Exercise Physiologists Salary: $68,153 Median Pay (2026 stats)
TL;DR
About 8,110 exercise physiologists nationally earn a mean of $68,153. Employment in the series shown fell about 100% from the first to the last year; projections imply about 16.7% annual decline.
Key Statistics
Exercise Physiologists: what the data shows
Common questions about exercise physiologists careers, answered from BLS OEWS and O*NET in this repository.
What is a exercise physiologists?
Exercise Physiologists is tracked by the Bureau of Labor Statistics under SOC 29-1128.
U.S. employment in our OEWS extract is about 8,110 workers.
What does a exercise physiologists do?
O*NET work activities rated highest for this occupation include Assisting and Caring for Others, Getting Information, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others, Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge, Performing General Physical Activities, and related tasks. See Work Activities for the full list.
How much does a exercise physiologists make?
BLS national median annual wage: $58,160 (May 2024 in our extract).
Mean annual wage in our occupational extract: $68,153 — higher than the median, which often reflects top earners in the distribution.
Wage percentiles below are from the California OEWS extract (not national unless noted).
| Wage percentile | Annual wage |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $35,417 |
| 25th percentile | $36,742 |
| Median (50th) | $63,613 |
| 75th percentile | $89,077 |
| 90th percentile | $108,223 |
What education do you need?
For Exercise Physiologists, O*NET incumbent surveys in our extract most often report: Some college (29%), High School or Equivalent (27%), Bachelors Degree (22%).
These are education levels of current workers, not minimum legal requirements.
What skills do you need?
O*NET ratings for this occupation emphasize skills such as Speaking, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Instructing, Active Listening, Writing, and knowledge areas including Customer and Personal Service, Medicine and Dentistry, Therapy and Counseling, Education and Training. See Education & Skills for detail.
Is exercise physiologists in demand?
Historical employment trend in our series implies about 16.7% annual decline (compound rate in the extract).
Five-year projected employment change: -59.9%.
Ten-year projected employment change: -84.0%.
Current U.S. headcount: 8,110.
We report federal series only—compare wages, growth, and openings against your target market.
Where do exercise physiologistss work?
Top industries by employment share in our OEWS industry extract:
| Industry | Employment | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Hospitals | 9,780 | 19.0% |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | 9,480 | 18.4% |
| Cross-industry | 8,110 | 15.7% |
| Health Care and Social Assistance | 7,290 | 14.1% |
| Cross-industry, Private Ownership only | 7,110 | 13.8% |
| Ambulatory Health Care Services | 2,340 | 4.5% |
See Industry for charts.
What degrees lead to this career?
Common majors for Exercise Physiologists in O*NET:
See Related degrees.
Employment
Employment and salary information for the Exercise Physiologists workforce.
Employment Over Time
8,110 Workforce in 2023
The Exercise Physiologists workforce has been growing over time.
Historical employment trends for Exercise Physiologists.
Yearly Wage Ranking
$68,153 Average Wage
In 2023, Exercise Physiologists earned an average of $68,153.
Wage ranking compared to other occupations.
Wage Distribution
This chart shows the distribution of average salaries by income buckets for Exercise Physiologists.
Salary distribution for Exercise Physiologists.
Employment Growth Projections
-16.7% Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR)
208 Projected Employment (5 years)
Projected growth: -59.9%
83 Projected Employment (10 years)
Projected growth: -84.0%
This occupation is experiencing a decline. Consider related fields with better growth prospects.
Historical employment trends and future projections for Exercise Physiologists.
Industry
Information on the industries that employ Exercise Physiologists and on wages for those in the field.
Occupations by Industries
This graphic shows the share of Exercise Physiologists employed by various industries.
Industry distribution for Exercise Physiologists.
Wage Trends by Industry
27.9% Average Annual Wage Growth Rate
Total, All Industry: 12.6% growth (Current: $98,455)
Historical wage growth trends by industry for Exercise Physiologists.
Geographic Distribution
Employment and wage information by geographic location for Exercise Physiologists.
State employment and wages are from the U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 state extract. Metropolitan areas use the national MSA file when available.
