The Best & Worst States for PTs

Young female physical therapist helping a smiling older female patient wearing an orange button down raise purple weights above her head.

Working as a physical therapist is one of the most fulfilling and highest-paying careers out there, considered among the most desirable medical careers. This career is an outstanding choice for those who love being fit, are excited by medical knowledge, and are looking for high job satisfaction. It has an outstanding work/life balance, plus PTs can work in various settings, such as ski resorts, beach areas, or large cities. Or they can work as traveling PTs. The PT specialty is always in high demand. So what are the best states for physical therapists to work? That’s going to depend on a number of factors.

What Do Physical Therapists Do?

Physical therapists treat movement issues, improving the quality of life for their patients through education, exercise, and hands-on care. They work with patients of all ages, from infants to the elderly. Their patients might suffer from injuries, disabilities, or other health conditions, or they might just want to lead healthier lives.

Physical therapists have a profound impact on the lives of their patients, helping many regain their independence, deal with pain, or achieve fitness and movement goals.

The History of Physical Therapy

Physical therapy has a long history, with roots as far back as ancient Greece. Hippocrates first advocated using manual therapy techniques, hydrotherapy, and massage for his patients in 435 BCE.

The discipline began to take its modern shape starting in the late 1800s in Europe as a way to treat bone disorders. Like other modern medical treatments, physical therapy rapidly advanced from there, spurred by events such as polio outbreaks and two world wars.

Some milestones include:

The formation of what is today’s American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) in 1924
The primary use of traction, massage, and exercise through the 1940s
Manipulative therapies for joints and spine beginning in the 1950s
The move to outpatient clinics starting in the late 1950s

What Physical Therapists Treat Today

Today physical therapists are an essential component of the healing process, treating medical conditions such as:

Back and neck pain
Carpal tunnel syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome
Headaches
Joint replacement
Muscular dystrophy
Osteoporosis
Range of motion issues
Respiratory issues
Sports injuries

That’s a limited list that could go on and on. The range of conditions PTs treat is vast, offering many options for specialization.

Some areas of specialization physical therapists pursue include:

Geriatric physical therapy. These specialists help the elderly address the mobility and movement issues that come with age. Some conditions include osteoporosis, arthritis, and some cancers.
Hand physical therapy. Centering on the entire upper arm and the hand, when people have injured themselves or have arthritis, exercises help them regain their range of motion.
Neurological physical therapy. These PTs help patients regain function after experiencing neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s, strokes, and spine or brain injuries.
Occupational physical therapy. This therapy treats those impacted by work-related activities, often manual labor impacts from improper lifting or poor posture. Occupational physical therapy focuses heavily on core and upper-body strength.
Pediatric physical therapy. This therapy helps patients at the opposite end from geriatric care. Genetic conditions, severe injuries, head trauma, or congenital disabilities could result in mobility issues for infants or toddlers.
Rehabilitative physical therapy. A major surgery could dramatically impact mobility and movement, requiring rehabilitative physical therapy.

The Average Physical Therapist Salary

According to U.S. News & World Report’s Best Jobs of 2023, physical therapy ranks third among the 2023 top healthcare jobs in the U.S. On top of having some of the highest projected job growth numbers (PT jobs are expected to grow by 17% between 2021 and 2031, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics [BLS]), physical therapy turns out to be one of the more lucrative healthcare professions in the country as well, with a high average annual wage. As of May 2021, the average annual PT salary was $92,920.

PT salaries do vary by state and types of settings (urban versus rural, for example). Weighing location matters because an average income in a less-expensive location might result in more significant take-home pay. A PT in Southern California, for example, might earn far beyond the average PT salary, but the higher cost of living and significantly higher state income taxes in California would eat into those earnings.

Where you live can play a big role in how your career shapes up. To help you determine where you have the best chances for both professional and personal satisfaction, we’ve identified four key factors that contribute to states’ being considered the “best” (or “worst”) to work in as a PT:

Salary
Affordability/Cost of Living
Job Demand
Quality of Life

The Best & Worst States for Physical Therapists

For each metric, we pulled the latest data from the BLS and U.S. News & World Report. Then we identified which states ranked the highest and lowest for PTs along all four categories.

The Best & Worst States for Physical Therapists: Salary

To dig into the earning potential of PTs — and how salaries vary by state — we looked at data from the BLS’s Occupational Employment Statistics (OES). Below are the five states with the highest PT salaries and the five states with the lowest.

