Medical Skilled Trades
Diagnostic Medical Sonographer
Sonographers use ultrasound equipment to create images of organs, blood flow and unborn babies. The job is projected to grow 14 percent from 2025 to 2035 and has one of the higher BLS median wages on this list.
1.Career snapshot
- Role
- Diagnostic Medical Sonographer
- Pay (planning range)
- $65K–$110K+ Wealth Playbook guide, 2026
- Training time
- 1–2 years
- Pathway
- Medical Imaging
- Demand
- Employment of diagnostic medical sonographers is projected to grow 14 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than the average for all occupations.
- Patient contact
- High
- Occupation code
- SOC 29-2032 · O*NET 29-2032.00
- Diagnostic / technology-focused
- Career advancement potential
2.What you'll do
Everyday work and where it happens
You explain the exam, position the patient and move the ultrasound probe to capture the images the physician needs. You watch the screen the whole time, adjusting the equipment to get clear, useful pictures, and decide which images to keep. Afterwards you write a summary of what you found for the physician and update the patient's records.
Typical duties
- Prepare patients by explaining the procedure and answering questions
- Position patients and operate ultrasound equipment to obtain diagnostic images
- Review images for quality and adequate coverage of the areas needed
- Analyze results for abnormalities and give physicians a summary of findings
- Prepare exam rooms and maintain imaging equipment
- Record findings and keep track of patients' records
- Where you could work
- Hospitals, Offices of physicians, Medical and diagnostic laboratories, Outpatient care centers
- Schedule
- Most sonographers work full time. Because many facilities are always open, you may work evenings, weekends or overnights.
- Physical demands
- You may need to stand for long periods and to lift or turn patients who are ill or disabled. Physical stamina matters.
- Patient contact
- High
3.How to get there
Education, training, exams and licensing
- Typical training
- Certificate / associate degree
- Training time
- 1–2 years
1.Take science and math in high school
Anatomy, physiology, physics and math are good preparation.
2.Complete an accredited sonography program
Colleges offer associate's (and bachelor's) degree programs, and colleges and some hospitals offer certificate programs; all include a clinical component. Graduating from a CAAHEP- or CMA-accredited program is one route to the ARDMS exams (Prerequisite 2).
3.Pass the ARDMS exams
RDMS certification requires the Sonography Principles and Instrumentation (SPI) exam plus one specialty exam (such as Abdomen or Obstetrics and Gynecology), passed within five years of each other.
4.Check your state's rules
Some states require a license. Employers may require or prefer professional certification and basic life support (BLS) or CPR certification.
Exams and credentials
- RDMS - Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer (ARDMS, part of Inteleos): SPI exam plus a specialty exam
Licensing
Some states require sonographers to hold a state-issued license, and employers may require or prefer professional certification such as the RDMS. Requirements vary by state; check your state board.
Look up your state's license requirements (opens in a new tab)
4.What it costs
Tuition, fees, exams and financial aid
Costs vary by program.
ARDMS SPI exam fee: $275 (inteleos.org, read October 2026); specialty exam fees are in the Inteleos fee schedule. State licensing fees are separate.
Grants, loans and work-study can help pay for an eligible program. Start with the FAFSA at studentaid.gov (opens in a new tab), and ask each program what its total cost includes.
5.What you can earn
Starting, median and experienced pay, and where the figures come from
Planning range
$65K–$110K+
Planning range from the Wealth Playbook medical careers guide, 2026
Local wage data isn't loaded yet, so this is a broad planning range, not a wage figure.
A planning range is broad and has no median: it is for planning, not a promise of pay. Starting, median and experienced wages will show here when BLS wage data is loaded.
For reference only (not this page's pay figure): BLS median, May 2025, national: $96,590 a year (source, opens in a new tab).
6.Jobs near you
Coming soon
We plan to show local openings here once a job-data source is connected. Until then, you can search current listings yourself.
7.Career ladder
Next certifications and roles
- Diagnostic Medical Sonographer(this career)
- Additional ARDMS specialties(Add specialty exams such as Breast, Pediatric Sonography or Fetal Echocardiography, or the cardiac (RDCS) and vascular (RVT) credentials, to widen the work you can do.)
- Lead Sonographer or Imaging Manager(A leadership role. Medical and health services managers typically need a bachelor's degree, per BLS.)
8.Your wealth path
From your first paycheck to owning and investing
Train
Certify
Get hired
Advance
Build wealth
Own / invest
Estimated take-home pay
Low end of the planning range: $65,000 a year
About $51,614 a year ($4,301 a month)
High end of the planning range: $110,000 a year
About $81,021 a year ($6,752 a month)
Estimate only. Assumptions: tax year 2026, single filer, the standard deduction, federal income tax, FICA at 7.65%, and a default state income tax rate of 5.00% (choose a state above to use its rate). No retirement contributions or other deductions. The Paycheck calculator uses the same engine.
9.Find training
Free U.S. Department of Labor resources. We don't list or rank schools.
Registered apprenticeships exist for some of these roles. For licensed careers, check that a program meets your state's licensing rules.
10.Compare careers
Save this career and put it beside others
Sources
- Pay: Planning range from the Wealth Playbook medical careers guide, 2026 (a planning range, not wage data).
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Diagnostic Medical Sonographers (opens in a new tab)
- O*NET OnLine: 29-2032.00 Diagnostic Medical Sonographers (opens in a new tab)
- Inteleos (ARDMS): Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer (RDMS) Certification (opens in a new tab)
- Inteleos (ARDMS): SPI Requirement & Specialty Examination Prerequisites (PDF, August 2026) (opens in a new tab)
- Inteleos (ARDMS): Sonography Principles and Instrumentation (SPI) exam (opens in a new tab)