Average Assistant Physical Therapist Salary in Norway for 2026
An assistant physical therapist in Norway earns about 461,300 NOK a year. That's 24% below the national average of 610,100 NOK.
Pay ranges widely from country to country and from role to role. The lowest reported salaries in Norway sit around 211,200 NOK a year, while the very top stretches to 735,800 NOK. Everything on this page is in Norwegian krone (NOK, symbol kr), which lets you compare numbers like-for-like without worrying about exchange rates.
The numbers here are pulled together from official government wage data, large independent salary surveys, and aggregated worker-reported pay. Most reported salaries include the benefits that are common in Norway, such as housing or transport allowances, which is worth keeping in mind if you're comparing against a country where those are usually paid on top.
How much does an assistant physical therapist make in Norway?
A typical assistant physical therapist working in Norway brings home around 38,441 NOK a month before tax. Entry-level pay starts near 211,200 NOK, and the top of the ladder reaches roughly 735,800 NOK for the most experienced and specialised people in the role.
The wide gap between low end and top end reflects how much pay can vary inside the same job title. A junior assistant physical therapist working at a small local employer earns very different money from a senior at a multinational. Skills, employer, city and years in the seat all push the number around.
How assistant physical therapist pay ranges in Norway
A good way to think about salary in Norway is to look at the distribution rather than the headline average. Half of all assistant physical therapists in Norway earn less than 500,100 NOK a year, and the other half earn more. That middle number is the median, and it is usually more useful than the average for answering "is my pay normal here".
Looking at the quartiles fills in the picture. A quarter of earners take home less than 319,600 NOK (the 25th percentile), and a quarter clear 665,100 NOK (the 75th percentile). The middle 50% of assistant physical therapists sit somewhere inside that band, which is where the typical reader of this page probably lives.
The very lowest reported salaries sit around 211,200 NOK. The highest stretch to 735,800 NOK, though only a small fraction of earners ever reach that level. If you are deciding whether your own offer or current pay is reasonable, work out which of those four bands you would fall into and use that as your reference point.
Assistant physical therapist pay by experience in Norway
Years of experience is the single biggest lever on pay for an assistant physical therapist in Norway, ahead of education and almost any other single factor. The longer you have been in the role, the more your employer can trust you to handle complexity, mentor others and act independently, all of which command higher pay. The chart below shows how the typical assistant physical therapist salary changes as you move through the career ladder.
- 0-2 Years241,000 NOK
- 2-5 Years+34% from previous324,100 NOK
- 5-10 Years+47% from previous475,100 NOK
- 10-15 Years+22% from previous579,100 NOK
- 15-20 Years+9% from previous633,400 NOK
- 20+ Years+8% from previous685,400 NOK
The single largest jump on the ladder is from 2 - 5 Years to 5 - 10 Years, where pay rises by about 47%. That is the point at which a assistant physical therapist typically goes from "competent in the role" to "the person other people in the team learn from", and the market pays well for that step.
Assistant physical therapist pay by education in Norway
Education sits alongside experience as one of the biggest factors driving assistant physical therapist pay in Norway. Higher qualifications consistently pull higher salaries, but the size of the gap tends to be smallest at junior levels and widens as people move up. Two people in the same role with the same years of experience but different degrees can end up earning very different money once they reach mid-career.
Below is the average assistant physical therapist salary in Norway broken down by the highest level of education a worker has completed.
- Bachelor's Degree281,100 NOK
- Master's Degree+93% from previous542,300 NOK
Assistant physical therapist gender pay gap in Norway
The gender pay gap is a stubborn feature of almost every labour market, and Norway is no exception. Male assistant physical therapists in Norway earn an average of 454,400 NOK a year, while female assistant physical therapists earn around 472,100 NOK. That works out to a 4% gap in favour of women, even when comparing people doing the same work.
A pay gap of this size has a real long-term cost. Over a typical thirty-year career it can add up to several years of pay, and it compounds through pensions, retirement contributions and bonus-linked stock. Some of the gap is explained by women being more likely to work part-time, take career breaks, or be steered toward lower-paying specialisations. Some of it is straightforward unequal pay for the same job, which is harder to defend.
Assistant Physical Therapist gender pay gap
4%
Men earn this much less than women on average in Norway.
