Where physical therapist assistants actually earn the most
California pays physical therapist assistants the most on paper, at $83,110. After state income tax and cost of living, Texas goes furthest at $80,365, and California drops to #7 of 51.
After-tax pay adjusted for cost of living. Stacks state tax and local prices.
Shading is scaled within physical therapist assistants only. US median for physical therapist assistants: $68,380.
Texas
#1 of 51 · Real value- BLS reported median
- $78,000
- State income tax
- none
- After-tax
- $78,000
- Cost of living (US = 100)
- 97.1
- Real value
- $80,365
Pay varies inside Texas too.
These are state medians
Your local number depends on your experience and practice setting.
See what you should be getting paidAll 51 states, ranked
Median physical therapist assistant pay by state, ranked by what it is worth after state income tax and cost of living.
| # | State | Nominal | Take-home | Real value | Reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Texas | $78,000 | $78,000 | $80,365 | 8 |
| 2 | Alaska | $77,640 | $77,640 | $75,851 | 1 |
| 3 | Nevada | $75,520 | $75,520 | $75,536 | 0 |
| 4 | Georgia | $72,800 | $69,644 | $72,326 | 1 |
| 5 | Louisiana | $65,370 | $63,795 | $72,324 | 0 |
| 6 | South Carolina | $70,500 | $67,427 | $71,923 | 1 |
| 7 | California | $83,110 | $79,610 | $71,902 | 8 |
| 8 | Massachusetts | $79,460 | $75,707 | $71,586 | 1 |
| 9 | Arkansas | $64,520 | $62,216 | $71,565 | 0 |
| 10 | North Dakota | $63,520 | $63,520 | $71,404 | 0 |
| 11 | Delaware | $74,610 | $71,027 | $71,163 | 0 |
| 12 | Maryland | $77,670 | $74,344 | $70,832 | 1 |
| 13 | Vermont | $71,600 | $69,335 | $70,780 | 0 |
| 14 | Florida | $72,530 | $72,530 | $70,136 | 8 |
| 15 | Connecticut | $75,880 | $72,457 | $69,932 | 0 |
| 16 | Virginia | $73,760 | $70,333 | $69,565 | 0 |
| 17 | New Jersey | $78,440 | $75,632 | $69,511 | 0 |
| 18 | North Carolina | $67,540 | $65,354 | $69,285 | 1 |
| 19 | Mississippi | $61,770 | $60,031 | $69,039 | 0 |
| 20 | New Hampshire | $71,440 | $71,440 | $68,584 | 0 |
| 21 | Wyoming | $63,550 | $63,550 | $68,561 | 0 |
| 22 | Kansas | $64,500 | $61,701 | $68,504 | 0 |
| 23 | Tennessee | $62,500 | $62,500 | $68,031 | 0 |
| 24 | Missouri | $63,770 | $61,710 | $67,950 | 1 |
| 25 | Indiana | $65,280 | $63,384 | $67,914 | 1 |
| 26 | Ohio | $63,820 | $62,847 | $67,742 | 1 |
| 27 | Iowa | $61,030 | $59,363 | $67,641 | 0 |
| 28 | Alabama | $61,430 | $58,624 | $66,000 | 0 |
| 29 | Nebraska | $61,370 | $59,457 | $65,988 | 0 |
| 30 | Wisconsin | $64,080 | $62,042 | $65,935 | 0 |
| 31 | Kentucky | $61,480 | $59,446 | $65,934 | 0 |
| 32 | New Mexico | $62,280 | $60,519 | $65,630 | 1 |
| 33 | Oregon | $73,180 | $67,606 | $65,408 | 0 |
| 34 | West Virginia | $60,430 | $58,446 | $65,305 | 1 |
| 35 | Oklahoma | $59,480 | $57,349 | $65,286 | 2 |
| 36 | Rhode Island | $68,640 | $66,683 | $65,196 | 0 |
| 37 | Maine | $66,250 | $62,960 | $64,874 | 0 |
| 38 | Minnesota | $66,770 | $63,753 | $64,644 | 0 |
| 39 | Montana | $62,650 | $60,462 | $63,883 | 0 |
| 40 | Arizona | $64,650 | $63,243 | $62,817 | 0 |
| 41 | Illinois | $65,240 | $62,155 | $62,182 | 0 |
| 42 | Pennsylvania | $62,580 | $60,659 | $62,168 | 3 |
| 43 | Washington | $66,450 | $66,450 | $62,095 | 0 |
| 44 | Idaho | $61,020 | $58,894 | $61,673 | 0 |
| 45 | Michigan | $61,670 | $59,300 | $61,631 | 0 |
| 46 | Colorado | $64,810 | $62,667 | $60,811 | 3 |
| 47 | Utah | $61,980 | $59,191 | $59,871 | 0 |
| 48 | Hawaii | $67,510 | $63,909 | $58,125 | 0 |
| 49 | New York | $64,100 | $61,236 | $56,741 | 2 |
| 50 | South Dakota | $49,310 | $49,310 | $55,663 | 0 |
| 51 | District of Columbia | $63,400 | $60,726 | $55,255 | 0 |
Ranked by real value (take-home pay adjusted for cost of living). Nominal = BLS median annual wage. Reports counts what clinicians in that state have contributed to this project, across every setting and pay type.
What PTAs report, by state and setting
45 physical therapist assistants have reported pay across 18 states so far, spread thin enough across settings that no state figure is solid enough to publish yet. Federal data cannot answer this either: it publishes one number per state for all settings and all experience levels together.
Anonymous and self-reported by clinicians using this tool. A convenience sample, not a probability sample. One report per clinician, most recent within three years.
The same map for the other four professions
Each profession ranks states differently. Assistant pay sits in a narrower band, so cost of living moves it more.
How this is calculated
Nominal pay is the median annual wage from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program (May 2025 release) for physical therapist assistants, SOC 31-2021, in each state. Where BLS suppresses an estimate for confidentiality, that state is left out rather than filled in, and there is no gap for this profession.
Take-homesubtracts modeled state income tax for a single filer taking the standard deduction, at that state's median wage, using Tax Foundation brackets as of January 1, 2026. It does not include federal income tax or FICA (those don't vary by state, so they don't change the ranking), and it excludes local (city or county) income taxes.
Real valuedivides take-home by each state's cost of living, using the Bureau of Economic Analysis Regional Price Parities (2024), where the US average is 100. Cost of living already captures sales tax and, through rents, some property tax; income tax is separate, which is why it is applied on its own.
Limits: single filer only; local income taxes (Maryland, New York, Ohio) are averaged out at the state grain; and cost of living is statewide, so a specific metro can run higher or lower. Typical pay, not personalized tax advice.
More control over your money and your time.
Paying off student loans faster, negotiating your salary, and building the option to go part-time. Free, by therapists, for therapists.