Physical Therapist Aides in Massachusetts
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$30,711
after federal, FICA and Massachusetts tax
Tax takes
$6,729
18.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$28,374
Massachusetts costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Massachusetts — 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
$37,440
Kept after tax
$30,711
Worth in national money
$28,374
State rank
11
of 50 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Massachusetts pays physical therapist aides a middle wage of $37,440, ranking 11 of 50 states and sitting about 6.24% above the national middle.
- Measured against other jobs in Massachusetts, this one sits low: 462 of 485 occupations with published pay, in the bottom quarter.
- The wage here flatters the reality. From $37,440 the take-home is $30,711. But Massachusetts costs more than the national average, so that money behaves more like $28,374 would elsewhere. Worth knowing before comparing offers across states. The average is higher, $39,830, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Massachusetts's median for physical therapist aides is $37,440, about 6.24% above the national figure and 11 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.
- Physical therapist aides occupies position 462 of 485 in Massachusetts's occupational wage distribution, in the bottom quartile. National ranking and local ranking answer different questions and frequently disagree; this is the one a resident experiences.
- Retained pay after federal, FICA and Massachusetts income tax is $30,711 for physical therapist aides, from $37,440. The state's price level exceeds the national average, so the price-adjusted equivalent is $28,374. ⚠️ 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 $39,830 sits above the median, the right skew typical of 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 | $35,070 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $37,440 |
| Top tenth earn over | $48,690 |
| This salary | $37,440 |
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 Massachusetts | $30,711 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $32,263 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$4,827 |
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 | $35,508 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$5,838 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 108 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $37,440 as a midpoint for Massachusetts, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $35,070 and the ninetieth is $48,690 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Massachusetts's $30,711, worked from $37,440. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 462 of 485.
- One number stands for prices across all of Massachusetts, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $28,374, the adjusted value of that $37,440 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 462 of 485 in the state.
- The Massachusetts median of $37,440 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $35,070 to $48,690. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- The Massachusetts take-home of $30,711, on $37,440 for work ranking 462 of 485 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 462 of 485 in the state.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Massachusetts, so $28,374 — the adjusted value of that $37,440 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 462 of 485 locally.
Questions people ask
Is this the average pay for the job?
It is the midpoint, not the average. The average here is $39,830, dragged up by high earners; the middle figure describes a typical worker better.
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $35,070 and the top tenth $48,690, so most people doing this work in Massachusetts sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Massachusetts run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $28,374 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Massachusetts then takes its own share, leaving $30,711.
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.
How does the published median differ from the mean for this occupation?
The median is the midpoint of the distribution; the mean for this occupation in Massachusetts is $39,830. Wage distributions are right-skewed, so the mean exceeds the median wherever a minority earn substantially more. BLS publishes both because substituting one for the other misstates a typical worker's pay.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($35,070 to $48,690) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Massachusetts rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Massachusetts's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $28,374 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 $30,711 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Massachusetts 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.