SOC 29-1229.01

    Allergists and Immunologists

    Diagnose, treat, and help prevent allergic diseases and disease processes affecting the immune system.

    Median pay
    $265,930
    Growth
    +3.4%
    As fast as average
    Openings a year
    9,400
    Typical education
    Doctoral or professional degree

    Data verified Nov 2026 · CollegesRef 2026–27 edition

    Source: BLS 2025 wages · 2025–35 projections · figures for the broader BLS group "Physicians, all other"

    See the pathway

    Annual pay range

    Lowest 10% earn less than
    $69,170
    Median
    $265,930
    Highest 10% earn more than
    $452,360
    National wages for all workers in this occupation. BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.

    342,720 people work in this occupation.

    In short

    Allergists and immunologists diagnose, treat, and prevent immune system disorders and allergic diseases. This specialized medical career offers a median annual pay of $265,930, based on data for a broader group of physicians.

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What allergists and immunologists do

    Job Zone 5: Extensive preparation

    Diagnose, treat, and help prevent allergic diseases and disease processes affecting the immune system.

    Most need a graduate degree, such as a master's, PhD, MD or JD.

    What the work is like

    Professionals in this field focus on diagnosing and treating patients with immune system issues and allergies. Day-to-day activities center on getting information from patients, identifying specific health events, and making critical decisions to solve complex medical problems. These specialists assist and care for others by establishing strong interpersonal relationships, which requires empathy, cooperation, and sincerity. They must interpret medical information for patients and document detailed records using computers.

    Success in this role requires strong investigative interests and intellectual curiosity. Practitioners rely on skills like active listening, critical thinking, reading comprehension, and science to evaluate patient health. They must also possess deep knowledge in biology, chemistry, medicine, and dentistry. Because they work directly with the public, customer and personal service knowledge is essential, alongside administrative and management skills. Attention to detail, dependability, and cautiousness are vital work styles for ensuring patient safety and maintaining high standards of integrity.

    How to get there

    Entering this career requires extensive preparation. Candidates typically need a doctoral or professional degree, such as an MD, to begin practicing. Relevant college majors that lead to this specialty include medicine, medical clinical sciences or graduate medical studies, and multiple-pathway medical fellowship programs.

    After completing their medical degrees, practitioners pursue specialized training and credentials. They can earn professional certifications, such as the Certification in Allergy & Immunology from the American Board of Allergy & Immunology, or the Qualification in Immunohistochemistry from the American Society for Clinical Pathology. Additionally, some states list a license for this work, which practitioners must obtain to legally practice in those jurisdictions.

    Pay and outlook explained

    In 2025, the median annual pay for this profession was $265,930. This salary figure, along with the broader pay range, is for the general category of all other physicians. Within this group, the lowest 10% of earners make less than $69,170, while the highest 10% earn more than $452,360.

    There are 342,720 people employed in this broader field. Between 2025 and 2035, employment is projected to grow by 3.4%, which is as fast as the average for all occupations. This growth and normal turnover are expected to result in 9,400 job openings each year.

    Interest profile

    Realistic (R)
    47 / 100
    Investigative (I) · strongest
    99 / 100
    Artistic (A)
    14 / 100
    Social (S)
    72 / 100
    Enterprising (E)
    20 / 100
    Conventional (C)
    45 / 100
    How strongly each interest area describes the work, from O*NET (scores rescaled to 0–100). The interest code lists the strongest areas in order.

    Interest code ISR. Compare it with yours

    What you'd do

    Making Decisions and Solving Problems
    97
    Assisting and Caring for Others
    97
    Documenting/Recording Information
    94
    Getting Information
    93
    Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
    85
    Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
    84
    Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others
    84
    Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events
    82
    Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships
    81
    Working with Computers
    81
    Work activities rated by importance for this occupation, O*NET (0–100).

