coding Programs Comparison

Become a certified medical coder with Penn Foster

Becoming a medical billing and coding specialist or a certified medical coder can be a flexible career that offers relatively decent entry-level pay and opportunities for growth and advancement in the healthcare industry - as well as the chance for remote work. If you’re ready to take the first steps toward preparing for a new job in healthcare, you can enroll online 24/7 or speak to an Admissions Specialists at 1-800-275-4410.

*Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics