SalaryExplorer

SOC 29-1129 · May 2025 · BLS OEWS

Therapists, All Other — Tennessee

Tennessee · 3 metro areas compared

$56,690 /year
$27.26per hour
210jobs in area
−27.3%vs US median

The median wage for Therapists, All Other in Tennessee is $56,690 per year, substantially below the national median of $77,930 — a gap of 27.3%.

Wage distribution · annual

Shaded band holds the middle 50% of earners

US MEDIAN $77,93010TH$39,32025TH$47,050MEDIAN$56,69075TH$73,37090TH$85,680

How pay has moved

$60,305$38,6152019202020212022202320242025$56,690
$42,380 in 2019 to $56,690 in 2025, +33.8% before inflation. BLS states that OEWS estimates are not designed for comparison across years: the occupational classification, the sampling frame and the survey method have all changed inside this window. Read the direction, not the exact difference.

The next ten years

Projected to grow faster than average

Change in jobs, 2024 to 2034
+11.5%
Openings per year
4,100
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree

Includes jobs opened by workers leaving the occupation, not only new positions.

63.3% of people in this occupation work for themselves.

Projections are published nationally only. This is the outlook for the occupation across the United States, not a measurement for Tennessee.

Projections are based on 2024 employment and run to 2034. The wages above are from the May 2025 survey, a separate BLS programme on a different release cycle, so the two are not two views of one dataset.

Salary overview

The median wage for Therapists, All Other in Tennessee is $56,690 per year, substantially below the national median of $77,930 — a gap of 27.3%. Pay ranges from under $39,320 at the tenth percentile to more than $85,680 at the ninetieth, with the interquartile range running from $47,050 to $73,370.

Employment stands at 210, or 0.1 jobs per thousand held locally. Among the 41 states with published data for this occupation, Tennessee ranks 37th by median wage. Knoxville leads the state's metro areas for this occupation, at $79,280. Set against every other occupation measured in the same area, it ranks 357th of 730 by median pay.

Percentile breakdown

Annual wages by percentile · Tennessee · May 2025
PercentileAnnualvs US median
10th$39,320−49.5%
25th$47,050−39.6%
Median (50th)$56,690−27.3%
75th$73,370−5.9%
90th$85,680+9.9%
Mean$59,550−23.6%

Why the average earner is usually not a typical earner

Highest-paying metro areas in Tennessee

Median annual wage for Therapists, All Other, by metro area
#Metro areaMedianJobsRelative
1Knoxville$79,28060
2Nashville$59,39050
3Memphis$57,91050

What the pay is worth locally

Prices in Tennessee run 8.1% below the national average, so the median of $56,690 goes as far as $61,687 would elsewhere in the country. Measured that way it compares to the national median at 20.8% below the national median in real terms.

Published median

$56,690as reported by BLS

Local price level

91.9US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Adjusted for local prices

$61,687US average = 100 · BEA 2024

Why the state that pays most is usually not where pay goes furthest

Key takeaways

  • Median pay is $56,690 a year, 27.3% below the national median.
  • Published pay spans $39,320 to $85,680 between the tenth and ninetieth percentiles.
  • The area has 210 jobs in this occupation.
  • It ranks 37th of 41 states for this occupation.
  • The highest-paying metro area covered is Knoxville, at $79,280.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median wage for Therapists, All Other in Tennessee?

The median annual wage is $56,690, or $27.26 per hour, as of May 2025. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than that and half earn less.

Is that higher than the national average?

The national median for this occupation is $77,930, so pay in Tennessee is 27.3% lower. These figures are medians, not averages: half of workers fall on each side.

What do the top earners make?

The top tenth of this occupation in Tennessee earns more than $85,680 per year. The ninetieth percentile is the highest figure the survey publishes.

What is the starting range?

The tenth percentile wage is $39,320 per year. The survey measures wages actually paid rather than experience level, so this reflects the lowest-paid tenth rather than entry-level pay specifically.

Which area nearby pays the most?

The highest median for this occupation among the metro areas covered is in Knoxville, at $79,280 per year.

How many jobs are there in this occupation here?

The survey estimates 210 jobs in this occupation in Tennessee. Self-employed workers are not included.

Source and methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 Wages are for wage-and-salary workers; self-employed workers are not included. Salary Explorer is an independent project. It is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics or any government agency. Full methodology.