Physical Therapist
Drawn directly from OPM FedScope (June 2026), this page tracks headcount, average salary, tenure, and pay comparison for the Physical Therapist occupation series (code 0633).
The verdict
With 3,748 employees (0.2% of the federal civilian workforce), Physical Therapist ranks as a smaller, specialized federal occupation within the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, and headcount edged down from the prior period. Its average salary of $124,876 pays near the federal average.
- Headcount change
- -0.2%
- Pay change
- +0.1%
- Avg tenure
- 10.9 yrs
- Rank in family
- #16 of 45
FedScope read on Physical Therapist (dense series)
For job seekers weighing career length: this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career. Headcount moved down versus the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path. As for pay, the latest move was a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change.
The Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family (code 06) groups Physical Therapist together with 44 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Physical Therapist postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family. Physical Therapist makes up 1.1% of the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family's 339,162 combined employees. Its average salary ranks in the top half (73rd percentile) of pay among Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group occupations.
Salary context · rich-pay series
How Physical Therapist pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$124,876
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
+6.4%
Where Physical Therapist ranks on rich federal pay
Physical Therapist earns more on average than 72% of federal occupation series (387 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Physical Therapist sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Physical Therapist.
Related Occupations in Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nurse | 106,218 | $132,267 | 10.2 yrs |
| Medical Support Assistance | 39,856 | $58,279 | 8.2 yrs |
| Medical Officer | 34,687 | $301,569 | 11.6 yrs |
| General Health Science | 17,434 | $133,765 | 11.9 yrs |
| Practical Nurse | 16,755 | $75,898 | 10.4 yrs |
| Pharmacist | 14,529 | $167,390 | 11.1 yrs |
| Nursing Assistant | 14,498 | $55,851 | 7.8 yrs |
| Health Aid and Technician | 12,490 | $61,276 | 10.8 yrs |
| Health System Specialist | 7,966 | $110,534 | 15.9 yrs |
| Pharmacy Technician | 7,658 | $70,794 | 9.5 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Physical Therapist outside the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (3,748 here).
Similar rich average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($124,876 here).
Key takeaways
- Place Physical Therapist pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Medical, Hospital, Dental, and Public Health Group family occupations in the table above, or search current Physical Therapist postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.