Physical Therapist.
Kansas City.
$92,000
median salary, 9% below the national average
$76,000 to $107,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Physical Therapist offer in Kansas City, MO, here is the reality: $76,000 to $107,000, with $92,000 as the midpoint. 9% below 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 Kansas City, 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 $101,270 for Physical Therapists (SOC 29-1123) in the Kansas City, MO-KS metropolitan area, based on 2,010 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$75,170
25th percentile
$81,010
Median
$101,270
75th percentile
$111,640
90th percentile
$125,790
Workers surveyed
2,010
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 Kansas City 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 $83,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$60,000
to $74,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$78,000
to $97,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$101,000
to $120,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$115,000
to $143,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $23,000 to the total package.
Base
$92,000
Equity
$13,000
Bonus
$8,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $115,000
How Kansas City compares.
Kansas City, MO
$92,000
Cost of living: 7% below average
National Average
$101,000
Kansas City is $9,000 below
Physical Therapist salary by city.
Salary by role in Kansas City.
What you should know.
Here is what the Physical Therapist market actually looks like in Kansas City. Kansas City straddles Missouri and Kansas, creating a unique dual state job market with strong logistics, tech, and agriculture technology sectors. The metro's central location has made it a hub for distribution centers and supply chain companies. Cerner's healthcare IT presence and a growing startup scene have boosted demand for technology professionals. 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 Kansas City, 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: missouri's top income tax rate is about 4.8%, and Kansas City adds a 1% earnings tax. Workers living in Kansas face that state's rates instead. Choose your side of the state line carefully. When someone quotes you $92,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Negotiate which side of the state line you will be based on. Your tax situation differs meaningfully between Missouri and Kansas, and some employers offer flexibility on office location. The range for Physical Therapists in Kansas City runs from $76,000 to $107,000. 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 Kansas City earns $91,000 (1% less)
- The highest-paying role in Kansas City is CTO at $282,000
Common questions.
Physical Therapist salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Kansas City.
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Physical Therapist Salary in Kansas City, MO." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/physical-therapist/kansas-city
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