Acupuncturists vs Athletic Trainers: $76K vs $63K Median Pay

Acupuncturists vs Athletic Trainers: what changes?

Consider Acupuncturists if you want to diagnose, treat, and prevent disorders by stimulating specific acupuncture points within the body using acupuncture needles. Consider Athletic Trainers if you would rather evaluate and treat musculoskeletal injuries or illnesses. Both list master's degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Acupuncturists and Athletic Trainers. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Acupuncturists

National median pay (2025): $76,040
Route into the job: Master's degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Maintain and follow standard quality, safety, environmental, and infection control policies and procedures.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 800

Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (14,800 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Acupuncturists brief

Athletic Trainers

National median pay (2025): $62,520
Route into the job: Master's degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Conduct an initial assessment of an athlete's injury or illness to provide emergency or continued care and to determine whether they should be referred to physicians for definitive diagnosis and treatment.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 2,400

Know before you choose

The helping mission includes documentation, direct care, and safety-critical routines where a missed detail can affect a patient.

See the full Athletic Trainers brief

How the national numbers differ

Athletic Trainers has the edge on annual openings

Athletic Trainers is at 2,400 annual openings, compared with 800 annual openings for Acupuncturists.

Acupuncturists has the edge on median pay

Acupuncturists is at $76,040, compared with $62,520 for Athletic Trainers.

Athletic Trainers has the edge on projected growth

Athletic Trainers is at 12.7% projected growth, compared with 8.6% projected growth for Acupuncturists.

47.8/ 100

Acupuncturists

51.8/ 100

Athletic Trainers

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

Detailed evidence