Massage Therapist Salary Information

What is the average massage therapist salary? This is the question most people ask when they’re trying to decide if it would be financially beneficial for them to become a massage therapist. The answer isn’t as straight forward as you might think. A massage therapist salary level actually depends on several things such as whether or not your self employed, work for a spa or health club and the types of certifications you hold just to name a few.

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reports some positive information about becoming a massage therapist. The first of those, according to their 2008 study, is that there were an estimated 122,400 massage therapists working and that this is expected to increase by 19% from 2008 to 2018. This is good news for upcoming massage therapists as more people turn to alternative health methods to help heal their bodies instead of visiting doctors frequently. Also, if you’re looking for freedom from a 9-to-5 job, then this may be for you. A reported 57% of massage therapists are self employed and owned their own businesses. So, obviously being on your own versus working for a spa or medical facility will offer you greater flexibility in your work hours and overall weekly schedule. The majority of these people work in metropolitan areas where there is a greater population of people and massage therapy is more popular.

massage therapist salary Massage Therapist Salary InformationA self employed massage therapist salary is typically higher than the person who works for another company. The average hourly earning is around $42 per according to 2010 statistics. While on the other hand, the median hourly wages of massage therapists employed by a company, including gratuities, were $16.78 in May 2008. The middle 50 percent earned between $11.36 and $25.14. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $8.01, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $33.47. Yearly massage therapist salary earnings can vary a lot because many therapists only work part time. Typically, massage therapists earn some portion of their income as gratuities. For those who work in a hospital or other clinical setting, however, tipping is not common. As is typical for most workers who are self-employed and work part time, few benefits are provided.
In conclusion, you really can’t say it’s a salary, but rather the massage therapists’ hourly rate instead. Hourly rates have been reported in the $14.00 – $21.00 range if employed through a health club or spa. This does not include the reported $3.00 – $10.00 hourly tips given to the massage therapist by their patients. We hope this has helped you learn more about a massage therapist salary.

Sources:

Bureau of Labor Statistics 2011

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