• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2023

29-1126 Respiratory Therapists

Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders. Assume primary responsibility for all respiratory care modalities, including the supervision of respiratory therapy technicians. Initiate and conduct therapeutic procedures; maintain patient records; and select, assemble, check, and operate equipment.

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National estimates for Respiratory Therapists
Industry profile for Respiratory Therapists
Geographic profile for Respiratory Therapists

National estimates for Respiratory Therapists:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Respiratory Therapists:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
129,750	0.5 %	$ 38.62	$ 80,340	0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for Respiratory Therapists:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 28.45	$ 31.50	$ 37.48	$ 42.70	$ 50.23
Annual Wage (2)	$ 59,180	$ 65,530	$ 77,960	$ 88,820	$ 104,480

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Industry profile for Respiratory Therapists:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Respiratory Therapists are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Respiratory Therapists, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Respiratory Therapists:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	98,060	1.72	$ 38.48	$ 80,030
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals	7,500	2.63	$ 37.91	$ 78,840
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities)	4,760	0.34	$ 36.87	$ 76,690
Employment Services	4,170	0.11	$ 49.30	$ 102,540
Offices of Physicians	2,450	0.09	$ 36.37	$ 75,650

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Respiratory Therapists:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals	7,500	2.63	$ 37.91	$ 78,840
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	98,060	1.72	$ 38.48	$ 80,030
Rental and Leasing Services (5322, 5323, and 5324 only)	1,970	0.57	$ 30.58	$ 63,600
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities)	4,760	0.34	$ 36.87	$ 76,690
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	2,250	0.31	$ 35.29	$ 73,400

Top paying industries for Respiratory Therapists:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Outpatient Care Centers	1,960	0.18	$ 53.35	$ 110,970
Management of Companies and Enterprises	100	(7)	$ 49.75	$ 103,480
Employment Services	4,170	0.11	$ 49.30	$ 102,540
Local Government, excluding Schools and Hospitals (OEWS Designation)	130	(7)	$ 40.38	$ 83,990
Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools	700	0.02	$ 39.44	$ 82,040

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Geographic profile for Respiratory Therapists:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Respiratory Therapists are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Respiratory Therapists, see the Create Customized Tables function.

States with the highest employment level in Respiratory Therapists:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	15,480	0.86	1.01	$ 49.55	$ 103,060
Texas	11,580	0.85	1.00	$ 37.56	$ 78,130
Florida	8,950	0.94	1.09	$ 35.67	$ 74,190
New York	6,540	0.70	0.82	$ 47.49	$ 98,770
Ohio	5,920	1.08	1.27	$ 36.13	$ 75,150

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Respiratory Therapists:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
West Virginia	1,090	1.58	1.84	$ 31.25	$ 65,000
Mississippi	1,610	1.40	1.64	$ 32.19	$ 66,960
Kentucky	2,720	1.39	1.62	$ 31.41	$ 65,330
Arkansas	1,670	1.32	1.54	$ 31.27	$ 65,050
Ohio	5,920	1.08	1.27	$ 36.13	$ 75,150

Top paying states for Respiratory Therapists:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	15,480	0.86	1.01	$ 49.55	$ 103,060
New York	6,540	0.70	0.82	$ 47.49	$ 98,770
District of Columbia	360	0.52	0.61	$ 45.79	$ 95,240
Alaska	130	0.41	0.49	$ 45.48	$ 94,590
Washington	2,040	0.58	0.68	$ 45.11	$ 93,820

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Respiratory Therapists:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	6,820	0.72	0.84	$ 48.97	$ 101,860
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	5,280	0.85	1.00	$ 46.92	$ 97,590
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	3,780	0.84	0.98	$ 39.77	$ 82,720
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	3,180	0.80	0.94	$ 39.59	$ 82,350
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	2,870	0.90	1.06	$ 39.07	$ 81,260
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	2,600	0.92	1.08	$ 40.41	$ 84,040
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	2,380	0.87	1.02	$ 35.93	$ 74,740
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	2,370	1.04	1.21	$ 36.43	$ 75,770
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,140	0.76	0.89	$ 44.30	$ 92,140
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	1,950	1.03	1.20	$ 35.23	$ 73,280

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Respiratory Therapists:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Morgantown, WV	260	3.99	4.67	$ 33.60	$ 69,890
Rome, GA	110	2.60	3.04	$ 37.39	$ 77,770
Victoria, TX	100	2.51	2.94	$ 33.15	$ 68,940
Cape Girardeau, MO-IL	110	2.40	2.81	$ 31.90	$ 66,340
Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA	90	2.16	2.52	$ 31.62	$ 65,760
Tyler, TX	240	2.13	2.49	$ 34.72	$ 72,220
Texarkana, TX-AR	120	2.07	2.43	$ 35.35	$ 73,530
Valdosta, GA	110	2.04	2.39	$ 29.68	$ 61,730
Jackson, MS	510	2.00	2.34	$ 39.44	$ 82,030
Shreveport-Bossier City, LA	340	2.00	2.34	$ 32.72	$ 68,070