Where Travel PT and OT Pay Held Up in 2026

If you’re a physical therapist or occupational therapist who traveled in 2025 and watched your weekly gross inch downward — or if you’re considering your first travel contract — you already know 2026 opened with a very different rate landscape than the post-pandemic highs of 2021 and 2022.

The question most allied health travelers are asking right now: where did travel PT pay 2026 and travel OT rates actually hold strong, and where did they soften? We pulled recruiter intel, agency rate sheets, and direct-hire chatter from the first four months of this year to map what’s really happening with allied health travel pay across the U.S.

Here’s the state-by-state breakdown — and what it means for your next contract decision.

The Big Picture: Travel Therapy Rates Stabilized but Stratified

Let’s start with the macro trend. Travel therapy rates in 2026 are no longer in free fall, but they’re also not rebounding to 2021 levels. What we’re seeing instead is geographic stratification: a handful of states are still offering weekly grosses in the high-$1,900 to $2,300 range for 40-hour weeks, while others have settled into the $1,500–$1,700 band — closer to permanent-staff equivalents once you strip out the tax-free stipends.

The key driver? Local supply and demand. States that never built enough PT and OT programs, or that saw an exodus of permanent staff during the Great Resignation, are still leaning hard on travelers. States that over-corrected with new grad hiring or saw travelers flood the market in 2023 have pulled back rates to match.

IRS housing stipend rules haven’t changed — the 50-mile radius and tax-home requirements still apply — but agencies are now much tighter on documentation, so fewer travelers are qualifying for the full stipend in borderline situations. That’s effectively a pay cut if you were counting on creative interpretations.

States Where Travel PT and OT Pay Held Strong

These are the markets where travel allied health pay remained competitive through April 2026, with consistent openings and solid weekly packages:

• Alaska: Outpatient ortho PT contracts in Anchorage and Fairbanks are still hitting $2,100–$2,400/week gross. Housing stipends are generous because cost of living is high, and the state has chronic shortages. Thirteen-week minimums are standard.
• Wyoming and Montana: Rural critical-access hospitals and SNFs in both states are offering $1,950–$2,200 for PT and OT. These are true travel gigs — you won’t be able to keep a tax home within 50 miles — so stipends are clean.
• West Texas (Midland, Odessa, Lubbock): Oil-economy metros that never attract enough allied health grads. Travel OT rates for peds and hand therapy are running $1,850–$2,050, and agencies report low cancellation rates.
• Northern Nevada (Reno, Carson City): Outpatient neuro PT roles are paying $1,900–$2,100. The state has no income tax, which stretches your net take-home even if the gross isn’t the highest on this list.
• Maine and Vermont: Both states saw travel therapy rates dip in late 2024, but they bounced back in Q1 2026. Acute-care PT in Portland, Burlington, and Bangor is $1,850–$2,050. Compact licensure (Maine joined the PT Compact in 2025) makes multi-state New England swings easier.

If you’re chasing strong travel PT pay 2026, these five regions are your best bets for both rate and contract stability.

Where Allied Health Travel Pay Softened

These markets saw the steepest declines from 2023–2024 peaks, and rates have largely stayed flat or edged lower in early 2026:

• Southern California (except the Inland Empire): Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Diego all saw travel PT and OT rates drop to $1,600–$1,750 for most settings. The exception: Riverside and San Bernardino counties are still $1,850+ because fewer travelers want the commute.
• Florida (except the Panhandle): Miami, Tampa, Orlando, and Jacksonville are flooded with new-grad PTs and travelers who moved permanently during COVID. Weekly grosses are $1,500–$1,650. The Panhandle — Pensacola, Panama City — is still offering $1,800–$1,950 because it’s harder to staff.
• Metro Atlanta: Once a hot travel market, Atlanta’s now over-supplied. Travel OT rates for acute care dropped to $1,550–$1,700. Rural Georgia is better ($1,800+), but those contracts are sparse.
• Phoenix and Tucson: Arizona was a traveler magnet in 2022–2023, and agencies over-recruited. Rates fell to $1,600–$1,750 by late 2025 and haven’t recovered. The state also tightened temporary-license processing, adding friction.
• North Carolina (Triangle and Charlotte): Both metros graduated large cohorts of PT and OT students in 2024–2025. Travel rates softened to $1,550–$1,700. Asheville and the Outer Banks are exceptions, holding at $1,850.

If you’re seeing a contract in one of these regions, compare the all-in weekly gross (taxable + stipend) carefully. Some agencies are quietly lowering stipends and raising taxable to keep the top-line number attractive, but your net take-home will be lower.

What’s Driving the 2026 Travel Therapy Rate Map

Three forces are shaping where allied health travel pay is strong versus soft:

1. Compact licensure expansion. The Physical Therapy Compact now includes 37 states, and the Occupational Therapy Compact covers 33. That means travelers can move faster between states without waiting for individual licenses — but it also means agencies can send more travelers into any given market, which puts downward pressure on rates in previously under-served states.

2. Permanent-staff wage growth. Hospitals that couldn’t compete for travelers in 2022 raised permanent PT and OT salaries by 12–18%. Now that those roles are filled, the delta between staff pay and traveler pay has narrowed. In some markets, travelers are only netting $200–$300 more per week than staff once you account for lost benefits and unpaid time between contracts.

3. Direct-hire and gig-app competition. Platforms like Vivian, Trusted, and CareRev are letting facilities book allied health professionals for per-diem or short-term direct contracts without agency middlemen. That’s pulling some travelers out of the traditional 13-week agency pool, but it also fragments the market — rates are inconsistent, and there’s no recruiter to negotiate or troubleshoot.

How to Navigate Travel PT and OT Pay in 2026

If you’re planning your next move, here are three tactical tips from recruiters who are placing allied travelers every week:

Look at net, not gross. A $2,000/week contract in California (9.3% state tax, high cost of living) may net you less than a $1,850/week contract in Nevada (no state tax, cheaper housing). Run the numbers with a tax professional who understands travel stipends.

Consider eight-week or 26-week contracts. Facilities are experimenting with contract lengths. Eight-week gigs often pay a small premium because turnover is higher for the facility. Twenty-six-week contracts sometimes come with a completion bonus or slightly lower weekly rate but more total income and fewer gaps.

Don’t chase the highest rate if the facility has a reputation for early cancellations. A $2,200/week contract that gets canceled at week eight nets you less than a $1,900/week contract that runs the full 13 weeks and extends. Ask your recruiter for the facility’s cancellation history.

Ready to Find Your Next High-Paying Travel Role?

Travel therapy rates in 2026 are a patchwork — but the right contract in the right state can still deliver strong income, professional growth, and the lifestyle flexibility that brought you to travel in the first place. Whether you’re targeting Alaska’s top-tier PT pay or exploring rural Montana for a lower cost of living, the key is working with a recruiter who knows the real-time market and will advocate for your net take-home, not just the flashy gross number.

The Intuites Recruiting Team works exclusively with allied health travelers — PT, OT, SLP, RT, and more — and we track rate trends, facility reputations, and compact-licensure nuances every single day. If you want honest intel on where travel allied health pay is truly strong right now, reach out anytime at contact@intuites.healthcare or visit intuites.healthcare. We’re here to help you make the smartest move for your career and your wallet. 🤍

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