Keep in mind that all BLS data reflect the employment and wage numbers for PTs as of May 2021. We will revise the data below as soon as it gets updated from our sources.

The 5 Highest-Paying States for Physical Therapists

Rank	State	Average Annual Salary for Physical Therapists	Average Hourly Pay for Physical Therapists
1	Nevada	$104,210	$50.10
2	California	$103,510	$49.77
3	Connecticut	$101,180	$48.64
4	Delaware	$100,490	$48.31
5	New Jersey	$99,530	$47.85

The 5 Lowest-Paying States for Physical Therapists

Rank	State	Average Annual Salary for Physical Therapists	Average Hourly Pay for Physical Therapists
46	South Dakota	$83,820	$40.30
47	South Carolina	$83,270	$40.03
48	Michigan	$83,160	$39.98
49	Montana	$82,660	$39.74
50	North Dakota	$81,480	$39.17

The Best & Worst States for Physical Therapists: Affordability/Cost of Living

Cost of living is a really important factor to consider when determining your earning potential. To help you get a more accurate picture, we’ve turned to U.S. News' 2022 affordability rankings to find out which states are considered the most (and least) affordable. To determine how affordable each state was, U.S. News gave it scores on two metrics: cost of living and housing affordability. Based on those scores, each state then received an overall ranking on a scale of 1 to 50, with 1 being the most affordable and 50 being the least.

Keep in mind that U.S. News & World Report last updated its rankings in January 2021. We'll keep updating the tables below when new data is released.

The 5 Most Affordable States for Physical Therapists

Rank	State	Cost of Living Score	Housing Affordability Score
1	Ohio	6	2
2	Oklahoma	8	3
3	Michigan	4	7
4	Iowa	17	1
5	Missouri	3	9

The 5 Least Affordable States for Physical Therapists

Rank	State	Cost of Living Score	Housing Affordability Score
46	Oregon	40	46
47	Alaska	48	36
48	Massachusetts	47	40
49	California	50	49
50	Hawaii	49	50

The Best & Worst States for Physical Therapists: Job Demand

When determining whether a state is the "best" or "worst" to work in as a PT, one key factor to consider is not only how much demand there currently is for your particular skill set but also how much demand there will be in the future. (You can think about this in terms of job security.)

To assess current employment levels, we looked at the most recent BLS’s OES statistics (May 2020). Next we turned to job demand projection data from Projection Central to show you the five states that are predicted to have the most job openings for PTs between now and 2028, and the five that are predicted to have the least. We’ve also provided the job growth percentages for the states as well.

The 5 States With the Highest Employment Levels for Physical Therapists (May 2021)

Rank	State	Employment Numbers	Employment per thousand jobs
1	California	23,840	1.44
2	New York	16,130	1.86
3	Texas	14,040	1.15
4	Florida	13,220	1.54
5	Pennsylvania	10,700	1.92

The 5 States With the Lowest Employment Levels for Physical Therapists (May 2021)

Rank	State	Employment Numbers	Employment per thousand jobs
46	South Dakota	810	1.93
47	North Dakota	720	1.82
48	Alaska	680	2.3
49	Vermont	630	2.21
50	Wyoming	570	2.2

The 5 States With the Highest Projected Demand for Physical Therapists (2018-2028)

Rank	State	Average Number of Physical Therapist Job Openings per Year	Physical Therapist Job Growth Percentage
1	California	1,630	22.4%
2	New York	1,560	34%
3	Texas	1,150	20.4%
4	Florida	950	22.1%
5	Pennsylvania	830	20.6%

The 5 States With the Lowest Projected Demand for Physical Therapists (2018-2028)

Rank	State	Average Number of Physical Therapist Job Openings per Year	Physical Therapist Job Growth Percentage
46	Nevada	40	31.5%
47	Idaho	40	25.8%
48	Wyoming	40	22.4%
49	Alaska	30	7.5%
50	Mississippi	10	6.6%

The Best & Worst States for Physical Therapists: Quality of Life

Everyone defines “quality of life” a little differently, so to establish a standard unit of measurement, we turned to U.S. News’ 2021 best states rankings — specifically its "Overall Best States" list. First, analysts ranked each state for the following eight metrics:

Healthcare
Education
Economy
Infrastructure
Opportunity
Fiscal Stability
Crime & Corrections
Natural Environment

Then the analysts used those sub-rankings to provide each state with an overall ranking. (You can read more about their methodology here.) Below, we've provided you with the rankings for the top five and bottom five, along with their rankings for each metric.