    Skills and strengths

    Skills

    • Reading Comprehension
    • Active Listening
    • Critical Thinking
    • Judgment and Decision Making
    • Writing
    • Active Learning
    • Complex Problem Solving
    • Monitoring
    • Speaking
    • Science

    Knowledge

    • Medicine and Dentistry
    • English Language
    • Customer and Personal Service
    • Biology
    • Computers and Electronics
    • Administration and Management
    • Education and Training
    • Personnel and Human Resources
    • Chemistry
    • Administrative

    Abilities

    • Problem Sensitivity
    • Deductive Reasoning
    • Oral Comprehension
    • Oral Expression
    • Written Comprehension
    • Inductive Reasoning
    • Near Vision
    • Speech Clarity
    • Written Expression
    • Speech Recognition

    Work styles

    • Attention to Detail
    • Intellectual Curiosity
    • Dependability
    • Cautiousness
    • Cooperation
    • Integrity
    • Achievement Orientation
    • Empathy
    • Self-Control
    • Sincerity

    Also called

    Adult and Pediatric Allergy Partner · Allergist · Allergy and Immunology Physician · Allergy and Immunology Specialist · Allergy Immunology Fellow · Allergy Physician · Allergy Specialist · APP (Advanced Practice Provider) · Clinical Academic Allergist · Clinical Allergist

    Career pathway

    From your interests to allergists and immunologists

    Interests that fit the work, the career, majors that lead there and colleges whose graduates in those majors earn the most. Hover or focus a step to follow one path.

    1. Interests

    2. This career

      • Allergists and Immunologists$265,930 median pay

    3. Majors

    NCES CIP–SOC crosswalk

    Majors that lead here

    Related programs by four-digit CIP code. They are common routes in, not the only ones.

    CareerOneStop

    Certifications, licenses and pay by state

    What allergists and immunologists may need beyond a degree, where a license is required, and what the work pays in each state.

    Certifications

    Core certifications employers recognise for this work.

    Search all certifications on CareerOneStop

    Training

    Programs of study that prepare people for this work. Showing 12 of 63.

    • Adolescent Medicine Fellowship Program
    • Aerospace Medicine Residency Program
    • Allergy and Immunology Fellowship Program
    • Allergy and Immunology Residency/Fellowship Programs, Other
    • Blood Banking/Transfusion Medicine Fellowship Program
    • Clinical Biochemical Genetics Residency Program
    • Clinical Genetics and Genomics Residency Program
    • Combined Medical Residency/Fellowship Program, General
    • Combined Medical Residency/Fellowship Programs, Other
    • Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism Fellowship Program
    • Family Medicine/Osteopathic Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine Combined Specialty Program
    • Family Medicine/Preventive Medicine Combined Specialty Program

    Find training near you on CareerOneStop

    Licenses by state

    52 states list a license for this work. Open your state for the license and the agency that issues it.

    Federal

    Check license requirements on CareerOneStop

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Your plan

    Build my pathway plan

    Courses, majors, colleges, scholarships and a timeline for this career, built from your profile.

    Related careers

    Careers with similar work, interests or skills.

    All careers

    Questions about allergists and immunologists

    Written with AI from the BLS, O*NET and CareerOneStop data on this page. Every figure is checked against that data before it is published.

    What is the typical education needed to become an allergist or immunologist?

    To enter this career, individuals typically need a doctoral or professional degree. Most professionals in this field require extensive preparation, which includes earning a graduate degree such as an MD.

    What certifications are available for this career?

    Practitioners can obtain the Certification in Allergy & Immunology from the American Board of Allergy & Immunology. Another available credential is the Qualification in Immunohistochemistry from the American Society for Clinical Pathology.

    How many job openings are expected in this field?

    There are 9,400 openings projected each year for the broader physician group. This comes alongside an employment growth rate of 3.4% from 2025 to 2035.

    Sources and attribution

    Every figure on this page comes from these public datasets. Missing values are shown as not reported, never estimated.

    O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. CollegesRef has modified all or some of this information.

    Data from CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor (Employment and Training Administration, with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development). Retrieved November 9, 2026.

    Page data updated November 5, 2026.