Recreation Therapy Technicians

Median Salary: $39,400

Many recreation therapy technicians across the nation share a number of key professional attributes. For example, dependability, integrity, and cooperation can be essential for success in the industry, especially when combined with career training. Around 21,960 folks were working as recreation therapy technicians nationwide in 2009. With that much workplace competition, it's critical to develop these traits and receive excellent training, particularly if you're aiming to move up in the field.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median annual income for recreation therapy technicians in the U.S. was $39,400 in 2009, which works out to a median hourly wage of $19.00. Of course, income can vary with training and by locale. Below, you'll find more data about recreation therapy technicians, including wages and job density for metropolitan areas all over the nation.

Recreation therapy technicians should be skilled in:

Problem Sensitivity
Speech Clarity
Deductive Reasoning
Originality
Category Flexibility

Different folks go into different careers; recreation therapy technicians are typically:

Artistic
Investigative
Enterprising

Working as a recreation therapy technician requires knowledge in subjects like:

Psychology
English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Education and Training
Medicine and Dentistry

Related Occupations

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Below, you'll see links to more information on the top cities for this occupation (based on the number of folks working as recreation therapy technicians). Note: "Job density" refers to the proportion of recreation therapy technicians in each city as compared to the national average.

Alabama
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Birmingham	60	$35,700	$17.20	$41,100	$19.70	-29.2%
Mobile	40	$34,400	$16.50	$39,500	$19.00	25%

Arizona
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Phoenix	160	$37,500	$18.00	$45,500	$21.90	-45.2%
Tucson	30	$27,700	$13.30	$39,400	$19.00	-50%

Arkansas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Little Rock	70	$37,000	$17.80	$51,200	$24.60	29.2%

California
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Los Angeles (Area)	340	$57,700	$27.70	$67,600	$32.50	-65.5%
Oakland	NA	$45,000	$21.60	$58,500	$28.10	NA
Riverside	50	$55,000	$26.50	$69,700	$33.50	-73.2%
Sacramento	60	$60,700	$29.20	$78,100	$37.60	-59.5%
San Diego	60	$52,100	$25.00	$64,300	$30.90	-71.4%
San Francisco (Area)	NA	$50,000	$24.00	$66,900	$32.20	NA
San Francisco (City)	NA	$55,000	$26.50	$75,400	$36.30	NA
San Jose	50	$68,700	$33.00	$74,900	$36.00	-66.7%
Santa Rosa	50	$64,500	$31.00	$70,400	$33.80	83.3%

Colorado
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Denver	100	$42,700	$20.50	$50,700	$24.40	-49.4%

Connecticut
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Bridgeport	140	$41,700	$20.00	$49,800	$24.00	106%
Hartford	290	$46,200	$22.20	$67,200	$32.30	206%
New Haven	70	$45,100	$21.70	$67,600	$32.50	42.9%
Norwich	60	$39,800	$19.10	$46,800	$22.50	166.7%

District of Columbia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Washington (Area)	340	$47,900	$23.10	$63,700	$30.60	-7.7%

Florida
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Bradenton	30	$28,400	$13.70	$34,100	$16.40	-19.6%
Gainesville	50	$38,500	$18.50	$52,500	$25.30	135.1%
Jacksonville	NA	$35,200	$16.90	$38,400	$18.50	NA
Miami (Area)	190	$41,700	$20.10	$52,500	$25.20	-38.7%
Orlando	40	$35,400	$17.00	$42,600	$20.50	-78.6%
Tampa	120	$40,800	$19.60	$53,000	$25.50	-39.3%

Georgia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Atlanta	340	$34,600	$16.60	$42,800	$20.60	-11.3%
Augusta	40	$39,400	$18.90	$56,500	$27.20	15.5%
Macon	40	$43,300	$20.80	$55,900	$26.90	142.3%

Hawaii
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Honolulu	60	$44,200	$21.20	$58,200	$28.00	-11.9%

Idaho
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Boise City	60	$41,800	$20.10	$53,300	$25.60	26.8%