The 5 Best States for Physical Therapists' Quality of Life

Rank	State	Healthcare Score	Education Score	Economy Score	Infrastructure Score	Opportunity Score	Fiscal Stability Score	Crime & Corrections Score	Natural Environment Score
1	Washington	8	4	4	3	25	6	19	15
2	Minnesota	16	17	15	9	2	21	10	3
3	Utah	9	10	2	3	24	5	12	49
4	New Hampshire	13	13	11	34	3	33	1	2
5	Idaho	24	29	3	10	24	4	10	12

The 5 Worst States for Physical Therapists' Quality of Life

Rank	State	Healthcare Score	Education Score	Economy Score	Infrastructure Score	Opportunity Score	Fiscal Stability Score	Crime & Corrections Score	Natural Environment Score
46	Alabama	46	50	45	38	45	23	45	35
47	West Virginia	45	45	48	50	18	38	43	37
48	New Mexico	33	50	44	45	49	35	47	31
49	Mississippi	50	43	49	48	44	41	33	22
50	Louisiana	46	48	47	47	48	42	50	49

U.S. State Rankings: Affordability & Quality of Life

Use the tables below to check how your state fares on measures of affordability and quality of life, according to the most recent U.S. News’ rankings.

National Affordability Rankings (2021)

Rank	State	Cost of Living Score	Housing Affordability Score
1	Ohio	6	2
2	Oklahoma	8	3
3	Michigan	4	7
4	Iowa	17	1
5	Missouri	3	9
6	Indiana	11	4
7	Arkansas	2	13
8	West Virginia	13	5
9	Kentucky	7	15
10	Mississippi	1	20
11	Nebraska	21	6
12	Kansas	16	12
13	Georgia	9	18
14	South Dakota	23	11
15	Pennsylvania	26	8
16	Illinois	19	14
17	Tennessee	5	26
18	Alabama	10	25
19	Wisconsin	20	16
20	Louisiana	15	23
21	North Dakota	32	10
22	Texas	14	28
23	Minnesota	28	17
24	North Carolina	12	31
25	South Carolina	18	32
26	New Mexico	24	35
27	Delaware	34	24
28	Virginia	30	34
29	Arizona	27	37
30	Idaho	22	42
31	Florida	25	41
32	Montana	29	44
33	Wyoming	32	39
34	Utah	31	45
35	Maine	39	30
36	New York	37	38
37	New Jersey	42	22
38	New Hampshire	43	21
39	Vermont	41	29
40	Connecticut	46	19
41	Nevada	35	43
42	Maryland	44	27
43	Colorado	36	48
44	Washington	38	47
45	Rhode Island	45	33
46	Oregon	40	46
47	Alaska	48	36
48	Massachusetts	47	40
49	California	50	49
50	Hawaii	49	50

Source:U.S. News & World Report's Best States 2021 Rankings (January 2021)

National Quality of Life Rankings (2021)

