Occupational Therapist vs Physical Therapist: Similar Median Pay, Different Education Paths

Occupational Therapist vs Physical Therapist: what changes?

Consider Occupational Therapist if you want to assess, plan, and organize rehabilitative programs that help build or restore vocational, homemaking, and daily living skills, as well as general independence, to persons with disabilities or developmental…. Consider Physical Therapist if you would rather assess, plan, organize, and participate in rehabilitative programs that improve mobility, relieve pain, increase strength, and improve or correct disabling conditions resulting from disease or injury. Entry credentials differ: Occupational Therapist, master's degree; Physical Therapist, doctoral or professional degree.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Occupational Therapist and Physical Therapist. 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

Occupational Therapist

National median pay (2025): $100,330
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: Test and evaluate patients' physical and mental abilities and analyze medical data to determine realistic rehabilitation goals for patients.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 10,000

Know before you choose

The work routinely happens in close physical proximity to other people; personal space is limited.

See the full Occupational Therapist brief

Physical Therapist

National median pay (2025): $102,760
Route into the job: Doctoral or professional 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: Plan, prepare, or carry out individually designed programs of physical treatment to maintain, improve, or restore physical functioning, alleviate pain, or prevent physical dysfunction in patients.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 13,400

Know before you choose

The work routinely happens in close physical proximity to other people; personal space is limited.

See the full Physical Therapist brief

How the national numbers differ

Physical Therapist has the edge on annual openings

Physical Therapist is at 13,400 annual openings, compared with 10,000 annual openings for Occupational Therapist.

Occupational Therapist has the edge on projected growth

Occupational Therapist is at 14.8% projected growth, compared with 11.9% projected growth for Physical Therapist.

Physical Therapist has the edge on median pay

Physical Therapist is at $102,760, compared with $100,330 for Occupational Therapist.

69.8/ 100

Occupational Therapist

71.5/ 100

Physical Therapist

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

Occupational Therapist vs Physical Therapist

Dimension	Occupational Therapist	Physical Therapist
Median pay (2025)	$100,330	$102,760
Pay percentile	82.9 percentile	84.7 percentile
Projected growth (2025–2035)	14.8%	11.9%
Annual openings (2025–2035)	10,000	13,400
2025 employment	169,600	283,700
How you qualify	Master's degree	Doctoral or professional degree
O*NET preparation group	Job Zone 5	Job Zone 5
Related work experience	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.	No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
On-the-job training	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.	BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.

The table reports national benchmarks and reviewed work descriptions. It does not rate personal suitability, job security, or physical safety.

Read Occupational Therapist brief Read Physical Therapist brief

Occupational Therapist vs Physical Therapist: what changes?

The facts most likely to affect your decision

Occupational Therapist

Physical Therapist

How the national numbers differ

Physical Therapist has the edge on annual openings

Occupational Therapist has the edge on projected growth

Physical Therapist has the edge on median pay

Occupational Therapist vs Physical Therapist

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