Salary data · California

Occupational therapist salary in California

Occupational therapists in California earn a mean of $121,920 a year and a median of $124,510, 20.4% above the national mean of $101,280. That ranks 1st of the 51 states with a published estimate.

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$121,920

Mean annual wage

about $59 an hour

$124,510

Median annual wage

1st of 51

State rank

by mean wage

13,810

OTs employed

BLS estimate

Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025 estimates. These are estimates for occupational therapists already employed in California, not offers; the hourly figure divides the annual mean by 2,080 hours. Setting, specialty and caseload move an individual offer well above or below them. Updated October 22, 2026.

By metro

Occupational therapist pay by metro in California

Metro estimates from the same survey, highest mean first. Each city links to its full therapy workforce page.

Metro	Mean	Median	Employed
San Francisco	$136,250	$136,770	1,560
Sacramento	$123,560	$122,780	810
San Diego	$119,390	$121,680	1,620
Los Angeles	$118,500	$122,040	4,950
Riverside	$118,480	$119,530	1,110

Source: BLS OEWS metropolitan estimates. Suppressed cells show n/a.

The market

How many occupational therapists work in California

9,526 occupational therapists hold an active individual NPI with a practice address in California, 24.2 per 100,000 residents, and 1,015 new ones enrolled in the last twelve months. A high wage with few clinicians per capita usually means employers are competing for people; a low one in a crowded market means the opposite.

Source: NPPES monthly file, October 2026 (CMS, public domain), as of October 2026.

Licensed in another state?

California is not a member of the OT Compact: occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants licensed in another state need a full California license before starting.

How the OT Compact works →How to get a California license, step by step →

Open roles

OT openings in California

No public OT listing in California right now. Most of our searches are confidential and never posted, so tell us what you want and we will match you quietly.

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