Rank	State	Healthcare Score	Education Score	Economy Score	Infrastructure Score	Opportunity Score	Fiscal Stability Score	Crime & Corrections Score	Natural Environment Score
1	Washington	8	4	4	3	25	6	19	15
2	Minnesota	16	17	15	9	2	21	15	10
3	Utah	11	10	1	5	30	5	8	47
4	New Hampshire	13	13	11	34	3	33	1	2
5	Idaho	24	29	3	10	24	4	10	12
6	Nebraska	28	9	20	6	10	17	31	6
7	Virginia	12	12	13	39	8	18	9	19
8	Wisconsin	15	8	26	24	9	9	25	17
9	Massachusetts	2	2	5	42	36	43	4	4
10	Florida	25	3	8	20	33	8	26	18
11	Vermont	18	15	25	12	17	37	3	9
12	Iowa	20	18	27	19	1	23	14	20
13	North Carolina	30	7	17	22	28	7	20	27
14	North Dakota	27	25	32	4	23	16	18	8
15	South Dakota	29	19	30	14	27	2	35	3
16	Colorado	10	5	2	15	41	45	41	23
17	Maryland	6	14	35	38	15	29	22	11
18	Georgia	43	26	12	11	13	11	29	25
19	New Jersey	4	1	33	41	19	49	5	33
20	Connecticut	3	6	22	46	45	30	6	28
21	New York	7	16	43	30	46	20	11	5
22	Oregon	17	35	14	2	31	13	40	42
23	Delaware	14	24	24	25	14	12	39	45
24	California	5	20	10	31	50	36	28	35
25	Hawaii	2	27	46	33	34	46	12	1
26	Kansas	41	23	31	7	16	39	27	16
27	Maine	26	28	36	37	29	26	2	14
28	Missouri	42	30	23	27	4	15	45	21
29	Tennessee	40	33	16	17	21	3	42	39
30	Illinois	23	11	39	26	12	50	16	43
31	Texas	31	34	9	16	39	10	37	40
32	Indiana	32	22	21	32	7	32	24	48
33	Montana	36	32	19	13	35	19	34	24
34	Rhode Island	9	39	28	49	32	44	7	7
35	Wyoming	38	21	45	8	42	34	21	13
36	Ohio	37	21	34	29	6	24	32	44
37	Nevada	39	40	6	1	47	27	36	50
38	Michigan	35	38	29	35	5	38	30	32
39	Arizona	21	46	7	23	40	40	38	41
40	Pennsylvania	19	37	42	44	11	47	17	38
41	Kentucky	44	36	40	18	20	48	13	29
42	South Carolina	34	44	18	36	38	31	46	26
43	Oklahoma	48	42	37	21	26	25	44	34
44	Arkansas	49	41	41	43	22	14	48	30
45	Alaska	22	49	50	40	43	1	49	46
46	Alabama	45	47	38	28	37	22	43	37
47	West Virginia	47	45	48	50	18	28	23	36
48	New Mexico	33	50	44	45	49	35	47	31
49	Mississippi	50	43	49	48	44	41	33	22
50	Louisiana	46	47	47	47	48	42	50	49

Source: U.S. News & World Report's Best States 2021 Rankings (January 2021)

Nationwide Job Growth Projections for Physical Therapists (2018-2028)

State	Average Number of Job Openings per Year	Job Growth Percentage
Alabama	190	18.9%
Alaska	30	7.5%
Arizona	150	43.4%
Arkansas	150	23.6%
California	1,630	22.4%
Colorado	490	37.3%
Connecticut	260	13.3%
Delaware	60	22%
Florida	950	22.1%
Georgia	440	35.7%
Hawaii	70	17.6%
Idaho	40	25.8%
Illinois	620	10.3%
Indiana	340	20.7%
Iowa	150	25.7%
Kansas	140	11%
Kentucky	160	16.7%
Louisiana	50	14.2%
Maine	80	7.3%
Maryland	430	31%
Massachusetts	470	9.9%
Michigan	450	9.4%
Minnesota	310	18.4%
Mississippi	10	6.6%
Missouri	320	18.9%
Montana	70	19.6%
Nebraska	120	22.7%
Nevada	40	31.5%
New Hampshire	100	20.1%
New Jersey	540	20%
New Mexico	90	19.4%
New York	1,560	34%
North Carolina	390	14.9%
North Dakota	50	21.7%
Ohio	480	15.5%
Oklahoma	160	15.2%
Oregon	230	23.5%
Pennsylvania	830	20.6%
Rhode Island	60	10.5%
South Carolina	220	22.5%
South Dakota	60	17%
Tennessee	330	21%
Texas	1,150	20.4%
Utah	150	27.5%
Vermont	50	14.3%
Virginia	470	21.3%
Washington	760	30.3%
West Virginia	100	19.9%
Wisconsin	260	8.3%
Wyoming	40	22.4%

Source: Projections Central - Long-Term Occupational Projections (2018-2028)

Physical Therapy Is an Amazing Career

The potential earnings are fabulous, but this career comes with many other perks. The ability to find a job anywhere, excellent work/life balance, ongoing career growth, and opportunities for specialization and continuous learning make this one of the most desirable careers.

Most importantly, physical therapists get to know they made a difference in their patients' lives and see the results as they work with them. Whether they work with toddlers, GenZ, or Boomers, PTs improve lives across generations. Want to expand your physical therapy career? Learn more about how to start your own Physical Therapy practice.

Image courtesy of iStock.com/vitapix

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The Best (& Worst) States for Physical Therapists in 2023