Physical Therapist.
Philadelphia.
$106,000
median salary, 5% above the national average
$87,000 to $122,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
If you are evaluating a Physical Therapist offer in Philadelphia, PA, here is the reality: $87,000 to $122,000, with $106,000 as the midpoint. 5% 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 Philadelphia, 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 $105,790 for Physical Therapists (SOC 29-1123) in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD metropolitan area, based on 6,250 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$80,240
25th percentile
$95,700
Median
$105,790
75th percentile
$120,550
90th percentile
$131,760
Workers surveyed
6,250
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 Philadelphia 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)
$69,000
to $85,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$90,000
to $111,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$117,000
to $138,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$133,000
to $164,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $27,000 to the total package.
Base
$106,000
Equity
$15,000
Bonus
$10,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $133,000
How Philadelphia compares.
Philadelphia, PA
$106,000
Cost of living: 9% above average
National Average
$101,000
Philadelphia is $5,000 above
Physical Therapist salary by city.
Salary by role in Philadelphia.
What you should know.
The Physical Therapist landscape in Philadelphia is not what most salary sites will tell you. Philadelphia combines a robust healthcare and life sciences sector with established finance and higher education institutions. The city's pharmaceutical corridor is among the strongest in the country. Tech growth has accelerated, particularly in health tech and enterprise software, offering salaries that stretch further than in nearby New York. 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 Philadelphia, 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: pennsylvania has a flat 3.07% state income tax, but Philadelphia adds a 3.75% city wage tax for residents. This combined local burden is worth factoring into salary negotiations. When someone quotes you $106,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Account for the Philadelphia wage tax in your ask. Request a 5 to 8% premium over suburban offers to offset the city's local tax on all earned income. The range for Physical Therapists in Philadelphia runs from $87,000 to $122,000. 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 Mechanical Engineer in Philadelphia earns $107,000 (1% more)
- The highest-paying role in Philadelphia is CTO at $314,000
Common questions.
Physical Therapist salary in other cities.
Other salaries in Philadelphia.
Related salary pages
Jump to nearby roles and cities most relevant to Physical Therapists in Philadelphia.
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Physical Therapist Salary in Philadelphia, PA." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/physical-therapist/philadelphia
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