Pediatric Cardiologist Salary Guide 2026: Congenital Heart Disease and Interventional Income

Pediatric cardiologist salary overview 2026

Pediatric cardiology is among the most academically concentrated physician subspecialties — the majority of pediatric cardiologists practice at academic children's hospitals or pediatric academic medical centers, with relatively few in purely private practice. Mean total compensation in 2026 ranges from $250,000–$420,000 in academic settings and $280,000–$450,000 in employed children's hospital and large pediatric health system positions. The specialty's income picture is substantially improved by research supplement income: NIH K and R awards, industry clinical trial participation fees, and device company research agreements are common additions to base salary at major congenital heart disease programs. Interventional pediatric cardiologists who perform catheterization procedures — balloon valvuloplasty, ASD device closure, coarctation stenting, PDA device occlusion — consistently earn at the top of the compensation range.

Income by subspecialty and practice setting

• Academic general pediatric cardiology: $250,000–$380,000; echocardiography, outpatient CHD follow-up, arrhythmia management, heart failure, pulmonary hypertension; fellow supervision; NIH K23 and R01 supplement potential ($50,000–$150,000/year for established investigators); ACHA (Adult Congenital Heart Association) expertise for transition-age patients growing in importance
• Interventional pediatric cardiology (pediatric interventional cardiologist): $350,000–$520,000; cardiac catheterization-based procedures for CHD; structural intervention (ASD/VSD/PFO device closure, PA stenting, coarctation intervention); electrophysiology overlap possible; highest income within pediatric cardiology; fellowship-trained in both general peds cardiology and interventional catheterization; concentrated at large-volume CHD programs
• Pediatric electrophysiologist: $320,000–$480,000; arrhythmia ablation in children (SVT, WPW, VT); device implantation (pacemakers, ICDs) in pediatric and congenital heart disease patients; genetic arrhythmia syndromes (LQTS, CPVT, Brugada); exercise-induced arrhythmia in young athletes; professional fees lower than adult EP due to smaller procedure volumes at most programs but subspecialty scarcity drives compensation premium
• Fetal cardiologist: $300,000–$460,000; fetal echocardiography for prenatal CHD diagnosis; maternal-fetal medicine collaboration; counseling families of fetuses with complex CHD (HLHS, DORV, truncus arteriosus, Ebstein's anomaly); prenatal diagnosis quality determines surgical planning and outcomes at CHD programs
• Pediatric cardiac critical care (PCICU): $320,000–$480,000; dual-trained in pediatric cardiology and critical care; post-operative cardiac surgery ICU management; ECMO management; ventricular assist devices in children; concentrated at CHOP, Boston Children's, Texas Children's, Children's National, and major CHD surgical programs

