Subspecialty premium over adult neuropsych
Pediatric Neuropsychologist Salary 2026
Hospital staff: $130,000 to $175,000. Academic medical center senior: $145,000 to $210,000. Established private practice: $175,000 to $250,000+. Pediatric subspecialty earns roughly 5 to 12 percent above adult neuropsychology equivalents in matched settings.
Last verified 24 June 2026 · Source: Children's hospital job postings 2024-25, IRS Form 990 disclosures, APPCN pediatric-track fellowships, AACN/NAN/SCN 2020 salary survey
Quick answer
A pediatric neuropsychologist earns a typical $150,000 as a children's hospital staff clinician, with full-time pay ranging from about $130,000 to $175,000 in hospital roles, $145,000 to $210,000 in academic medical centers, and $200,000+ in established private practice. The subspecialty pays roughly 5 to 12 percent above adult clinical neuropsychology in matched settings. There is no dedicated BLS code for pediatric neuropsychology, so these figures are aggregated from children's hospital job postings, IRS Form 990 disclosures and APPCN fellowship data rather than a single federal median.
~$150,000
Typical hospital-staff midpoint
2 years
Postdoctoral fellowship length (Houston Conf)
$3,500-$6,500
Cash-pay comprehensive battery rate
7-10 hrs
Patient contact time per battery
Pay by Setting (Pediatric)
| Setting | Salary range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Academic Medical Center (senior faculty) | $165,000 - $210,000 | Plus R01 or K-award grant supplement |
| Children's Hospital staff (early-mid career) | $130,000 - $175,000 | Boston Children's, CHOP, Texas Children's tier |
| Group private practice partner | $175,000 - $235,000 | Insurance + cash-pay mix, established referral network |
| Solo private practice (established) | $200,000 - $325,000 | Cash-pay rates, IEE school-billed work |
| Hospital staff (community, mid-tier) | $120,000 - $155,000 | Regional pediatric hospitals (e.g., Akron, Cardinal Glennon) |
| Forensic expert (per-hour billed) | $400 - $700/hr | Birth injury, educational rights litigation |
| Postdoc fellow (training year 1-2) | $55,000 - $72,000 | APPCN-affiliated pediatric track positions |
Source: children's hospital job postings 2024-25, IRS Form 990 academic-medical-center compensation disclosures, APPCN postdoctoral program stipend disclosures, and the AACN/NAN/SCN 2020 practice and salary survey.
Pay by Career Stage
| Career stage | Typical annual pay | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Postdoctoral fellow (training, years 1-2) | $55,000 - $72,000 | APPCN pediatric-track stipend, not yet licensed |
| Early-career staff (0-3 yrs post-licensure) | $120,000 - $145,000 | Entry hospital staff, community and mid-tier pediatric hospitals |
| Mid-career staff (4-9 yrs) | $145,000 - $175,000 | Top children's hospital staff tier, board certification typical |
| Senior / academic faculty (10+ yrs) | $175,000 - $210,000 | Plus R01 or K-award grant supplement at academic medical centers |
| Established private practice | $200,000 - $325,000 | Cash-pay rates plus IDEA-funded IEE school work |
Career-stage bands are the same children's hospital job-posting, IRS Form 990 and APPCN fellowship figures shown in the setting table above, grouped by years of post-licensure experience. There is no BLS pediatric-neuropsychology code, so treat these as directional rather than a published median.
Top Children's Hospital Employers
| Hospital | Staff salary range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Boston Children's Hospital | $145,000 - $195,000 | Harvard appointment standard, R01 supplement |
| Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) | $142,000 - $190,000 | UPenn appointment, large psych dept |
| Texas Children's Hospital (Houston) | $135,000 - $180,000 | Baylor appointment, no state income tax |
| Children's National (DC) | $140,000 - $185,000 | GWU/Howard appointment, DC locality premium |
| Lurie Children's (Chicago) | $135,000 - $178,000 | Northwestern Feinberg appointment |
| Seattle Children's | $138,000 - $185,000 | UW Medicine appointment, no state income tax |
| Cincinnati Children's | $132,000 - $172,000 | Strong research budget, lower COL offset |
| Children's Hospital LA | $140,000 - $185,000 | USC Keck appointment, high COL |
Hospital salary ranges aggregated from publicly posted job listings 2024-25, IRS Form 990 disclosure of academic medical center key staff compensation, and AAPdN member reports.
Related
Neuropsychologist (Adult)
Umbrella specialty page
Child Psychologist (Therapy)
Pediatric clinical psychology, therapy focus
Forensic Neuropsychologist
Expert witness premium
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a pediatric neuropsychologist earn?