Illinois
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Chicago (Area)	850	$35,300	$17.00	$45,500	$21.90	8.3%
Kankakee	40	$35,100	$16.90	$40,600	$19.50	417.9%
Peoria	140	$31,900	$15.30	$46,100	$22.20	379.2%

Indiana
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Indianapolis	120	$40,100	$19.30	$46,000	$22.10	-20.2%

Iowa
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Davenport	40	$32,000	$15.40	$48,500	$23.30	23.2%
Des Moines	70	$34,400	$16.50	$42,400	$20.40	24.4%
Waterloo	40	$29,200	$14.00	$35,900	$17.30	147.6%

Kansas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Topeka	40	$39,000	$18.80	$66,700	$32.10	97.6%
Wichita	40	$32,400	$15.60	$42,700	$20.50	-28.6%

Kentucky
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Louisville	60	$32,200	$15.50	$37,600	$18.10	-42.9%

Louisiana
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Alexandria	40	$34,000	$16.40	$46,600	$22.40	256%
Baton Rouge	100	$35,800	$17.20	$42,100	$20.20	64.9%
Monroe	30	$44,500	$21.40	$55,600	$26.70	151.2%
New Orleans	110	$36,700	$17.70	$42,200	$20.30	31%
Shreveport	40	$33,900	$16.30	$42,500	$20.40	53%

Maryland
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Baltimore	310	$39,900	$19.20	$50,300	$24.20	45.2%

Massachusetts
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Boston (Area)	520	$36,400	$17.50	$44,500	$21.40	160.7%
Springfield	140	$38,500	$18.50	$49,200	$23.70	188.7%
Worcester	60	$36,200	$17.40	$42,400	$20.40	60.7%

Michigan
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Ann Arbor	90	$47,800	$23.00	$54,500	$26.20	186.9%
Detroit (Area)	270	$41,200	$19.80	$49,600	$23.80	-4.8%
Grand Rapids	100	$34,300	$16.50	$46,900	$22.50	66.1%
Kalamazoo	30	$39,700	$19.10	$50,000	$24.00	46.4%

Minnesota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Duluth	30	$43,600	$21.00	$51,400	$24.70	45.2%
Minneapolis	290	$41,100	$19.80	$52,300	$25.20	-1.2%

Mississippi
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Gulfport	30	$42,200	$20.30	$54,100	$26.00	80.4%
Jackson	190	$30,700	$14.80	$36,900	$17.80	355.4%

Missouri
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Jefferson City	40	$20,600	$9.90	$33,000	$15.90	217.3%
Kansas City	220	$36,700	$17.70	$43,000	$20.70	31%
Springfield	40	$35,100	$16.90	$40,800	$19.60	26.8%
St. Louis	340	$33,000	$15.90	$41,100	$19.80	55.4%

Nebraska
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Lincoln	60	$34,200	$16.40	$39,300	$18.90	132.1%
Omaha	120	$34,700	$16.70	$45,200	$21.70	54.8%

Nevada
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Las Vegas	70	$25,800	$12.40	$38,400	$18.50	-53%

New York
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Albany	70	$45,700	$22.00	$54,000	$26.00	0.6%
Binghamton	30	$49,900	$24.00	$55,000	$26.40	83.3%
Buffalo	100	$47,000	$22.60	$55,900	$26.90	14.9%
Elmira	NA	$48,100	$23.10	$57,800	$27.80	NA
Kingston	30	$39,000	$18.80	$52,300	$25.20	207.1%
New York (Area)	1,960	$47,200	$22.70	$58,300	$28.00	37.5%
Poughkeepsie	70	$50,800	$24.40	$57,000	$27.40	68.5%
Rochester	140	$42,400	$20.40	$52,900	$25.40	74.4%
Syracuse	90	$41,800	$20.10	$49,700	$23.90	67.3%
Utica	100	$48,100	$23.10	$56,100	$27.00	360.1%

North Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Charlotte	80	$42,500	$20.40	$52,300	$25.10	-44.6%
Durham	40	$47,300	$22.70	$53,000	$25.50	-16.1%
Goldsboro	70	$38,700	$18.60	$41,600	$20.00	892.9%
Greensboro	30	$35,700	$17.20	$40,300	$19.40	-47%

North Dakota
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Fargo	50	$35,900	$17.30	$40,600	$19.50	151.2%

Ohio
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Cincinnati	90	$38,800	$18.70	$47,200	$22.70	-46.4%
Cleveland	230	$44,000	$21.10	$50,400	$24.20	34.5%
Columbus	170	$42,000	$20.20	$49,800	$24.00	10.1%
Dayton	50	$45,400	$21.80	$52,000	$25.00	-21.4%
Toledo	80	$34,000	$16.40	$37,000	$17.80	59.5%
Youngstown	50	$41,200	$19.80	$45,500	$21.90	48.2%

Oklahoma
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Oklahoma City	120	$33,900	$16.30	$42,300	$20.30	27.4%
Tulsa	50	$35,300	$17.00	$45,800	$22.00	-28%

Oregon
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Portland	60	$46,000	$22.10	$58,500	$28.10	-65.5%
Salem	30	$46,700	$22.50	$53,400	$25.70	26.2%

Pennsylvania
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Allentown	140	$42,300	$20.40	$52,000	$25.00	158.3%
Erie	40	$33,000	$15.90	$49,900	$24.00	81.5%
Lancaster	30	$33,200	$16.00	$41,200	$19.80	-10.1%
Philadelphia (Area)	730	$44,200	$21.20	$52,100	$25.00	39.9%
Pittsburgh	370	$35,200	$16.90	$45,800	$22.00	96.4%
Reading	70	$37,400	$18.00	$49,100	$23.60	150.6%
Scranton	110	$36,400	$17.50	$52,800	$25.40	150.6%
York	60	$36,100	$17.40	$44,000	$21.20	95.8%

Rhode Island
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Providence	60	$36,100	$17.30	$47,200	$22.70	-35.1%

South Carolina
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Columbia	60	$35,200	$16.90	$40,500	$19.50	8.9%

Tennessee
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Johnson City	30	$21,400	$10.30	$29,200	$14.00	171.4%
Knoxville	40	$35,600	$17.10	$41,300	$19.90	-29.2%
Memphis	70	$35,700	$17.20	$51,300	$24.70	-28%
Nashville	90	$32,100	$15.50	$37,900	$18.20	-27.4%

Texas
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Austin	50	$34,900	$16.80	$41,600	$20.00	-58.9%
Dallas (Area)	120	$36,700	$17.70	$45,600	$21.90	-73.8%
Houston	160	$38,100	$18.30	$49,900	$24.00	-61.9%
San Antonio	70	$35,600	$17.10	$42,500	$20.40	-47%

Utah
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Ogden	40	$33,600	$16.20	$42,100	$20.20	8.3%
Provo	70	$35,800	$17.20	$42,400	$20.40	149.4%
Salt Lake City	90	$39,400	$19.00	$46,700	$22.50	-16.7%

Virginia
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Richmond	150	$36,600	$17.60	$42,800	$20.60	54.2%
Roanoke	30	$37,900	$18.20	$61,500	$29.60	20.2%
Virginia Beach	100	$38,200	$18.40	$47,800	$23.00	-22.6%

Washington
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Seattle (Area)	160	$53,100	$25.50	$62,500	$30.10	14.3%
Spokane	60	$45,400	$21.80	$49,700	$23.90	64.3%

Wisconsin
City/Area	Employees	Median Annual Salary	Median Hourly Wage	Top 25% Annual Salary	Top 25% Hourly Wage	Job Density
Green Bay	NA	$32,900	$15.80	$37,500	$18.00	NA
La Crosse	90	$46,700	$22.40	$55,800	$26.80	646.4%
Madison	30	$45,200	$21.70	$59,700	$28.70	-39.9%
Milwaukee	150	$34,600	$16.60	$50,600	$24.30	11.9%