Physical Therapist.
Chicago.
$105,000
median salary, 4% above the national average
$86,000 to $121,000. Last updated August 2026.
Get the job.
Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Physical Therapist offer in Chicago, IL, here is the reality: $86,000 to $121,000, with $105,000 as the midpoint. 4% above the national average. Setting drives the biggest pay differences, with home health and travel PT positions paying 15 to 25% above outpatient clinics. 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 Physical Therapist in Chicago, 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 $105,720 for Physical Therapists (SOC 29-1123) in the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN metropolitan area, based on 7,880 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$85,220
25th percentile
$98,120
Median
$105,720
75th percentile
$123,720
90th percentile
$142,320
Workers surveyed
7,880
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Physical Therapists (SOC 29-1123) rather than Physical Therapist specifically. The Chicago 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 29-1123Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $95,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$68,000
to $84,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$89,000
to $110,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$116,000
to $137,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$131,000
to $163,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $26,000 to the total package.
Base
$105,000
Equity
$15,000
Bonus
$9,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $131,000
How Chicago compares.
Chicago, IL
$105,000
Cost of living: 7% above average
National Average
$101,000
Chicago is $4,000 above
Physical Therapist salary by city.
Salary by role in Chicago.
What you should know.
Here is what the Physical Therapist market actually looks like in Chicago. Chicago's economy is anchored by finance, manufacturing, and a rapidly expanding tech sector. The city has become a major hub for fintech, enterprise SaaS, and e-commerce. With lower living costs than coastal cities and a deep talent pool from top universities, Chicago offers strong salary to cost of living ratios for professionals across industries. Setting drives the biggest pay differences, with home health and travel PT positions paying 15 to 25% above outpatient clinics. Board-certified specialists in areas like orthopedics or neurology earn premiums. Geographic cost of living and state reimbursement rates also create significant variance across markets.
New-graduate PTs start at $70,000 to $80,000 in outpatient settings. With board certification and five years of experience, salaries reach $90,000 to $105,000. Clinical directors and practice owners can earn $110,000 to $130,000 depending on practice size and revenue. In Chicago, 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. Benefits typically include CEU reimbursement of $1,500 to $3,000, student loan repayment assistance, and health insurance. Travel PTs receive housing stipends and per diems that can add $15,000 to $25,000 in effective annual compensation. And on the tax side: illinois has a flat 4.95% state income tax. Chicago does not levy a separate city income tax, making the overall burden moderate compared to coastal metros. When someone quotes you $105,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Reference the Bay Area or NYC salary band for your role, then negotiate a modest discount. Chicago employers routinely offer 85 to 90% of coastal pay. The range for Physical Therapists in Chicago runs from $86,000 to $121,000. 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?
- An Occupational Therapist in Chicago earns $104,000 (1% less)
- The highest-paying role in Chicago is CTO at $327,000
Common questions.
Physical Therapist salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Chicago.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Physical Therapists in Chicago.
Related tools.
Do you work as a physical therapist in Chicago?
Your individual figure is never published. Submissions appear only as aggregate percentiles, and nothing is shown for a role and city until at least five people have reported. It is stored against your account, which is what keeps the dataset clean.
Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Physical Therapist Salary in Chicago, IL." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/physical-therapist/chicago
Want this data on your site? Embed the salary widget. One script tag, free forever.
Related tools