Physical Therapist Assistants in Missouri
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$51,359
after federal, FICA and Missouri tax
Tax takes
$12,411
19.5% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$55,970
Missouri costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Missouri — 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
$63,770
Kept after tax
$51,359
Worth in national money
$55,970
State rank
33
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Missouri sits in the middle of the pack for physical therapist assistants. The median is $63,770, ranking 33 of 51 states with figures. Close enough to the national middle that where you live matters more than the headline suggests.
- Ordinary, locally speaking. Physical therapist assistants ranks 171 among 488 occupations Missouri publishes pay for.
- Here is where Missouri does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $63,770 you keep $51,359, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $55,970 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $65,190, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Missouri occupies the middle band for physical therapist assistants: a median of $63,770, ranking 33 of 51. Where nominal pay is close to the national figure, the tax and price adjustments below carry proportionally more weight in determining the real outcome.
- Position 171 of 488 in Missouri places physical therapist assistants in the middle of the state's wage distribution. Because within-state and cross-state rankings measure different things, this figure and the national one above should be read together rather than as a single verdict.
- After federal, FICA and Missouri income tax, retained pay for physical therapist assistants on $63,770 is $51,359. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $55,970 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $65,190 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Physical Therapist Assistants
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $50,460 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $63,770 |
| Top tenth earn over | $79,000 |
| This salary | $63,770 |
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 Missouri | $51,359 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $53,419 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$998 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $61,206 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$1,207 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 92 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Missouri earn less than $63,770. The published range is $50,460 up to $79,000, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Missouri's $51,359, worked from $63,770. 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 171 of 488.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $55,970 uses one figure for the whole of Missouri. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 488 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 171.
- Reported values are medians; for physical therapist assistants in Missouri the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $50,460 to $79,000. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- The Missouri take-home of $51,359, on $63,770 for work ranking 171 of 488 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 171 of 488 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $55,970, worked from $63,770, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Missouri address, on work sitting at 171 of 488 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $50,460 at the bottom tenth to $79,000 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $55,970.
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; Missouri then takes its own share, leaving $51,359.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($50,460 to $79,000) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Missouri rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Missouri's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $55,970 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $51,359 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Missouri 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.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.