Occupational Therapy Assistant Salary in Ohio 2026,
$62,700 Median | BLS Data by City

A median $62,700 a year, or $30.15 an hour, per BLS OEWS May 2025 — 13.3% below the national median of $72,300. The band runs $49,500 at the 10th percentile to $79,600 at the 90th, with the middle half between $58,920 and $73,930. Ohio's low state income tax rate recovers part of that gap in take-home terms.

Springfield at $74,950, then Dayton-Kettering-Beavercreek $70,020, Cincinnati $67,460, Canton-Massillon $64,250 and Toledo $63,710. Springfield topping the state by nearly five thousand dollars over Dayton is a small-market signal — local setting mix, particularly the balance of skilled nursing and home health work, drives these differences more than city size does.

Yes. The Ohio Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Athletic Trainers Board licenses assistants alongside occupational therapists, physical therapists and athletic trainers — a shared board covering all of them. Licensure requires an accredited associate degree programme, supervised fieldwork and the national certification examination. Practice must be under the supervision of a licensed occupational therapist, with the terms of that supervision set by board rule.

Because Ohio has an unusually large skilled nursing and post-acute rehabilitation sector, and assistant-delivered therapy under therapist direction is how those settings scale. A location quotient of 2.13 on about 3,890 assistants means the state employs them at more than double the national rate — more than double its share of the population too. For someone entering the field, that means an established, well-populated career path with many employers rather than a marginal role.

The growth case is strong: 19.2% projected national growth through 2034 is among the fastest rates in this data, and Ohio already holds about 7.6% of national employment. The pay case is more mixed — the state sits 13.3% below the national median of $72,300, which is what an abundant supply in a lower-cost state produces. The realistic reading is that this is an accessible, growing and secure occupation in Ohio, with a band from $49,500 to $79,600 that rewards home health and contract work at the top.

Because the growth is driven by cost-effectiveness rather than scarcity. Assistant-delivered therapy under therapist direction is how rehabilitation services expand capacity without expanding the more expensive therapist workforce proportionately, and post-acute and skilled nursing settings — of which Ohio has a great deal — depend on that model. Fast growth in demand for a role whose economic purpose is to be cost-effective does not translate into rapid wage growth, particularly where supply has kept pace. Ohio's 2.13 location quotient says supply has kept pace here more than anywhere.

The estimate pools settings whose pay structures differ substantially — salaried skilled nursing posts, per-visit home health work, school-based practice on a school-year calendar, and contract and per-diem arrangements. That mixing explains much of the band from $49,500 to $79,600. The metro rows in smaller markets such as Springfield rest on modest samples within a statewide total of about 3,890, and should be read as directional rather than precise.

Setting first — home health visit-based work and contract or per-diem practice pay above salaried skilled nursing posts, and that is most of the distance from the $58,920 quarter-point to the $73,930 seventy-fifth percentile. Willingness to travel between sites second, since home health territories carry mileage and visit-volume economics. Specialist caseload competence third. And senior or lead assistant responsibility fourth, which is what the $79,600 ninetieth percentile describes — the practical ceiling without progressing to the therapist qualification.