• Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

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)
129,910	0.6 %	$ 35.73	$ 74,310	0.3 %

Percentile wage estimates for Respiratory Therapists:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 24.99	$ 29.93	$ 33.91	$ 39.23	$ 48.33
Annual Wage (2)	$ 51,970	$ 62,260	$ 70,540	$ 81,610	$ 100,520

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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	97,800	1.75	$ 35.69	$ 74,240
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals	7,720	2.85	$ 34.90	$ 72,600
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities)	4,950	0.37	$ 33.54	$ 69,770
Employment Services	3,280	0.08	$ 50.55	$ 105,130
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	2,490	0.35	$ 30.58	$ 63,610

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	7,720	2.85	$ 34.90	$ 72,600
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals	97,800	1.75	$ 35.69	$ 74,240
Rental and leasing services (5322, 5323, and 5324 only)	2,460	0.75	$ 28.62	$ 59,520
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities)	4,950	0.37	$ 33.54	$ 69,770
Professional and Commercial Equipment and Supplies Merchant Wholesalers	2,490	0.35	$ 30.58	$ 63,610

Top paying industries for Respiratory Therapists:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Management of Companies and Enterprises	80	(7)	$ 51.34	$ 106,780
Employment Services	3,280	0.08	$ 50.55	$ 105,130
Outpatient Care Centers	1,930	0.19	$ 49.83	$ 103,640
Other Ambulatory Health Care Services	110	0.03	$ 41.86	$ 87,070
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	220	(7)	$ 41.08	$ 85,450

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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	15,730	0.89	1.02	$ 46.23	$ 96,150
Texas	11,450	0.88	1.00	$ 35.54	$ 73,930
Florida	8,600	0.93	1.06	$ 33.04	$ 68,710
New York	6,530	0.72	0.82	$ 43.95	$ 91,410
Ohio	5,820	1.08	1.23	$ 33.43	$ 69,540

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	1,120	1.65	1.87	$ 29.17	$ 60,670
Kentucky	3,070	1.62	1.84	$ 29.04	$ 60,410
Mississippi	1,550	1.37	1.56	$ 27.34	$ 56,870
Louisiana	2,480	1.34	1.53	$ 30.19	$ 62,790
Alabama	2,490	1.24	1.41	$ 27.08	$ 56,330

Top paying states for Respiratory Therapists:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	15,730	0.89	1.02	$ 46.23	$ 96,150
New York	6,530	0.72	0.82	$ 43.95	$ 91,410
Alaska	160	0.52	0.59	$ 42.54	$ 88,490
District of Columbia	290	0.41	0.47	$ 41.46	$ 86,250
Washington	2,430	0.71	0.81	$ 41.41	$ 86,130

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	6,750	0.74	0.84	$ 45.40	$ 94,440
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	5,310	0.87	0.99	$ 44.24	$ 92,010
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	3,710	0.84	0.96	$ 34.81	$ 72,400
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX	3,080	0.81	0.92	$ 37.70	$ 78,410
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	3,010	0.99	1.12	$ 37.23	$ 77,430
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD	2,600	0.94	1.07	$ 36.60	$ 76,120
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	2,570	0.98	1.12	$ 32.97	$ 68,570
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ	2,320	1.04	1.19	$ 34.37	$ 71,500
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	2,260	0.83	0.94	$ 39.54	$ 82,240
Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI	1,870	1.00	1.14	$ 31.88	$ 66,310

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	4.09	4.66	$ 31.74	$ 66,020
Victoria, TX	110	2.83	3.23	$ 30.50	$ 63,440
Saginaw, MI	210	2.71	3.09	$ 30.67	$ 63,800
Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA	110	2.66	3.03	$ 30.56	$ 63,570
Shreveport-Bossier City, LA	370	2.22	2.53	$ 29.45	$ 61,250
Cape Girardeau, MO-IL	100	2.18	2.48	$ 29.06	$ 60,440
Texarkana, TX-AR	120	2.10	2.40	$ 32.57	$ 67,750
Tyler, TX	220	2.07	2.36	$ 32.06	$ 66,690
Rome, GA	80	2.07	2.36	$ 33.69	$ 70,080
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH	250	1.96	2.23	$ 30.40	$ 63,230