Pay by state · 50 states
Occupational Therapy Assistant Salary by State (2026)
Occupational Therapy Assistants earn the most in Maryland at $82,010 a year and the least in Alaska at $53,530 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $72,300. All 50 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $82,010Maryland
- National median
- $72,300BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $53,530Alaska
- States reporting
- 50of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Occupational Therapy Assistant salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of occupational therapy assistants OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MDMaryland | $82,010 | $72,590 | $88,710 | 710 | $78,135 |
| 2 | CACalifornia | $81,770 | $76,350 | $96,720 | 3,840 | $73,853 |
| 3 | TXTexas | $81,500 | $75,250 | $89,780 | 5,610 | $83,971 |
| 4 | NVNevada | $79,510 | $73,580 | $81,160 | 220 | $79,527 |
| 5 | ARArkansas | $78,940 | $65,760 | $85,020 | 730 | $90,801 |
| 6 | DEDelaware | $78,640 | $67,950 | $82,010 | 220 | $78,791 |
| 7 | WAWashington | $77,590 | $70,970 | $81,890 | 720 | $72,505 |
| 8 | NMNew Mexico | $77,020 | $58,870 | $82,160 | 300 | $83,525 |
| 9 | OROregon | $76,850 | $71,490 | $80,880 | 250 | $74,351 |
| 10 | GAGeorgia | $75,920 | $63,050 | $79,010 | 1,060 | $78,843 |
| 11 | COColorado | $75,340 | $65,320 | $84,860 | 710 | $73,109 |
| 12 | MAMassachusetts | $75,040 | $58,870 | $79,510 | 1,410 | $70,955 |
| 13 | NJNew Jersey | $74,960 | $74,930 | $79,930 | 1,080 | $68,894 |
| 14 | VAVirginia | $74,960 | $63,090 | $79,500 | 1,130 | $74,141 |
| 15 | SCSouth Carolina | $73,740 | $63,170 | $77,660 | 830 | $78,657 |
| 16 | AZArizona | $73,490 | $63,750 | $79,240 | 1,120 | $72,996 |
| 17 | MTMontana | $72,800 | $63,750 | $81,670 | 60 | $76,919 |
| 18 | CTConnecticut | $72,780 | $62,760 | $77,050 | 820 | $70,244 |
| 19 | HIHawaii | $72,710 | $65,660 | $76,750 | 60 | $66,129 |
| 20 | FLFlorida | $71,630 | $63,180 | $75,320 | 3,910 | $69,265 |
| 21 | PAPennsylvania | $71,590 | $61,240 | $74,960 | 2,560 | $73,371 |
| 22 | NCNorth Carolina | $69,390 | $62,110 | $76,420 | 1,590 | $73,564 |
| 23 | NYNew York | $68,530 | $57,250 | $77,730 | 2,230 | $63,500 |
| 24 | NHNew Hampshire | $67,790 | $62,030 | $77,050 | 150 | $65,079 |
| 25 | RIRhode Island | $66,710 | $61,110 | $72,980 | 300 | $65,223 |
| 26 | INIndiana | $66,660 | $58,560 | $76,580 | 1,490 | $71,425 |
| 27 | OKOklahoma | $66,520 | $59,930 | $75,590 | 1,000 | $75,726 |
| 28 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $66,390 | $66,390 | $81,670 | 60 | $60,409 |
| 29 | LALouisiana | $66,090 | $60,620 | $77,820 | 760 | $74,926 |
| 30 | UTUtah | $66,080 | $59,740 | $73,540 | 280 | $66,839 |
| 31 | MOMissouri | $66,070 | $59,560 | $73,790 | 1,470 | $72,751 |
| 32 | IDIdaho | $65,330 | $63,070 | $73,280 | 210 | $68,413 |
| 33 | KYKentucky | $65,230 | $59,880 | $71,840 | 500 | $72,350 |
| 34 | KSKansas | $65,010 | $61,370 | $73,750 | 660 | $72,179 |
| 35 | MNMinnesota | $64,920 | $61,270 | $72,820 | 540 | $65,828 |
| 36 | MEMaine | $64,270 | $60,430 | $75,520 | 250 | $66,224 |
| 37 | IAIowa | $64,140 | $52,990 | $74,660 | 400 | $73,084 |
| 38 | ILIllinois | $64,120 | $59,460 | $73,850 | 2,470 | $64,147 |
| 39 | MIMichigan | $63,260 | $59,500 | $70,590 | 1,250 | $65,747 |
| 40 | NENebraska | $63,180 | $50,250 | $72,550 | 210 | $70,120 |
| 41 | WYWyoming | $62,750 | $57,980 | $70,850 | 80 | $67,698 |
| 42 | OHOhio | $62,700 | $58,920 | $73,930 | 3,890 | $67,584 |
| 43 | TNTennessee | $62,420 | $58,470 | $74,000 | 1,300 | $67,944 |
| 44 | ALAlabama | $62,250 | $55,850 | $68,010 | 750 | $70,083 |
| 45 | MSMississippi | $61,650 | $56,740 | $72,280 | 420 | $70,900 |
| 46 | NDNorth Dakota | $60,970 | $49,290 | $63,170 | 130 | $68,537 |
| 47 | WVWest Virginia | $60,370 | $55,690 | $67,810 | 340 | $67,455 |
| 48 | WIWisconsin | $59,960 | $47,960 | $65,740 | 1,050 | $63,723 |
| 49 | SDSouth Dakota | $56,180 | $48,470 | $59,670 | 100 | $63,419 |
| 50 | AKAlaska | $53,530 | $37,670 | $71,360 | 60 | $52,296 |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Occupational Therapy Assistants, that changes the ranking: Maryland leads on raw pay at $82,010, while Arkansas leads once prices are taken into account at $90,801.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Occupational Therapy Assistant pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Occupational Therapy Assistants the most?
Maryland reports the highest median wage for Occupational Therapy Assistants at $82,010 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by California ($81,770) and Texas ($81,500).
Which state pays Occupational Therapy Assistants the least?
Alaska reports the lowest median for Occupational Therapy Assistants at $53,530 a year, $28,480 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Occupational Therapy Assistants earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts Arkansas first at $90,801 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $78,940. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.