Occupational Therapist.
Raleigh.
$101,000
median salary, 3% above the national average
$82,000 to $113,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating an Occupational Therapist offer in Raleigh, NC, here is the reality: $82,000 to $113,000, with $101,000 as the midpoint. 3% above the national average. Practice setting is the primary salary driver, with acute care hospitals and home health paying above outpatient and school-based roles. Do not accept the first number. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Occupational Therapist in Raleigh, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $84,080 for Occupational Therapists (SOC 29-1122) in the Raleigh-Cary, NC metropolitan area, based on 680 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$61,770
25th percentile
$74,910
Median
$84,080
75th percentile
$106,650
90th percentile
$121,210
Workers surveyed
680
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Occupational Therapists (SOC 29-1122) rather than Occupational Therapist specifically. The Raleigh range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 29-1122Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $91,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$66,000
to $81,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$86,000
to $106,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$111,000
to $131,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$126,000
to $157,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $27,000 to the total package.
Base
$101,000
Equity
$15,000
Bonus
$10,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $128,000
How Raleigh compares.
Raleigh, NC
$101,000
Cost of living: 1% below average
National Average
$98,000
Raleigh is $3,000 above
Occupational Therapist salary by city.
Salary by role in Raleigh.
What you should know.
The Occupational Therapist landscape in Raleigh is not what most salary sites will tell you. Raleigh sits at the heart of the Research Triangle, one of America's premier tech and life sciences corridors. Cisco, Red Hat, Epic Games, and numerous biotech firms drive strong demand for engineering, research, and product roles. The combination of top tier universities and moderate living costs creates an exceptionally favorable salary to expense ratio. Practice setting is the primary salary driver, with acute care hospitals and home health paying above outpatient and school-based roles. Hand therapy certification commands a notable premium. States with higher Medicaid reimbursement rates and metropolitan areas with greater demand also push compensation upward.
New OTs start around $68,000 to $78,000 depending on setting. Mid-career OTs with specialty certifications reach $88,000 to $100,000. OT directors or program managers in hospital systems can earn $105,000 to $125,000 with administrative and clinical oversight responsibilities. In Raleigh, cost of living sits near the national average, so the numbers you see are roughly what you keep.
Base salary is not the full picture. OTs typically receive CEU allowances, student loan assistance programs, and comprehensive health benefits. Some employers offer productivity bonuses tied to billable units, adding $3,000 to $8,000 annually for high-performing therapists. And on the tax side: north Carolina's flat 4.5% income tax keeps the burden low. Raleigh has no city income tax, and the Triangle's affordable housing amplifies your take home purchasing power. When someone quotes you $101,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Cite Research Triangle talent competition in your negotiation. Employers here compete directly with each other and with remote offers, creating favorable leverage for candidates. The range for Occupational Therapists in Raleigh runs from $82,000 to $113,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
Considering a related role?
- A Physical Therapist in Raleigh earns $102,000 (1% more)
- The highest-paying role in Raleigh is CTO at $291,000
Common questions.
Occupational Therapist salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Raleigh.
Related salary pages
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Occupational Therapist Salary in Raleigh, NC." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/occupational-therapist/raleigh
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