State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
Occupational Therapist Salary (2026): Data, Outlook & How to Become One
The median pay for Occupational Therapists is $100,330 a year ($48.24/hr), according to BLS OEWS, May 2025. Employment is projected to grow 13.8% through 2034, with about 10,200 openings a year (BLS EP, 2024–2034). Typical entry-level education: Master's degree.
SOC 29-1122Healthcare Practitioners and TechnicalLast updated August 15, 2026
- Median pay
- $100,330
- Projected growth
- +13.8%
- Openings a year
- 10,200
- Typical education
- Master's
BLS OEWS, May 2025
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP, 2024–2034
BLS EP, 2024–2034
Also advertised as: Assistive Technology Trainer, Certified Hand Therapist (CHT), Early Intervention Occupational Therapist, Home Health Occupational Therapist, Industrial Rehabilitation Consultant, Occupational Therapist (OT).
How much do Occupational Therapists make?
10th percentile$71,690
Entry / lowest-paid tenth
25th percentile$82,510
Lower quartile
Median (50th)$100,330
Half earn more, half earn less
75th percentile$116,670
Upper quartile
90th percentile$131,950
Top-paid tenth
| Median annual wage | $100,330 |
|---|---|
| Median hourly wage | $48.24/hr |
| Mean annual wage | $101,280 |
| People employed | 162,450 |
Versus all US occupations
At $100,330, Occupational Therapists earn 97% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $49,350 a year.
Versus healthcare practitioners and technical occupations
Inside the Healthcare Practitioners and Technical group, where the middle occupation pays $97,870, this is 3% above the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $131,950 or more while the bottom 10% earn $71,690, a gap of 1.8×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 79% of the 923 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Cost of living
California posts the highest raw median ($124,510), but once local prices are taken into account Arkansas leads at $122,341 in national-average dollars.
Which states pay Occupational Therapists the most?
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | $124,510 | $112,455 | 13,810 |
| Oregon | $112,310 | $108,658 | 1,170 |
| Nevada | $110,520 | $110,543 | 1,080 |
| District of Columbia | $109,170 | $99,335 | 540 |
| Washington | $107,670 | $100,614 | 3,340 |
| Maryland | $106,980 | $101,926 | 2,390 |
| Colorado | $106,720 | $103,559 | 3,390 |
| Arkansas | $106,360 | $122,341 | 2,160 |
| Texas | $106,140 | $109,358 | 13,400 |
| Oklahoma | $104,300 | $118,735 | 1,180 |
Is Occupational Therapist a growing career?
Occupational Therapists13.8%
All US occupations3.1%
+13.8% projected growth vs 3.1% for all occupations.
Much faster than average
BLS projects employment of Occupational Therapists to change 13.8% over 2024–2034, roughly 4.5× the 3.1% projected for all occupations. That is 22,100 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 10,200 openings are projected each year, 6.4% of the 160,000 jobs that existed in 2024. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Many of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to different occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
Demand for occupational therapists is expected to rise as the size of the older adult population grows. Older adults are more likely than younger people to experience disabilities and limitations in doing everyday tasks. Therefore, more occupational therapists will be needed to help these clients maintain their independence and the ability to perform daily activities.
In addition, occupational therapy will continue to be an important part of treatment for people with various conditions and disabilities, such as Alzheimer’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, or the loss of a limb. Occupational therapy also will continue to be used to treat children and young adults with developmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder.
How to become an Occupational Therapist
To enter the occupation, occupational therapists typically need a master’s degree in occupational therapy. All states require occupational therapists to be licensed.
| Typical entry-level education | Master's degree |
|---|---|
| Preparation needed (O*NET job zone) | Considerable preparation |
| Work experience in a related occupation | None |
| Typical on-the-job training | None |
What education people in the job have
O*NET incumbent survey: the highest level of education reported by people already working as occupational therapists.
- Master's Degree86.4%
- Bachelor's Degree13.6%
What does an Occupational Therapist do?
Assess, plan, and organize rehabilitative programs that help build or restore vocational, homemaking, and daily living skills, as well as general independence, to persons with disabilities or developmental delays. Use therapeutic techniques, adapt the individual's environment, teach skills, and modify specific tasks that present barriers to the individual.
