How Much Do Physical Therapists, OTs and Chiropractors Make?
Physical therapists earn a median of $102,760 a year, occupational therapists $100,330 and chiropractors $79,200, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025). PTs and OTs sit about 2% apart. The chiropractic median largely reflects employed chiropractors, and a profession survey that counts owners puts solo chiropractors at $113,142.
How much do physical therapists make?
The BLS median for physical therapists was $102,760 in May 2025, or $49.40 an hour (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $77,140 and the top 10% more than $135,140. The median rose about 1.7% from $101,020 in May 2024.
Setting moves PT pay more than specialty does. About $17,600 separates home health from therapy offices:
| Industry | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| Home healthcare services | $114,740 |
| Nursing and residential care facilities | $110,460 |
| Hospitals (state, local and private) | $106,800 |
| Offices of physical, occupational and speech therapists, and audiologists | $97,160 |
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025. Travel and PRN contracts often quote a higher hourly figure because they carry no benefits, so compare total compensation before treating that as a raise.
How much do occupational therapists make?
Occupational therapists earned a median of $100,330 in May 2025, or $48.24 an hour (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). The lowest 10% earned less than $71,690 and the top 10% more than $131,950, a spread of about $60,000 inside one licensed profession.
Home health and skilled nursing pay the most. Schools sit about $19,000 below home health:
| Industry | Median annual wage |
|---|---|
| Home healthcare services | $106,300 |
| Nursing care facilities (skilled nursing facilities) | $105,850 |
| Hospitals (state, local and private) | $102,820 |
| Offices of physical, occupational and speech therapists, and audiologists | $97,940 |
| Educational services (state, local and private) | $87,300 |
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025.
How much do chiropractors make?
Chiropractors earned a median of $79,200 in May 2025, or $38.08 an hour (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook). The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $43,460 and the top 10% more than $146,080, the widest spread of the three professions. The median in offices of chiropractors was $78,460.
That spread explains the chiropractic numbers. The top of the range belongs mostly to practice owners, and the BLS median leaves most of them out, as the section after the comparison explains.
How do the three professions compare?
PTs and OTs earn within about $2,400 of each other at the median. Chiropractors earn less at the median and more at the top.
| Profession | Median annual | Median hourly | Lowest 10% | Top 10% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physical therapist | $102,760 | $49.40 | less than $77,140 | more than $135,140 |
| Occupational therapist | $100,330 | $48.24 | less than $71,690 | more than $131,950 |
| Chiropractor | $79,200 | $38.08 | less than $43,460 | more than $146,080 |
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook, May 2025 (PT, OT, chiropractor).
Why does the published median understate a practice owner?
BLS states that its wage data do not cover self-employed workers or owners and partners of unincorporated businesses (BLS). A PT, OT or chiropractor who owns a practice and draws its profit is largely missing from every median on this page.
Profession surveys count owners, and the difference shows. The Chiropractic Economics Salary and Expense Survey puts average total compensation at $113,142 for solo chiropractors and $218,593 in group practice (Chiropractic Economics, 2024). Those are averages, which the highest earners pull upward, so they sit higher than a median would for the same group.
Read together, the two sources say the gap between the middle and the top of these professions is mostly about how a provider is paid: wage, or wage plus practice profit.
How do movement providers add income outside the fee schedule?
Most clinical income follows a payer's fee schedule. Medicare's 2026 Physician Fee Schedule raised the conversion factor 3.26%, to $33.40 for clinicians outside qualifying payment models, after five straight years of cuts (CMS). That figure still sits about 7.5% below the 2020 conversion factor of $36.09 (AMA).
PTs, OTs and chiropractors can also earn outside that schedule from something they do at the end of most episodes of care: recommending the brace, band, splint or support a patient should get. A ShopDot storefront puts those recommendations behind one link. ShopDot is the seller of record and is named at checkout, the supplier ships the order to the patient, and the provider earns a percentage of each sale.
The storefront tells patients both facts: that ShopDot is the seller of record and that their provider earns a percentage of each sale. ShopDot is not part of insurance billing, and patients pay for storefront products directly.
Professional codes ask for that disclosure. APTA's Code of Ethics asks PTs and PTAs to "fully disclose any financial interest they have in products or services that they recommend" (Standard 6.5) (APTA). The AOTA 2025 Occupational Therapy Code of Ethics asks OT personnel to "provide relevant disclosures when participating in business arrangements" (Standard 1D) (AOTA). Chiropractors should check their state board for its disclosure rules.
The full picture is in can providers sell products to patients, how to recommend products to patients and adding cash-based revenue to a practice.
FAQ
How much do physical therapists make a year?
The median annual wage for physical therapists was $102,760 in May 2025, or $49.40 an hour, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The top 10% earned more than $135,140 and the lowest 10% earned less than $77,140.
Does a PT or OT make more money?
Physical therapists earn slightly more. For May 2025 the BLS median was $102,760 for physical therapists and $100,330 for occupational therapists — a gap of $2,430, or about 2%. That difference is smaller than the spread between settings within either profession, so where you work matters more than which of the two you chose.
How much do chiropractors make a year?
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual wage for chiropractors at $79,200, or $38.08 an hour (May 2025). The lowest-paid 10% earn less than $43,460 and the top 10% more than $146,080. Chiropractic Economics' 2024 survey, which counts practice owners, puts average total compensation at $113,142 for solo chiropractors.
Which setting pays physical and occupational therapists the most?
Home healthcare, for both. In May 2025 the BLS median in home healthcare was $114,740 for physical therapists and $106,300 for occupational therapists. Therapy offices paid medians of $97,160 and $97,940, and schools paid occupational therapists $87,300.
Why do practice owners earn more than the BLS median shows?
BLS wage data do not cover self-employed workers or owners and partners of unincorporated businesses, so an owner who draws practice profit is largely missing from the median. Chiropractic Economics' 2024 survey, which counts owners, puts average total compensation at $113,142 for solo chiropractors and $218,593 in group practice.
How long does it take to become a PT, OT or chiropractor?
A Doctor of Physical Therapy program typically takes three years after a bachelor's degree. A master's in occupational therapy takes two to three years, and entry-level OT doctorates run about three. A Doctor of Chiropractic degree typically takes four years after undergraduate coursework. All three professions require a state license.
Earn on the products you recommend
Put your patients' product list behind one link. The supplier ships each order.
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