Physical Therapist Salary in Tacoma, WA: Median $104,962 in 2026
Tacoma (WA) · COL index 112 · Unemployment 4.3% · Metro pop 220,000 · Rank #72 of 283 for Physical Therapist salary
A Physical Therapist in Tacoma earns an estimated median of $104,962 per year. That figure starts from the Washington state-level BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics median[1]($101,560) and scales it by Tacoma's composite cost-of-living index of 112 (US = 100). The 10th percentile comes in around $51,985; the 90th percentile reaches $181,875. After federal, Washington state (no state income tax), and FICA taxes, a single-filer Physical Therapist takes home approximately $82,392/year — about $6,866/month or $3,169 every other week.
Compared to the national Physical Therapist median of $99,710, Tacoma pays +5.3%. Relative to the Tacoma median household income of $62,500, a Physical Therapistsalary runs +67.9%. Local unemployment is 4.3%[3], with an estimated 24 annual Physical Therapist openings inferred from metro population share and national employment (244,200).
Physical Therapist Snapshot — Tacoma (2026)
Every row cites a primary public dataset. Rent + home values use Zillow where the metro is in the ZHVI/ZORI coverage set; otherwise ACS + census tract fallbacks.
| Metric | Tacoma | National | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Physical Therapist median salary | $104,962 | $99,710 | [1] |
| 10th percentile | $51,985 | $81,350 | [1] |
| 90th percentile | $181,875 | $138,950 | [1] |
| Annual take-home (single filer) | $82,392 | — | [8][10] |
| Median home value (ZHVI) | $445,000 | — | [5] |
| Median rent (ZORI) | $1,600/mo | — | [5] |
| HUD Fair Market Rent (2BR) | $1,475/mo | — | [6] |
| Median household income (ACS) | $62,500 | — | [7] |
| Cost-of-living index | 112.0 | 100.0 | [4] |
| Unemployment rate | 4.3% | — | [3] |
How Physical Therapist Salaries Work in Tacoma
City-level wages aren't published directly by BLS for most SOC codes. We build them by anchoring to the Washington state-level OEWS median ($101,560) and scaling by Tacoma's composite cost-of-living index (112)[1][4]. That index combines Census ACS rent, Zillow ZHVI, BLS CPI, and AdvisorSmith / ApartmentAdvisor inputs to produce one number per metro. When BLS publishes a separate metro-level wage (MSA-level OEWS), that takes priority — a handful of large metros including New York, LA, Chicago, and DC have this coverage.
On top of the gross wage, the standard US payroll stack applies: federal income tax using 2025 IRS brackets and the $15,000 single standard deduction[8], FICA (Social Security 6.2% up to $176,100 wage base + Medicare 1.45%)[9], and no Washington state income tax — a meaningful wedge worth $5,248–$7,347 per year vs average-tax states[10].
Tacoma also sits inside a larger metro labor market where commute patterns, remote-work policies, and adjacent-metro wages compete. Near-national unemployment means a balanced market — employers and candidates negotiate from roughly equal positions. Median household income in the metro is $62,500, which frames what "a good Physical Therapist salary" means locally: a $$104,962 wage pays about 168% of the median household income on a single earner.
The deterministic identity: take_home = gross − federal − state − FICA − pre_tax. All math runs client-side; nothing is sent to our servers.
Cost of Living Breakdown — Tacoma
Estimated annual expense shares on a $82,392 take-home, using BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey baseline shares scaled to Tacoma's COL index of 112. Housing uses the actual median rent.
BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey shares[1], scaled by Tacoma's COL index of 112[4]. Housing uses actual median rent of $1,600/month.
Salary vs Housing Affordability in Tacoma
Renting
Buying
At $6,866/mo take-home, the 30% rent rule caps housing at $2,060/mo. Tacoma's typical 1–2BR rent runs $1,600/mo[5] (HUD 2BR FMR: $1,475/mo), making rent very affordable on a median Physical Therapist salary. For homebuyers, the 4.2× price-to-income ratio is workable with a strong credit profile and manageable other debts.
