Physical Therapist vs Physician
Measured from each occupation's own live postings: related jobs with a real gap between them. Posted pay favors the physician by about $106k 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, physicians come out ahead by about $106k a year at the midpoint of posted bands: $89k–$311k against $64k–$125k for physical therapists. 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.
Physical Therapist
physical therapist jobs · physical therapist salary · physical therapist career guide · careers for physical therapists
Physician
physician jobs · physician salary · physician career guide · careers for physicians
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
Physical Therapist → Physician
MD/DO, residency, and state medical license (7+ yrs of training)
Transition estimate: 7+ yr incl. license.
What physician postings ask for that physical therapist profiles usually lack: Teaching, Clinical Skills, Case Management.
Physician → Physical Therapist
DPT degree + state PT license (NPTE) required
Transition estimate: 3+ yr incl. license.
What physical therapist postings ask for that physician profiles usually lack: Rehabilitation, Recruiting, Scheduling.
Open physical therapist roles right now
The freshest physical therapist openings on the board, from company career pages and remote boards. Apply at the source.
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
Open physician roles right now
The freshest physician openings on the board. Same rules: live, tagged to the occupation, linking to the original posting.
- Facharzt / Fachärztin für Dermatologie (m/w/d) (80-100%) in Obfelden gesucht at MediPersonalObfelden, Zürich, SwitzerlandTodayApply
- Anästhesistin/Anästhesist für Intensiv- und Notfallmedizin 80-100% in Chur gesucht at MediPersonalChur, Graubünden, SwitzerlandTodayApply
- Angiologie Facharzt EFZ gesucht (m/w/d) 100% in Region Wallisellen at MediPersonalWallisellen, Zürich, SwitzerlandTodayApply
- Angiologie Facharzt EFZ gesucht (m/w/d) 100% in Region Liestal at MediPersonalLiestal, Basel-Landschaft, SwitzerlandTodayApply
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.
Related comparisons
- Medical Assistant vs Physician73% peak overlap
- Nurse Practitioner vs Physician64% peak overlap
- Medical Assistant vs Physical Therapist54% peak overlap
- Dietitian vs Physician36% peak overlap
- Physician vs Psychologist36% peak overlap
- Pharmacist vs Physician33% 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, physical therapist or physician?
On pay, physicians come out ahead by about $106k a year at the midpoint of posted bands: $89k–$311k against $64k–$125k for physical therapists. These are advertised figures from postings that state a salary, not estimates. By seniority and country: physical therapist salary and physician salary.
Are physical therapist and physician 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 Brewing, Patient Care, Training & Facilitation, Treatment Planning.
Can a physical therapist become a physician?
Yes, and the numbers say how far along you already are: a typical physical therapist profile covers 34% of what physician postings ask for. One thing to settle first: md/do, residency, and state medical license (7+ yrs of training). Skill overlap does not shorten a credential. Our estimate for the move is 7+ yr incl. license. The instrument lists the exact skills that make up the rest.
Can a physician become a physical therapist?
Going the other way, a typical physician profile covers 42% of what physical therapist postings ask for. Keep in mind: dpt degree + state pt license (npte) required. Our estimate for the move is 3+ yr incl. license.
How many physical therapist and physician jobs are open right now?
Right now our board has 467 physical therapist openings and 600 physician openings, each linking to the original posting. The board refreshes every night, so the counts move with the market. Hiring the most physical therapists at the moment: Physio Swiss (199), iPersonal (40), MediPersonal (17). For physicians: MediPersonal (336), Veterans Health Administration (107), Dane Street (6).
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.