The 4 countries with the most massage therapists per capita
If you want to give yourself the best chance of making a living as a massage therapist, it’s a good idea to find a place that is in high demand. After all, more customers mean more business.
But at the same time, the high demand for therapists also means that there is an influx of therapists to take advantage of this business. The result? Places with high demand for massage services also tend to have the most people working in the area.
If you simply search for states with the most massage therapists, however, you’ll only get to the largest and most populous states—California, Florida, and New York. Therefore, to compare apples to apples, you should look at the states with the most therapists per capita. These are the states that have a large number of people employed in industry relative to the number of people in the state.
The data below comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which tracks the number of people employed in the occupation nationwide.
Alaska
surprised? The largest state in the nation may not be the most populous, but it takes the cake when it comes to massage therapists per person. While the state only has about 750,000 residents, it employs 770 massage therapists—that’s roughly one therapist for every 1,000 residents.
Although it has the highest concentration of massage therapists, however, Alaska also offers the highest salaries. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary is a staggering $85,110. That’s over $20,000 higher than the second place salary.
Hawaii
If you think of a state known for its relaxation, then Hawaii will most likely come to mind. Hawaii is a hotbed of massage therapy. The state is 40th in population, but 2nd in massage therapists per capita. With only 1.4 million residents, the state has 1,390 massage therapists. That works out to one massage therapist for just over every 1,000 people.
Average salaries are also healthy. You can expect an average salary of more than $53,000 per year. Not bad for being able to practice massage in paradise.
Colorado
Another tourist mecca, there seems to be a high demand for massages when people come off the slopes. Colorado is home to 4,950 massage therapists serving a population of 5.5 million people. That’s roughly one therapist for every 1,100 people. However, this figure is a bit misleading.
Given that so many tourists go to Colorado to enjoy the mountains and scenery, it is likely that many of the massages are given to out-of-state tourists.
Washington
Rounding out the top four – and the quartet of Western states – is Washington. The state’s economy is booming and it is also home to some of the world’s most famous companies such as Starbucks, Microsoft and Amazon. Meanwhile, the population continues to grow, with an estimated 7.2 million residents.
However, the number of massage therapists keeps pace. Today, there are 4,030 therapists working in the state, which means there is about one therapist for every 1,800 residents. And despite this large amount of “supply,” massage therapists in Washington state still earn a solid median salary of $55,920 — among the highest in the nation.
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