How Tacoma Stacks Up for Physical Therapists
Against 283 major US cities: Tacoma ranks #72 for nominal Physical Therapist salary, #203 for rent affordability, and #212 for overall purchasing power. High cost of living absorbs much of Tacoma's nominal wage premium. Physical Therapists here often trade pay for lifestyle, proximity to employers, or family roots — consider nearby metros on a salary-to-COL basis.
Nearby Cities — Physical Therapist Salary Comparison
Tacoma's closest metros, scaled by each city's cost-of-living index. Useful for relocation decisions where commute or remote-work policies allow a neighboring metro trade-off.
| City | Est. salary | COL | Rent | vs WA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tacoma, WA ★ | $104,962 | 112 | $1,600 | — |
| Seattle, WA | $155,548 | 156 | $1,800 | +48.2% |
| Spokane, WA | $93,727 | 94 | $1,050 | -10.7% |
| Kennewick, WA | $97,716 | 98 | $1,200 | -6.9% |
| Kent, WA | $114,666 | 115 | $1,750 | +9.2% |
| Lakewood, WA | $104,696 | 105 | $1,400 | -0.3% |
Physical Therapist Job Market in Tacoma
Tacoma has an estimated 24 annual Physical Therapistopenings, extrapolated from the metro's share of 244,200 national Physical Therapists[1]. The 4.3% unemployment rate[3] is near the national average, with steady turnover across most sectors.
About the profession: Physical therapists help patients recover from injuries and manage chronic conditions through exercise, manual therapy, and education. Demand is growing due to an aging population. Typical entry requirement: doctoral degree (dpt). Projected growth through 2034: 15%[2].
Career Progression & Related Professions in Tacoma
Early-career Physical Therapists in Tacoma start around $51,985, reach the city median ($104,962) after 4–8 years, and hit 90th-percentile territory ($181,875) at senior / specialized levels.
Related healthcare professions in Tacoma
Calculators for Physical Therapists in Tacoma
Other professions in Tacoma
Frequently Asked Questions — Physical Therapist in Tacoma
How much does a Physical Therapist make in Tacoma, WA?
The estimated median salary for a Physical Therapist in Tacoma is $104,962/year, scaled from the BLS OEWS Washington state median ($101,560) by Tacoma's composite cost-of-living index of 112 (US = 100). After federal, Washington state, and FICA taxes, take-home is approximately $82,392/year or $6,866/month.
Can a Physical Therapist afford to live in Tacoma?
On $6,866/month take-home, the 30% rent rule affords $2,060/month. Tacoma's Zillow ZORI median rent is $1,600/mo, HUD's 2BR Fair Market Rent is $1,475/mo. The rent-to-income ratio works out to 18.3%, making housing very affordable for a Physical Therapist at the local median. Home-buyers face 4.2× price-to-income, needing roughly 4.2 years to save a 20% down payment at a 20% savings rate.
How much tax does a Physical Therapist pay in Tacoma?
On $104,962 gross, a Physical Therapist in Tacoma pays approximately $14,540 in federal income tax (13.9% effective), $0 in state income tax (Washington has no state individual income tax), and $8,030 in FICA (Social Security + Medicare). Total effective rate: 21.5%. Some Washington cities levy local income taxes in addition; check your municipal DoR before filing.
How does Tacoma rank for Physical Therapist salaries vs other cities?
Tacoma ranks #72 out of 283 tracked metros for nominal Physical Therapist salary, #203 for rent affordability (rent-to-income), and #212 for purchasing power (salary ÷ COL). The high-purchasing-power cities tend to be mid-size metros with strong local employers and moderate housing costs; the low-ranked cities trade high nominal pay for steep rents.
What is the cost-of-living breakdown for a Physical Therapist in Tacoma?