Pediatric neuropsychologists in 2026 typically earn $130,000 to $175,000 as hospital staff, $145,000 to $210,000 in academic medical centers (with the higher end reflecting senior faculty with research grant funding), and $175,000 to $250,000+ in established private or group practice. These ranges are aggregated from children's hospital job postings, IRS Form 990 academic-medical-center compensation disclosures, and APPCN pediatric-track fellowship data; a typical hospital-staff pediatric neuropsychologist sits around $150,000. The most recent formal neuropsychology income benchmark is the AACN, NAN and SCN 2020 practice and salary survey in The Clinical Neuropsychologist, which found neuropsychologist incomes rising overall but does not publish a pediatric-specific median. The specialty commands a premium over adult clinical neuropsychology because of the smaller trained pool, the longer report turnaround time per case, and the heavy demand from special-education legal cases and pediatric hospital systems.
How does pediatric neuropsychologist pay grow with experience?
Postdoctoral fellows in APPCN pediatric-track positions earn $55,000 to $72,000 during the two training years. Early-career staff (0 to 3 years post-licensure) typically start at $120,000 to $145,000, rising to $145,000 to $175,000 at mid-career (4 to 9 years) once board certification and a top children's hospital placement are in hand. Senior staff and academic faculty (10+ years) reach $175,000 to $210,000, often with an R01 or K-award grant supplement, while established private practitioners with strong school and pediatrician referral networks net $200,000 to $325,000. These bands are grouped by experience from children's hospital job postings, IRS Form 990 disclosures and APPCN fellowship data; there is no dedicated BLS code for pediatric neuropsychology.
How is pediatric neuropsych different from adult neuropsych in pay?
Pediatric neuropsychologists typically earn 5 to 12 percent more than adult-focused counterparts in equivalent settings, primarily reflecting the smaller workforce supply and the more time-intensive nature of pediatric evaluations. A typical adult comprehensive battery takes 6 to 8 hours of patient contact plus 4 to 6 hours of interpretation and report writing; a pediatric battery typically requires 7 to 10 hours of patient contact (children require more breaks and warm-up time), 6 to 10 hours of interpretation including normative comparison across school-aged norms, plus a parent feedback session and often a school feedback session. Per-case revenue is similar to adult work; the lower volume is offset by stronger private-pay demand and special education legal-case work.
What training do you need to be a pediatric neuropsychologist?
The Houston Conference (1997), updated by the Minnesota Conference Guidelines (2022), defines the training pathway: doctoral degree in clinical psychology with neuropsychology emphasis, an APA-accredited internship with neuropsychology rotation experience, and a two-year postdoctoral fellowship specifically in clinical neuropsychology. For pediatric subspecialization, the fellowship must include substantial pediatric clinical training (most pediatric-track fellowships sit at large pediatric hospitals like Boston Children's, CHOP, Children's National DC, Texas Children's, Lurie Children's Chicago, Children's Hospital LA, Seattle Children's, Cincinnati Children's). Board certification (ABPP-CN with pediatric proficiency demonstration) is standard for senior roles and required for many academic-medical promotion paths.
Where are the highest-paying pediatric neuropsych jobs?
Boston Children's Hospital, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), Children's National Washington DC, Texas Children's, Lurie Children's Chicago, Seattle Children's, and Children's Hospital LA pay the top staff-pediatric-neuropsych salaries at $150,000 to $195,000 plus academic appointment. Pediatric private practices in high-income suburbs of NYC (Westchester, Greenwich CT), Boston (Newton, Brookline), San Francisco (Palo Alto, Marin), and DC (Bethesda, McLean) routinely support $250 to $400 per testing-hour billed cash, supporting practice net of $200,000 to $325,000 for established practitioners with strong school and pediatrician referral networks. Forensic-pediatric neuropsychology (educational rights cases, birth injury litigation) commands the very top, $400 to $700 per hour for expert witness work.
What is the role of school referrals in pediatric neuropsych private practice?
School referrals (gifted assessment, learning disability evaluation, IEP documentation, twice-exceptional assessment) are the primary referral driver for most pediatric private practices outside academic medical centers. Independent education evaluations (IEE) requested by parents who disagree with school-conducted evaluations are reimbursable by the school district under IDEA at the practitioner's published rate. Most established pediatric neuropsychology practices generate 40 to 60 percent of revenue from school-funded IEE work plus parent-pay academic-rights evaluations. Hospital-employed pediatric neuropsychologists by contrast see more medical referrals (traumatic brain injury, epilepsy presurgical work-up, oncology survivorship, congenital cardiac, neurogenetic).
What CPT codes drive pediatric neuropsychology billing?
Pediatric neuropsychology uses the standard testing CPT family: 96132 (neuropsychological test evaluation, first hour by psychologist) and 96133 (each additional hour) for interpretation and integration; 96136 (test administration first 30 minutes by technician) and 96137 (each additional 30 minutes) for assistant-administered testing; 96146 (single computer-administered test, e.g., CPT-3); 90791 for the diagnostic intake; 90847 for a parent feedback session when billed as family therapy with the patient present. A typical pediatric comprehensive battery bills out across these codes at $1,800 to $2,800 Medicare-equivalent, with commercial payers reimbursing 110 to 140 percent of that. Cash-pay rates of $3,500 to $6,500 per comprehensive evaluation are typical in high-end private practice.