Billing codes and revenue drivers

• Transthoracic echocardiography (congenital): CPT 93303 (complete TTE, congenital heart disease) / 93304 (follow-up or limited); professional fee $250–$500; congenital echo coding (CPT 93303 vs. 93306 for structural adult echo) reflects the increased complexity of evaluating complex CHD anatomy; color Doppler (CPT 93320/93321/93325) added to most complete studies
• Fetal echocardiography: CPT 76825 (fetal echo, M-mode) / 76826 (follow-up) / 76827 (Doppler, add-on) / 76828 (follow-up Doppler); professional fee $300–$600; fetal echo is reimbursed by most major insurers for high-risk pregnancies (family history of CHD, maternal diabetes, chromosomal abnormality, suspected fetal cardiac anomaly); separate maternal E&M + fetal echo billing often applicable
• Pediatric cardiac catheterization (diagnostic): CPT 93530 (right heart, congenital) / 93531 (combined right and left, congenital) / 93532 (left heart only, congenital); professional fee $2,000–$4,500; diagnostic cath for hemodynamic assessment (shunt quantification, pulmonary vascular resistance, ventricular pressure measurement) in complex CHD
• Balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty: CPT 92990; professional fee $3,500–$6,500; pulmonary stenosis relief by balloon dilation; most common interventional procedure in pediatric cardiology; significant procedural RVU
• Atrial septal defect (ASD) device closure: CPT 93580 (percutaneous transcatheter); professional fee $4,500–$8,000; Amplatzer Septal Occluder or Occlutech device; high professional fee reflecting complexity and device management; growing trend toward same-day discharge
• Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) device closure: CPT 93581; professional fee $4,000–$7,000; transcatheter PDA occlusion (Amplatzer Duct Occluder, Occlutech PDA devices) replacing surgical ligation at most centers; premature infants in NICU setting may require hybrid or surgical approach
• Pulmonary artery stenting / coarctation stenting: CPT 37236 (stent placement) + catheterization base codes; professional fee $5,000–$10,000; complex vascular procedures requiring stent sizing, delivery system expertise, and fluoroscopic guidance; highest-RVU category in pediatric interventional cardiology
• 12-lead ECG interpretation: CPT 93000 (tracing + interpretation) / 93010 (interpretation only); $20–$60; high-volume ancillary; pediatric ECG interpretation requires specific expertise in age-related normal variants (right axis deviation, T-wave inversion patterns in children)
• Ambulatory (Holter) monitoring: CPT 93224 (24-hour Holter, setup + read) through 93227 (recording + scan + physician review); $100–$300; arrhythmia evaluation in children with palpitations, syncope, or known CHD
• Cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET): CPT 94621; professional fee $250–$450; exercise capacity evaluation in CHD patients, sports clearance for competitive athletes with cardiac conditions (long QT, HCM, anomalous coronary); growing demand driven by athlete pre-participation screening

Research and academic supplement income

Unlike most adult subspecialties, pediatric cardiology has historically relied on academic center employment as the primary practice setting — meaning research supplement income is a significant and expected component of total compensation at major programs. NIH K23 (Mentored Patient-Oriented Research) awards provide $150,000–$200,000/year in salary support for early-career investigators, with protected research time. NIH R01 grants for established investigators support $200,000–$500,000/year in direct costs including investigator effort. Industry-sponsored clinical trial site investigator fees ($30,000–$150,000/trial participation) and device company research agreements are additional income streams for interventional pediatric cardiologists involved in new device development (ASD occluder iterations, delivery system designs, transcatheter pulmonary valve programs). At major CHD programs, research-active pediatric cardiologists frequently achieve total compensation of $400,000–$550,000+ through the combination of clinical salary and research supplement.

Geographic variation in pediatric cardiologist compensation

• Major CHD surgery programs (CHOP, Boston Children's, Texas Children's, Cincinnati Children's, Seattle Children's, UCSF Benioff, Lurie Children's): $280,000–$480,000; highest surgical volume; most complex CHD cases; strongest research infrastructure; PCICU and interventional subspecialty concentration
• Regional children's hospitals (45–80 bed PICU, cardiac surgery program): $300,000–$450,000; growing independently-operated pediatric cardiology programs; surgical referral relationships with major CHD programs; employed model; general peds cardiology scope with selected interventional capacity
• Satellite clinic and outreach (affiliated with major CHD program): $270,000–$400,000; echocardiography and CHD follow-up at community children's hospital outreach sites; traveling to regional markets; lower procedure volume but lower call burden; growing model as major CHD programs expand their geographic reach

What we see at Ava Health

Pediatric cardiology is a specialty where the published salary range significantly understates total compensation for research-active physicians — and where the scarcity of trained interventional pediatric cardiologists creates competitive leverage that most candidates don't fully utilize. In our recruiting experience, the most in-demand pediatric cardiologists are interventional physicians with TCPC (transcatheter pulmonary valve) and structural CHD experience, fetal cardiologists who can build a maternal-fetal medicine referral network, and pediatric electrophysiologists comfortable with genetic arrhythmia syndrome management. For children's hospitals building or expanding their pediatric cardiology program, the program's CHD surgical volume and complexity is the primary recruitment differentiator — candidates universally prioritize the clinical environment and case complexity over salary when evaluating children's hospital positions.

Related: Cardiologist Salary Guide, Electrophysiologist Salary Guide, Neonatologist Salary Guide, Pediatrician Salary Guide.