Occupational therapists evaluate and treat people who have injuries, illnesses, or disabilities. They help clients meet goals to develop, recover, improve, and maintain skills needed for daily living and working.
Day-to-day tasks
- Test and evaluate patients' physical and mental abilities and analyze medical data to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.
- Complete and maintain necessary records.
- Plan, organize, and conduct occupational therapy programs in hospital, institutional, or community settings to help rehabilitate persons with disabilities because of illness, injury or psychological or developmental problems.
- Select activities that will help individuals learn work and life-management skills within limits of their mental or physical capabilities.
- Evaluate patients' progress and prepare reports that detail progress.
- Train caregivers in providing for the needs of a patient during and after therapy.
- Lay out materials such as puzzles, scissors and eating utensils for use in therapy, and clean and repair these tools after therapy sessions.
- Consult with rehabilitation team to select activity programs or coordinate occupational therapy with other therapeutic activities.
O*NET core tasks, ordered by reported importance.
Where occupational therapists work
| Hospitals; state, local, and private | 28% |
|---|---|
| Offices of physical, occupational and speech therapists, and audiologists | 27% |
| Educational services; state, local, and private | 13% |
| Home healthcare services | 8% |
| Nursing care facilities (skilled nursing facilities) | 7% |
BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2024–2034 edition.
Core skills
- Active Listening4.1/5
- Monitoring4.1/5
- Reading Comprehension4.0/5
- Writing4.0/5
- Speaking4.0/5
- Critical Thinking4.0/5
- Active Learning3.9/5
- Learning Strategies3.9/5
Transferable skills
- Service Orientation4.1/5
- Social Perceptiveness4.0/5
- Instructing4.0/5
- Judgment and Decision Making4.0/5
- Coordination3.8/5
- Time Management3.8/5
- Complex Problem Solving3.3/5
- Operations Analysis3.1/5
Tools and software
- Medical software · in demand
- Office suite software · in demand
- Spreadsheet software · in demand
- Web page creation and editing software · in demand
- Word processing software · in demand
- Billing and invoicing software
- Computer based training software
- Data base user interface and query software
- Device drivers or system software
- Electronic mail software
- Graphics or photo imaging software
- Internet browser software
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
What personality type suits an Occupational Therapist?
Interest profile: O*NET Occupational Interests, scored 1–7
Realisticprimary3.6
Investigativeprimary4.2
Artistic3.1
Socialprimary6.1
Enterprising1.8
Conventional3.1
Day to day this is work built around teaching, helping and working directly with other people, combined with investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data.
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Occupational Therapist: frequently asked questions
How much do Occupational Therapists make?
Occupational Therapists earn a median of $100,330 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). That is 97% above the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $48.24/hr. The middle half earn between $82,510 and $116,670. The top 10% earn $131,950 or more.
Do you need a degree to become an Occupational Therapist?
Yes. BLS reports a master's degree as the typical entry-level education for Occupational Therapists, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as considerable preparation. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 86.4% hold master's degree.
Is Occupational Therapist a growing career?
Yes, strongly. Employment is projected to grow 13.8% over 2024–2034, more than double the 3.1% projected for all occupations (BLS EP, 2024–2034). BLS still projects about 10,200 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does an Occupational Therapist do?
Occupational therapists evaluate and treat people who have injuries, illnesses, or disabilities. A core O*NET task: test and evaluate patients' physical and mental abilities and analyze medical data to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients. Employers most often ask for Medical software, Office suite software, Spreadsheet software.
Which states pay Occupational Therapists the most?
The highest state medians for Occupational Therapists are California ($124,510), Oregon ($112,310), Nevada ($110,520) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Arkansas moves to the top at $122,341.
What personality type suits an Occupational Therapist?
O*NET scores Occupational Therapists highest on the Social, Investigative and Realistic interest areas, so the work mixes teaching, helping and working directly with other people with investigating, analysing and solving problems with ideas and data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ISFP, INFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 923 occupations in the bank.