Top States by Employment
Top States by Employment:
- TX: 900 employees, $55,830 avg wage
- FL: 750 employees, $59,900 avg wage
- MI: 530 employees, $55,690 avg wage
- OH: 390 employees, $56,410 avg wage
- PA: 350 employees, $58,400 avg wage
- NC: 350 employees, $55,640 avg wage
- IL: 310 employees, $65,410 avg wage
- CO: 290 employees, $59,810 avg wage
- WI: 290 employees, $63,440 avg wage
- NY: 240 employees, $75,860 avg wage
Top 10 states by employment for Exercise Physiologists.
Top Metropolitan Areas
Top Metropolitan Areas:
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ: 220 employees, $76,870 avg wage
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN: 220 employees, $69,290 avg wage
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX: 220 employees, $60,290 avg wage
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX: 200 employees, $59,500 avg wage
- Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI: 200 employees, $56,410 avg wage
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD: 190 employees, $60,750 avg wage
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL: 150 employees, $57,130 avg wage
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO: 140 employees, $58,840 avg wage
- Salt Lake City-Murray, UT: 140 employees, $37,810 avg wage
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC: 120 employees, $55,820 avg wage
Top 10 metropolitan statistical areas by employment for Exercise Physiologists.
Diversity
Demographic information on Exercise Physiologists in the US.
Gender and Age
The workforce of Exercise Physiologists in 2023 was 8,110 people, with 62.0% women and 38.0% men.
Gender and age distribution for Exercise Physiologists.
Races
Racial and ethnic shares when present in the career dataset. If the chart area shows a notice instead, occupational race/ethnicity fields are not yet populated for this extract.
Race and ethnicity distribution for Exercise Physiologists.
Education & Skills
Data on higher education choices and required skills for Exercise Physiologists.
Majors
The most common majors achieved by Exercise Physiologists in 2023 were Business Administration, Health Sciences, Business.
Common majors for Exercise Physiologists.
Education Levels
The main educational levels achieved by Exercise Physiologists workers.
Education level distribution for Exercise Physiologists.
Skills
Exercise Physiologists need many skills, but most especially Speaking, Critical Thinking, Reading Comprehension, Instructing, Active Listening.
Required skills for Exercise Physiologists.
Knowledge & Abilities
Knowledge areas and abilities required for Exercise Physiologists.
Knowledge Areas
The most important knowledge areas for Exercise Physiologists include Customer and Personal Service, Medicine and Dentistry, Therapy and Counseling, Education and Training, English Language.
Knowledge areas required for Exercise Physiologists.
Abilities
Key abilities needed for Exercise Physiologists include Problem Sensitivity, Oral Expression, Inductive Reasoning, Written Comprehension, Deductive Reasoning.
Required abilities for Exercise Physiologists.
Work Activities
Common work activities performed by Exercise Physiologists.
Daily Activities
Exercise Physiologists spend their time on activities such as Assisting and Caring for Others, Getting Information, Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships, Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others, Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge.
Most important work activities for Exercise Physiologists.
About
Exercise Physiologists
The average yearly wage for Exercise Physiologists was $68,153 in 2023.
SOC Code
29-1128 - Exercise Physiologists
Insights and Analysis
Compensation snapshot: Exercise Physiologists reports an average salary of $68,153.
Labor market presence: The current workforce is approximately 8,110 workers, indicating sustained demand.
Forward outlook: Projected annual decline is -16.7%, which should inform long-term career planning.
Data Sources
This page uses data from the following sources:
- College Scorecard - U.S. Department of Education
- Institutional characteristics, costs, completion rates, and earnings data
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: collegescorecard.ed.gov
- Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)
- Employment and wage data by occupation
- Latest data: May 2024
- Source: bls.gov/oes
- O*NET Online - U.S. Department of Labor
- Occupational skills, knowledge, abilities, and work activities
- Database version: 28.0 (August 2023)
- Source: onetcenter.org
- IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) - National Center for Education Statistics
- Institutional data, completions, enrollment, and financial aid
- Data years: 2015-2024
- Source: nces.ed.gov/ipeds
- Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS)
- Demographic and workforce data
- Latest data: 2023 ACS 5-Year Estimates
- Source: census.gov/acs
Data Processing: All data has been processed, cleaned, and aggregated for presentation. Where specific data points are unavailable, estimates are based on available data and clearly marked.
Last Updated: Data reflects the most recent available information as of January 2025.
Methodology
Data for this profile is sourced from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS), and O*NET Online.
All wage figures represent annual averages and may vary by location, industry, and experience level.