HIM vs. Health Informatics: What’s the Difference (And Which Path Pays More)?

As healthcare becomes increasingly digital, two fields have emerged as pillars of the future: Health Information Management (HIM) and Health Informatics (HI).

These disciplines often overlap in conversation — but they are not interchangeable. HIM and HI serve different purposes, require different skill sets, and open doors to distinct career paths.

One is grounded in information governance and regulatory compliance. The other in data science and system optimization. Both are critical to the evolution of modern medicine — and both offer high-paying, future-proof career options.

In this post, we’ll break down:

• The exact difference between HIM and HI

• Which field fits your interests and strengths

• Career and certification options

• And which path is more likely to lead to six figures

  
  

What Is Health Information Management (HIM)?

Health Information Management is the discipline focused on acquiring, organizing, securing, and analyzing health data to support quality patient care, reimbursement, and regulatory compliance.

It’s a hybrid of clinical knowledge, business logic, law, and IT, deeply rooted in operational excellence. HIM professionals are the stewards of medical information and serve as the guardians of healthcare accuracy, privacy, and accountability.

🔐 Core HIM Functions:

• Clinical documentation auditing and improvement

• Medical coding and reimbursement optimization

• HIPAA compliance and privacy oversight

• Records retention and release of information

• Data integrity and regulatory reporting

💼 HIM Career Roles:

• Health Information Technician

• Coding Specialist (CCS, CPC)

• Compliance Analyst

• ROI Specialist

• HIM Manager or Director

• Revenue Cycle Analyst

• Clinical Documentation Improvement (CDI) Specialist

🎓 HIM Certifications:

• RHIT (Registered Health Information Technician)

• RHIA (Registered Health Information Administrator)

• CCS (Certified Coding Specialist)

• CHPS (Certified in Healthcare Privacy and Security)

• CRCR (Certified Revenue Cycle Representative)

💵 HIM Salary Range:

• Entry-level: $45,000–$60,000

• Mid-level: $65,000–$85,000

• Leadership: $90,000–$130,000+ (Source: AHIMA)

What Is Health Informatics (HI)?

Health Informatics is a branch of medical science that uses information systems, data analytics, and technology to improve patient outcomes, clinical workflows, and public health.

While HIM focuses on the integrity and security of data, HI focuses on turning data into decisions. It applies computing, statistics, and biomedical knowledge to develop tools like clinical decision support systems, dashboards, and predictive models.

⚙️ Health Informatics Domains:

• Clinical Informatics

• Public Health Informatics

• Consumer Health Informatics

• Translational Bioinformatics

• Imaging Informatics

• Nursing Informatics

💼 Health Informatics Roles:

• Health Informatics Specialist

• Clinical Systems Analyst

• EHR Implementation Lead

• Healthcare Data Analyst

• Population Health Data Manager

• Chief Medical Information Officer (CMIO)

🎓 Health Informatics Certifications & Training:

• CHDA (Certified Health Data Analyst) – AHIMA

• CAHIMS / CPHIMS – HIMSS

• Google Data Analytics Certificate

• Master’s in Health Informatics or Biomedical Informatics

• Training in SQL, Power BI, Tableau, Python, R

💵 HI Salary Range:

• Entry-level: $70,000–$90,000

• Mid-level: $90,000–$120,000

• Advanced/Director-Level: $130,000–$180,000+ (Source: NIH, HIMSS)

⚖️ Side-by-Side Comparison Table

Category	Health Information Management (HIM)	Health Informatics (HI)
Primary Focus	Organizing, managing, securing patient records and regulatory data	Using health data + tech to improve care delivery and health outcomes
Foundational Discipline	Business, law, medical records, compliance	Computer science, data analytics, medicine
Core Skills	Coding, documentation auditing, privacy law, compliance workflows	Data modeling, clinical system integration, data visualization, predictive analytics
Main Tools	Epic, 3M, TruCode, Cerner, Verisma, Meditech	SQL, Tableau, Power BI, Python, R, Epic SlicerDicer
Common Roles	Coding Specialist, ROI Analyst, Compliance Officer, HIM Director	Data Analyst, EHR Systems Analyst, Clinical Informatics Lead, CMIO
Top Certifications	RHIT, RHIA, CCS, CHPS, CRCR	CHDA, CAHIMS, CPHIMS, Google Data Analytics, Health Informatics MS
Entry-Level Salary	$45,000–$60,000	$70,000–$90,000
Advanced Salary	$90,000–$130,000+	$130,000–$180,000+
Automation Risk	Moderate (manual coding, ROI release)	Low (highly strategic, data-driven)
Best For	Professionals who love structure, privacy, workflow improvement	Problem solvers who love data, tech, and innovation

Which One Should You Choose?

✅ Choose HIM if you:

• Love working with documentation, rules, and privacy

• Prefer structure, accuracy, and compliance

• Enjoy roles tied to legal, billing, and operational integrity

• Want to climb the ladder to HIM Director or Compliance Officer

✅ Choose Health Informatics if you:

• Enjoy data, analytics, and tech

• Want to create systems, tools, or dashboards

• Are interested in population health, predictive modeling, or AI in medicine

• Want to pivot into a data or strategy-based role

Additional Peer-Reviewed Resources

• Health Informatics (NIH Overview)

• AHIMA’s Guide to HIM Careers

• HIMSS Health Informatics Certification

• Health Informatics Journal (SAGE)

• Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association (JAMIA)

Final Word

Both HIM and Health Informatics are essential to modern healthcare — but they serve different purposes.

HIM protects the integrity of the system. Informatics helps evolve it.

If you want to stay relevant and future-proof your career, don’t just chase titles.

Choose the discipline that aligns with your strengths, interests, and the kind of impact you want to have.

📩 Need help figuring out how to pivot into either path? Check out the 3-in-1 Career Bundle and let's build your career blueprint.