Updated May 2026 · BLS OEWS 2025 reference period
Is Occupational Therapist a Good Salary? (2026)
With a national median of $102,783 per year as of 2026, occupational therapist pay is a solidly mid-range professional salary: among Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS occupations tracked here, it ranks #32 of the 65 occupations tracked here, out-earning about 52% of them. Whether that median is "good" for you depends on where you fall in the $57,940-to-$171,460 range that occupational therapists actually earn across U.S. metros — entry-level pay sits near the bottom, senior specialists near the top.
This page answers a common U.S. wage question: Is Occupational Therapist a Good Salary? (2026). The answer draws on BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) — the federal survey that captures wages for over 800 occupations across every U.S. metropolitan area. Why BLS OEWS data is the right anchor: alternative wage sources (Glassdoor, levels.fyi, Payscale) are self-reported and skew toward specific roles, industries, or geographies. BLS OEWS is employer-reported, mandatory for businesses above the survey threshold, and uniformly applied across occupations and metros.
The detailed answer below uses the BLS numbers, explains how to read them, and translates the statistical detail into the worker-relevant interpretation of the question.
50th percentile across U.S. metros, employment-weighted
How to Judge This Salary
"Good" is relative, so the honest answer uses two anchors from the BLS data. First, the distribution within the role: occupational therapists earn anywhere from $57,940 (10th percentile, lowest metros) to $171,460 (90th percentile, top metros), so the same job title can be a great or mediocre salary depending on metro and experience. Second, the comparison to other occupations: at #32 of 65 tracked occupations, occupational therapists out-earn roughly 52% of the skilled and professional roles in this dataset. Note these are curated professional occupations, not the whole U.S. labor force — so this is a peer comparison, not an all-economy percentile.
If your offer or current pay is below the $102,783 median, the BLS data is a clean negotiation lever — especially if you have median-or-better experience. If you are above it, benchmark against the 75th and 90th percentiles for your metro instead. See "Senior occupational therapist salary" and "Top 10% occupational therapist salary" for those higher bands, and the per-city pages to see where occupational therapist pay goes furthest after cost of living.
Occupational Therapist Pay vs. Other Tracked Occupations
| Occupational Therapist National Median | $102,783 |
| Rank Among Tracked Occupations | #32 of 65 |
| Out-Earns | ~52% of tracked occupations |
| Highest-Paying Tracked Occupation (median) | $279,676 |
| Median Tracked Occupation | $102,203 |
| Lowest-Paying Tracked Occupation (median) | $54,808 |
Comparison is against the 65 professional and skilled occupations tracked on SalaryTruth — a peer benchmark, not an all-economy ranking.
Where Occupational Therapist Pay Goes Furthest
| Metro | Median Pay |
|---|---|
| San Jose, CA | $136,870 |
| San Francisco, CA | $136,770 |
| Bakersfield, CA | $123,200 |
| Sacramento, CA | $122,780 |
| Austin, TX | $122,050 |
What the Numbers Tell You
Geographic pay variation for Occupational Therapists is meaningful but moderate — top metros pay roughly 1.7× the lowest, a $58,100 spread. Cost of living plus a modest premium for high-demand metros explains most of it.
Occupational Therapist is a smaller occupation, with about 99,840 workers tracked. Individual employers can move the local market noticeably.
More Occupational Therapist Salary Answers
Each page answers a distinct pay question for this role — by experience band, hourly rate, and how the salary stacks up:
- Entry-level occupational therapist salary →
- Junior occupational therapist salary →
- How much do occupational therapists make →
- Senior occupational therapist salary →
- Top 10% occupational therapist salary →
- How much do occupational therapists make an hour →
How This Salary Is Calculated
Wages come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program — an annual survey of about 1.2 million U.S. establishments published by Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code and Metropolitan Statistical Area. The figure on this page is employment-weighted across 70 BLS-tracked metros for SOC code 29-1122. The mapping from BLS percentiles to experience bands (entry / junior / mid / senior / top 10%) follows the convention used by the U.S. Department of Labor's prevailing wage system. See full methodology.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is occupational therapist a good salary?
With a national median of $102,783 per year as of 2026, occupational therapist pay is a solidly mid-range professional salary: among Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS occupations tracked here, it ranks #32 of the 65 occupations tracked here, out-earning about 52% of them. Whether that median is "good" for you depends on where you fall in the $57,940-to-$171,460 range that occupational therapists actually earn across U.S. metros — entry-level pay sits near the bottom, senior specialists near the top.
How does occupational therapist pay rank against other occupations?
Occupational Therapist ranks #32 of the 65 occupations tracked on SalaryTruth by national median, out-earning about 52% of them. The highest-paying tracked occupation has a median of $279,676; the lowest, $54,808. These are curated professional and skilled occupations, so this is a peer comparison, not an all-economy ranking.
What salary range do occupational therapists actually earn?
Occupational Therapists earn from $57,940 (10th percentile, lowest metros) to $171,460 (90th percentile, top metros), around a $102,783 national median. The same job title can be a great or a mediocre salary depending on your metro and experience level.
Is $102,783 a good salary?
$102,783 is the median occupational therapist salary — half earn more, half earn less. If your pay is below it and you have median-or-better experience, you have a clean BLS-backed case to negotiate up. If you are above it, benchmark against the 75th and 90th percentiles for your metro instead.
Where does this occupational therapist salary data come from?
Every wage figure comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program at bls.gov/oes — an annual federal survey of more than 1 million U.S. employers, the same source the Department of Labor uses to set prevailing wages.
With a national median of $102,783 per year as of 2026, occupational therapist pay is a solidly mid-range professional salary: among Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS occupations tracked here, it ranks #32 of the 65 occupations tracked here, out-earning about 52% of them. Whether that median is "good" for you depends on where you fall in the $57,940-to-$171,460 range that occupational therapists actually earn across U.S. metros — entry-level pay sits near the bottom, senior specialists near the top.