On $82,392 take-home, a reasonable baseline budget for Tacoma looks like: housing $19,200/yr (23.3%); food $10,599/yr; transportation $8,635/yr; healthcare $5,975/yr; utilities $4,367/yr; savings + discretionary $33,616/yr. Numbers use BLS Consumer Expenditure Survey shares scaled to Tacoma's COL index of 112 and the city's actual median rent.
What's the Physical Therapist job market like in Tacoma?
Tacoma's unemployment rate is 4.3% across the metro of 220,000. Estimated annual Physical Therapist openings: ~24 (extrapolated from 244,200 nationally employed and the metro's population share). The market is near national averages with steady turnover.
Do Tacoma employers pay above or below the Washington median for Physical Therapists?
Yes — Tacoma's estimated Physical Therapist median of $104,962 is 5.3% above the national median. Higher nominal pay in this city partially offsets the higher cost of living; the real picture depends on housing costs and state taxes.
Methodology — How we compute this page
Wage estimate. The Tacoma median is derived from the Washington state-level BLS OEWS median ($101,560), scaled by Tacoma's composite cost-of-living index of 112. When BLS publishes a direct MSA-level wage for the occupation, that takes priority over the scaled state median. Percentile bands inherit the same scale factor.
Housing + rent. Median home value uses Zillow ZHVI; median rent prefers Zillow ZORI and falls back to Census ACS median gross rent. HUD Fair Market Rents (50th-percentile 2BR) are shown where HUD publishes the metro. Price-to-income and rent-to-income ratios use the estimated Physical Therapistmedian (not the city's overall median household income) — to reflect the specific role-vs-city affordability picture.
Tax math. Federal tax uses 2025 IRS brackets and the $15,000 single standard deduction. FICA is Social Security 6.2% up to the $176,100 wage base + Medicare 1.45% (+ 0.9% Additional Medicare above $200,000). State tax uses Washington's 2026 brackets from the state DoR (mirrored via Tax Foundation where the DoR's publication is paywalled or split). Local income taxes (e.g. NYC, Portland-OR supplemental, OH municipal) are NOT included — check your municipal authority for specifics.
Cost of living. The 112index is the composite used by CalcFi's /data/cities.ts, which merges Census ACS, BLS CPI shelter, Zillow ZORI, and commercial COL estimators. The COL-adjusted salary on this page assumes the statewide RPP = 108.4(BEA) approximates the state's purchasing power; cities are then scaled relative to that.
Refresh cadence. BLS OEWS releases annually (typically March); BEA RPP releases annually in December; IRS brackets adjust in October; Zillow ZHVI/ZORI updates monthly; HUD FMR publishes annually in August for the upcoming fiscal year. The dateModified shown above auto-bumps to the most recent retrievedAt on any sourced value the page consumes.
Known limits. Metro-level OEWS coverage is partial — only ~50 large MSAs have separately published occupation wages; the rest inherit state-level estimates scaled by COL. Rent and home data may trail the real-time market by 1–3 months (Zillow) or 8–12 months (ACS). Rankings are capped to the city set in our dataset (283 metros), not every incorporated US city.
Sources
Every number on this page cites a primary public dataset. Last reviewed (auto-bumped on the next ISR refresh after an ETL run).
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) — state-level occupational wages — www.bls.gov/oes. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- BLS Employment Projections — 2024–34 occupational growth rates — www.bls.gov/emp. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics — metro-level unemployment rate — www.bls.gov/lau. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities (state + metro) — www.bea.gov/data/prices-inflation/regional-price-parities-state-and-metro-area. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Zillow Research — ZHVI (home value index) + ZORI (observed rent index) — www.zillow.com/research/data. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- HUD Fair Market Rents — 50th-percentile 2-bedroom FY — www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, metro level — www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Internal Revenue Service — Federal individual income tax brackets and standard deductions — www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-publication-17. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Social Security Administration — OASDI / Medicare contribution and wage-base rules — www.ssa.gov. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
- Washington Department of Revenue — 2026 individual income tax brackets (accessed via Tax Foundation mirror) — taxfoundation.org/data/all/state/state-income-tax-rates. Retrieved 2026-04-19.
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