Pay raises for an assistant physical therapist in Norway
Most countries hand out at least some kind of pay raise every year, typically when an employee's contract is reviewed or as a cost-of-living adjustment to keep wages roughly in step with inflation. The rhythm and size of those raises varies hugely between industries.
A typical worker doing this role in Norway sees a raise of about 11% every 15 months, which works out to roughly 9% on an annual basis. That figure is the typical underlying rate; in years where inflation runs high you can usually expect a bit more, and in flat-economy years a bit less.
Across all jobs in Norway, the national average raise is around 9% every 15 months.
By industry
Industries with the highest pay raises in Norway:
- Banking
- Energy
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Travel
- Construction
- Education
By experience level
Experienced workers tend to see larger raises. Retaining a senior is cheaper than replacing them, so employers fight harder for them.
- Junior Level3% - 5%
- Mid-Career
- Senior Level
- Top Management
Assistant physical therapist bonus rates in Norway
Bonuses are the other half of total compensation, and they vary a lot between jobs and industries. Some roles are paid almost entirely in base salary; others lean heavily on bonus structures tied to revenue, project completion or company performance. Whether a job pays a bonus, how big it is, and how often it lands all factor into whether the headline salary is actually a good offer.
60% of assistant physical therapists in Norway reported a bonus of some kind in the past twelve months. That makes an assistant physical therapist a moderate-bonus role overall, which is useful context when you're weighing up a job offer where the base is below market.
Among those who did receive a bonus, the size of the payment varied substantially. Reported bonuses ranged from 2% to 7% of base salary. The remaining 40% of assistant physical therapists reported no bonus at all over the same period.
Which careers pay bonuses in Norway
Revenue-facing roles tend to pay the biggest bonuses. Operational and support roles tend toward smaller, more predictable ones.
- Finance
- Architecture
- Sales
- Business Development
- Marketing / Advertising
- Information Technology
- Healthcare
- Insurance
- Customer Service
- Human Resources
- Construction
- Transport
- Hospitality
Assistant physical therapist: public vs private sector pay
Public-sector pay in Norway is about 5% more than private-sector pay for similar work. The private sector typically offers stronger upside and bigger bonuses; the public sector typically offers better benefits and stability.
Public vs private pay gap
5%
Public-sector workers earn this much more than private-sector workers in Norway on average.
Assistant physical therapist salary by city in Norway
Assistant physical therapist pay is not even across Norway. The chart below shows the highest-paying cities in the dataset, followed by the full location table.
- Oslo
- Trondheim
- Stavanger
- Tromso
| Location | Type | Average | Median | Range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oslo | City | 501,800 NOK | 512,600 NOK | 246,200-784,600 NOK |
| Trondheim | City | 459,700 NOK | 497,900 NOK | 210,400-730,300 NOK |
| Stavanger | City | 426,500 NOK | 449,400 NOK | 200,600-671,000 NOK |
| Tromso | City | 413,900 NOK | 413,900 NOK | 206,700-641,800 NOK |
Assistant Physical Therapist in Norway: FAQs
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How much does an assistant physical therapist make per month in Norway?
An assistant physical therapist in Norway earns about 38,441 NOK a month before tax, based on an annual average of 461,300 NOK.
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What's the salary range for an assistant physical therapist in Norway?
Entry-level assistant physical therapists in Norway start near 211,200 NOK. Top-end pay reaches around 735,800 NOK. The middle 50% of earners sit between 319,600 and 665,100 NOK.
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Is the median assistant physical therapist salary in Norway higher or lower than the average?
The median is 500,100 NOK, higher than the average of 461,300 NOK. Half of assistant physical therapists in Norway earn below the median, half earn above it.
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What's the gender pay gap for assistant physical therapists in Norway?
Men working as an assistant physical therapist in Norway earn around 4% less than women on average (454,400 vs 472,100 NOK a year).
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Do assistant physical therapists in Norway get bonuses?
About 60% of assistant physical therapists in Norway reported a bonus in the past 12 months. Reported bonuses ranged from 2% to 7% of base salary.
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Do assistant physical therapists earn more in the public or private sector in Norway?
In Norway, the public sector pays an assistant physical therapist about 5% more on average. Public-sector pay tends to be steadier; private-sector pay tends to offer bigger upside.
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How often do assistant physical therapists in Norway get a pay raise?
An assistant physical therapist in Norway sees a raise of around 11% every 15 months, equivalent to roughly 9% a year.