Physical Therapist Aides in District of Columbia
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$32,305
after federal, FICA and District of Columbia tax
Tax takes
$6,645
17.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$29,155
District of Columbia costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in District of Columbia — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$38,950
Kept after tax
$32,305
Worth in national money
$29,155
State rank
7
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. District of Columbia pays physical therapist aides a middle wage of $38,950, ranking 7 of 50 states and sitting about 10.53% above the national middle.
- Within District of Columbia this is lower-paid work. Of 390 occupations the state publishes figures for, physical therapist aides ranks 374. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $38,950 the take-home is $32,305. But District of Columbia costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $29,155 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is lower, $38,200, so pay clusters nearer the top than usual.
- District of Columbia's median for physical therapist aides is $38,950, about 10.53% above the national figure and 7 of 50 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Against every occupation District of Columbia reports, physical therapist aides ranks 374 of 390, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and District of Columbia income tax is $32,305 for physical therapist aides, from $38,950. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $29,155. ⚠️ This is purchasing power and not a wage; cross-state offer comparisons that stop at the nominal figure systematically overvalue high-cost states. The mean of $38,200 falls below the median, a left skew that is uncommon in wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Physical Therapist Aides
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $36,960 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $38,950 |
| Top tenth earn over | $39,040 |
| This salary | $38,950 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in District of Columbia | $32,305 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $33,476 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$5,294 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $37,493 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$6,403 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 111 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $38,950 as a midpoint for District of Columbia, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $36,960 and the ninetieth is $39,040 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In District of Columbia the take-home figure of $32,305, from $38,950, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 374 of 390 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of District of Columbia, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $29,155, the adjusted value of that $38,950 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 374 of 390 in the state.
- The District of Columbia median of $38,950 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $36,960 to $39,040. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for District of Columbia is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $32,305 from $38,950. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 374 of 390 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for District of Columbia, so $29,155 — the adjusted value of that $38,950 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 374 of 390 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $36,960 and the top tenth $39,040, so most people doing this work in District of Columbia sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
A larger wage in a dearer place is not automatically more. Adjusted for local prices, this pay behaves like $29,155 of national purchasing power.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and District of Columbia's own levy, $32,305 remains.
Why is this job missing from some states?
A blank is a suppression, not a zero. 50 states have a published figure for this work; the others had too few responses to release one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($36,960 to $39,040) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to District of Columbia rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
District of Columbia's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $29,155 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $32,305 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and District of Columbia income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 50 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.