How Much Do Physical Therapists Make?
Having a clear understanding of earnings potential is important, especially if you are researching career paths or considering changing jobs. If you're one of those people, and you're curious what kind of salary physical therapists make, you've come to the right place.
Using data from Lightcast,™ the Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled rich information about salary for physical therapists and related jobs, including details about average compensation, salary trends and job growth. We've also gathered advertised salaries from actual job postings to provide insight into what employers of physical therapists are offering as compensation.
Keep reading to learn more about how much physical therapists can expect to make in the United States.
At a Glance: Salary & Jobs for Physical Therapists
According to data from 2023, there were about 106,943 positions for physical therapists in the United States. In terms of salary, the national median salary for physical therapists was reported to be $64,085. Additionally, when examining job demand, employers across the country posted 260,178 job postings related to positions for physical therapists.
How Much Money Do Physical Therapists Make?
Median salary is just one data point. To build a better understanding of how much money physical therapists and related positions can expect to make in the United States, it can be helpful to look at the full range of compensation for those jobs.
Let's look more deeply at data that was reported to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for detail into the lowest and highest salary earnings for physical therapists.
Annual Salary for Physical Therapists
According to the BLS, the lowest earners for physical therapists and related professions earned about $42,099 per year in 2023. Meanwhile, at the other end of the spectrum, the highest earners made about $88,837 annually.
As mentioned previously, the median salary for physical therapists in the United States in 2023 was $64,085.
Annual Salary Range For Physical Therapists In 2023
Hourly Salary for Physical Therapists
The BLS also breaks down compensation for physical therapists by hourly salary, and the median average hourly pay for physical therapists in 2023 was $31. Lowest hourly earners took home $20 while the highest reported hourly salaries for physical therapists was $43.
Hourly Salary Range For Physical Therapists In 2023
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Advertised Compensation for Physical Therapists
Data from the BLS is one way to dig into compensation for physical therapists, but another way to build a more real-time understanding of salary is to look at actual job postings and see what compensation organizations are currently providing to fill open positions for physical therapists.
Keep in mind that salary data is not included in every job posting, so the information compiled here is reflective of the data available through Lightcast.™
Annual Salary from Job Postings for Physical Therapists
Advertised Annual Salary
During a review of 74,256 job postings related to physical therapists, advertised salary was included in 27,276 of them, which was 37%. Based on those postings, the median advertised salary for physical therapists was $62,592 per year.
Hourly Salary from Job Postings for Physical Therapists
Advertised Hourly Salary
A similar analysis of job postings provides insight into advertised hourly salary for physical therapists. Based on 10% of postings with advertised compensation, the median hourly salary for open positions for physical therapists in the United States is about $30.
Salary Trend for Physical Therapists
If you're thinking about pursuing a career in the field, you may want to understand how compensation has changed over time for physical therapists. The chart below provides a snapshot of advertised salaries over the past three years.
Based on compensation data that was included in job postings for physical therapists dating back to September 2020, advertised salaries for physical therapists have increased 87%.
Advertised Wage Trend For Physical Therapists
What's the Job Growth for Physical Therapists?
Another data point that someone thinking about a career path should consider is whether or not jobs are expected to see growth in the future. The chart below looks at projected employment for physical therapists over the next 10 years.
According to the data obtained through Lightcast,™ there were 106,940 jobs for physical therapists in the United States in 2023. By 2033, it is expected that about 30,220 jobs will be added. That's a 28.3% increase over the next 10-year period.
Employment Projections For Physical Therapists
Additional Links
Ready to dig deeper into career information about physical therapists? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for physical therapists.
What do physical therapists do?
Physical Therapists: How do you become one?
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The Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has compiled data for dozens of in-demand jobs. Explore our full catalog of occupation data by visiting the link below.