Find a Job You Really Want In
Massage Therapists are one of the most common jobs in America. Additionally, a significant number of people work as massage therapists in every state in the union — it’s not like they are all just concentrated in California or the South.
Since massage therapists are such a prominent occupation, we at Zippia wanted to look at where massage therapists have it the best: where there are plenty of jobs to go around and people get paid what they deserve during every phase of their career.
To that end, we dove into the numbers from the BLS to figure out which states have the best opportunities for massage therapists.
After all the numbers had been crunched, we were left with this list of the best of best for America’s massage therapists:
So there you have it — Massage Therapists is the best of the best when it comes to being a massage therapist.
How did Massage Therapists end up here and does it really deserve this ranking? Read on to see how we completed our research on the best states for massage therapists and for more on the top ten states.
If youĂÂre interested, you can read more about the job scene here:
- Best Companies To Work For In Seattle, WA
- These Are The 10 Companies That Are Hiring The Most In Seattle
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Seattle
How we determined the best states to be a massage therapist
Here at Zippia, we talk to a lot of people of all different backgrounds looking for jobs. Our research has concluded that there are two common things people want in a job:
- Availability of jobs
- Higher Pay
So in order to find out the best states for massage therapists in America we needed to figure out where the jobs are and how well massage therapists get paid. This led to the following criteria taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’s Occupational Employment Statistics for 2018:
- Location quotient. A measure of how common a job is a given state.
- Average annual salary.
- Average annual salary for entry level work.
- Average annual salary for experienced professionals.
To make all the salary numbers more apples to apples across states, we compared the salary data relative to the state’s cost of living.
Applying this standardization allows us to account for that fact that it costs more to live in certain in states. For example, the average salary for massage therapists in California is $41,460 and the average salary in Illinois is $46,340, but the Illinois salary actually goes further in paying for life’s essentials.
In order to develop and overall ranking, we ranked each state for each criteria from 1 to 50 where 1 was the best.
We then averaged all the rankings for a state into a Job Score with the state having the lowest overall Job Score earning the distinction of being the best state for massage therapists in America.
So without further ado, let’s get into just what made each state so great for massage therapists.
1. Washington
Total Jobs: 4,830
Average Annual Salary: $62,520
Average Entry Level Salary: $38,290
Average Experienced Salary: $82,350
Location Quotient: 2.04
2. Oregon
Total Jobs: 2,290
Average Annual Salary: $64,360
Average Entry Level Salary: $33,910
Average Experienced Salary: $95,540
Location Quotient: 1.67
3. Texas
Total Jobs: 8,670
Average Annual Salary: $49,100
Average Entry Level Salary: $20,790
Average Experienced Salary: $91,350
Location Quotient: 0.99
4. Minnesota
Total Jobs: 2,280
Average Annual Salary: $52,910
Average Entry Level Salary: $23,230
Average Experienced Salary: $89,140
Location Quotient: 1.09
5. Indiana
Total Jobs: 1,390
Average Annual Salary: $48,650
Average Entry Level Salary: $24,600
Average Experienced Salary: $115,020
Location Quotient: 0.63
6. Idaho
Total Jobs: 290
Average Annual Salary: $50,560
Average Entry Level Salary: $28,140
Average Experienced Salary: $83,030
Location Quotient: 0.56
7. Kentucky
Total Jobs: 710
Average Annual Salary: $52,960
Average Entry Level Salary: $29,730
Average Experienced Salary: $80,410
Location Quotient: 0.52
8. Alaska
Total Jobs: 540
Average Annual Salary: $82,280
Average Entry Level Salary: $21,600
Average Experienced Salary: $129,440
Location Quotient: 2.34
9. Colorado
Total Jobs: 5,270
Average Annual Salary: $46,190
Average Entry Level Salary: $22,950
Average Experienced Salary: $70,970
Location Quotient: 2.77
10. Florida
Total Jobs: 9,620
Average Annual Salary: $46,240
Average Entry Level Salary: $19,320
Average Experienced Salary: $89,610
Location Quotient: 1.54
There You Have It – The Best States To Be A Massage Therapist
If you’re looking to start out your career as a massage therapist these are the states that should be at the top of your list. You’ll find high pay, available jobs, and chances for career advancement.
If you’re curious, here are the worst states to be a massage therapist in America:
For more reading, check out:
- These Are The 100 Highest Paying Jobs In Washington
- These Are The 100 Largest Companies In Washington
Detailed List Of The Best States For massage therapists
| Rank | State | Average Salary |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $62,520 |
| 2 | Oregon | $64,360 |
| 3 | Texas | $49,100 |
| 4 | Minnesota | $52,910 |
| 5 | Indiana | $48,650 |
| 6 | Idaho | $50,560 |
| 7 | Kentucky | $52,960 |
| 8 | Alaska | $82,280 |
| 9 | Colorado | $46,190 |
| 10 | Florida | $46,240 |
| 11 | Illinois | $46,340 |
| 12 | Nebraska | $45,340 |
| 13 | Michigan | $42,710 |
| 14 | Arizona | $42,340 |
| 15 | Tennessee | $44,190 |
| 16 | North Carolina | $41,560 |
| 17 | Arkansas | $41,890 |
| 18 | Iowa | $40,030 |
| 19 | Utah | $40,880 |
| 20 | Oklahoma | $41,770 |
| 21 | Massachusetts | $53,750 |
| 22 | Wisconsin | $42,440 |
| 23 | Montana | $46,500 |
| 24 | Wyoming | $43,060 |
| 25 | New Mexico | $42,260 |
| 26 | Vermont | $44,580 |
| 27 | New Hampshire | $47,360 |
| 28 | Pennsylvania | $42,730 |
| 29 | Maine | $43,450 |
| 30 | Ohio | $39,370 |
| 31 | South Carolina | $41,440 |
| 32 | Missouri | $37,100 |
| 33 | New York | $52,830 |
| 34 | Georgia | $37,210 |
| 35 | New Jersey | $44,610 |
| 36 | West Virginia | $34,750 |
| 37 | Hawaii | $61,750 |
| 38 | North Dakota | $39,640 |
| 39 | Connecticut | $43,170 |
| 40 | Virginia | $38,990 |
| 41 | Nevada | $29,620 |
| 42 | South Dakota | $34,350 |
| 43 | California | $41,460 |
| 44 | Maryland | $42,430 |
| 45 | Alabama | $34,890 |
| 46 | Rhode Island | $40,970 |
| 47 | Kansas | $29,370 |
| 48 | Mississippi | $29,080 |
| 49 | Louisiana | $30,060 |
Author
Chris Kolmar is a co-founder of Zippia and the editor-in-chief of the Zippia career advice blog. He has hired over 50 people in his career, been hired five times, and wants to help you land your next job. His research has been featured on the New York Times, Thrillist, VOX, The Atlantic, and a host of local news. More recently, he's been quoted on USA Today, BusinessInsider, and CNBC.
