Start with the answer
Occupational Therapy Aides pay in New York and North Carolina
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Occupational Therapy Aides is $46,220 per year in New York. It is $66,190 per year in North Carolina. New York is 30.2% below North Carolina on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 31-2012 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 250 wage and salary jobs in New York and 250 in North Carolina. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings
