Start with the answer
Physicians, All Other pay in Colorado and North Dakota
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Physicians, All Other is $298,320 per year in Colorado. It is $454,550 per year in North Dakota. Colorado is 34.4% below North Dakota on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 29-1229 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 1,990 wage and salary jobs in Colorado and 740 in North Dakota. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings
