Medical Assistant vs Physical Therapist
Measured from each occupation's own live postings: related jobs with a real gap between them. Posted pay favors the physical therapist by about $43k at the midpoint. Everything on this page is read from the two occupations’ own live postings and refreshed every night.
The short answer
On pay, physical therapists come out ahead by about $43k a year at the midpoint of posted bands: $64k–$125k against $43k–$58k for medical assistants. These are advertised figures from postings that state a salary, not estimates.
On skills, they are related jobs with a real gap between them. There is a shared core, and then each side asks for things the other rarely does. The readiness numbers further down say how far a typical profile on each side already reaches into the other, and which direction is the easier move.
Medical Assistant
medical assistant jobs · medical assistant salary · medical assistant career guide · careers for medical assistants
Physical Therapist
physical therapist jobs · physical therapist salary · physical therapist career guide · careers for physical therapists
The overlap, measured
Skills that appear in both occupations’ posting demand. This is the shared core; everything else on each side is the difference. Each linked skill has its own page with the roles it unlocks.
Switching, both directions
The direction matters: medical assistant → physical therapist reads 54% ready, the reverse only 30%. Skill overlap is not symmetric.
Medical Assistant → Physical Therapist
DPT degree + state PT license (NPTE) required
Transition estimate: 3+ yr incl. license.
What physical therapist postings ask for that medical assistant profiles usually lack: Recruiting, Training & Facilitation.
Physical Therapist → Medical Assistant
Certification (CMA/RMA) commonly expected; varies by state
Transition estimate: 12–24 mo.
What medical assistant postings ask for that physical therapist profiles usually lack: CPR / BLS, Customer Service, EHR / EMR, Clinical Skills.
Open medical assistant roles right now
The freshest medical assistant openings on the board, from company career pages and remote boards. Apply at the source.
- Medizinische Praxisassistent/in MPA 80-100% für Goldach gesucht – Dein Beitrag zur professionellen Patientenbetreuung at MediPersonalGoldach, St. Gallen, SwitzerlandTodayApply
- Medizinische Praxisassistent/in MPA 80-100% für Heiden gesucht – Dein Beitrag zur professionellen Patientenbetreuung at MediPersonalHeiden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, Switzerland1d agoApply
Pflegeassistent:in Neuro Rehabilitation at Insel Gruppe SARiggisberg, Bern, Switzerland1d agoApply- Med. Praxisassistentin Pneumologie 80 % at Zuger Kantonsspital AG JobportalBaar, Zug, Switzerland1d agoApply
Open physical therapist roles right now
The freshest physical therapist openings on the board. Same rules: live, tagged to the occupation, linking to the original posting.
Physiotherapeutin 40% +, unbefristet, Herbst/Winter 2026 | Physioswiss at Physio SwissHenggart, Zürich, Switzerland1d agoApply- Physiotherapeut/in - vielseitig, dynamisch, interdisziplinär | Physioswiss at Physio SwissZofingen, Aargau, Switzerland2d agoApply
- Dipl. Physiotherapeutin / Physiotherapeut (a) 40% at Hirslanden Klinik AarauAarau, Aargau, Switzerland2d agoApply
- Fisioterapista al 70/100% | Physioswiss at Physio SwissGordola, Ticino, Switzerland2d agoApply
See the whole board for both
1,067 live roles across the two, freshest first, with posted pay and remote flags where the posting states them.
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- Dental Hygienist vs Medical Assistant43% peak overlap
Which one do your skills favor?
Run the instrument with your own skill set and both readiness numbers recompute for you. Free, no account.
Quick answers
Which pays more, medical assistant or physical therapist?
On pay, physical therapists come out ahead by about $43k a year at the midpoint of posted bands: $64k–$125k against $43k–$58k for medical assistants. These are advertised figures from postings that state a salary, not estimates. By seniority and country: medical assistant salary and physical therapist salary.
Are medical assistant and physical therapist the same job?
On skills, they are related jobs with a real gap between them. There is a shared core, and then each side asks for things the other rarely does. The skills both sets of postings want most are Rehabilitation, Patient Care, Brewing, Treatment Planning, Scheduling.
Can a medical assistant become a physical therapist?
Yes, and the numbers say how far along you already are: a typical medical assistant profile covers 54% of what physical therapist postings ask for. One thing to settle first: dpt degree + state pt license (npte) required. Skill overlap does not shorten a credential. Our estimate for the move is 3+ yr incl. license. The instrument lists the exact skills that make up the rest.
Can a physical therapist become a medical assistant?
Going the other way, a typical physical therapist profile covers 30% of what medical assistant postings ask for. Keep in mind: certification (cma/rma) commonly expected; varies by state. Our estimate for the move is 12–24 mo. The two directions are not symmetric: medical assistant to physical therapist is the easier move, 54% against 30%.
How many medical assistant and physical therapist jobs are open right now?
Right now our board has 600 medical assistant openings and 467 physical therapist openings, each linking to the original posting. The board refreshes every night, so the counts move with the market. Hiring the most medical assistants at the moment: MediPersonal (252), Veterans Health Administration (95), Jobup (29). For physical therapists: Physio Swiss (199), iPersonal (40), MediPersonal (17).
Method: each occupation’s salary band is the posted 25th to 75th percentile from its own corpus, counting only postings that state pay; readiness is coverage of the destination’s posting-skill weight; shared skills are read from the overlap waterfall. Pairs sharing too few skills are not scored in that direction. Job lists and counts are the live board. Refreshed with the nightly scrape.