Average Occupational Therapist Salary in Colombia for 2026

In this article, we will look at the average Occupational Therapist salary for 2026 in Colombia and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the Colombian peso. To keep things simple, we are using the COP currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does an Occupational Therapist Make in Colombia?

An Occupational Therapist working in Colombia will typically earn around 35,039,300 COP per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 16,079,800 COP to the highest average salary of 55,678,400 COP.

Average Annual Salary35,039,300 COP
Average Monthly Salary2,919,941 COP
Average Lowest Salary16,079,800 COP
Lowest Monthly Salary1,339,983 COP
Average Highest Salary55,678,400 COP
Highest Monthly Salary4,639,866 COP

These are average salaries for an Occupational Therapist in Colombia and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for an Occupational Therapist to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Occupational Therapist salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Occupational Therapist Salaries in Colombia

So we've looked at the average salaries an Occupational Therapist will earn in Colombia. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that an Occupational Therapist can earn between 16,079,800 COP and 55,678,400 COP on average in Colombia. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for an Occupational Therapist in Colombia is 37,800,500 COP. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 37,800,500 COP, and 50% of the population earn more than 37,800,500 COP.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Occupational Therapist salary in Colombia, 25% of the population are earning less than 24,239,000 COP while 75% of the population earn more than 24,239,000 COP.

75% of the population earn less than 50,519,600 COP, and 25% of the population earn more than 50,519,600 COP.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Occupational Therapist Salary by Experience Level in Colombia

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Occupational Therapist salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. An Occupational Therapist in Colombia that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 18,239,400 COP.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Occupational Therapist salary would increase to 24,478,500 COP.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as an Occupational Therapist, the average salary would be 36,121,000 COP.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 44,040,700 COP.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. An Occupational Therapist with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 47,999,400 COP.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For an Occupational Therapist with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 51,959,300 COP.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
18,239,400 COP
2-5 Years+34%
24,478,500 COP
5-10 Years+48%
36,121,000 COP
10-15 Years+22%
44,040,700 COP
15-20 Years+9%
47,999,400 COP
20+ Years+8%
51,959,300 COP

Occupational Therapist Salary by Education Level in Colombia

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for an Occupational Therapist in Colombia based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • Certificate or Diploma. An Occupational Therapist in Colombia with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 21,241,100 COP.
  • Bachelor's Degree. An Occupational Therapist in Colombia with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 41,040,700 COP.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Certificate or Diploma-
21,241,100 COP
Bachelor's Degree+93%
41,040,700 COP

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in Colombia is around 23,500,000 to 70,400,000 COP and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Occupational Therapist Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Colombia, a male occupational therapist will earn an average of 32,398,700 COP, while a female occupational therapist will earn around 37,681,400 COP.

This means that a male occupational therapist earns approximately 14% less than a female occupational therapist for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Colombia

Male-
32,398,700 COP
Female+14%
37,681,400 COP

Occupational Therapist Average Pay Raise in Colombia

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for an Occupational Therapist in Colombia is around 9% every 19 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in Colombia is around 7% every 19 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 9 ÷ 19 ) × 12  = 6%

What this means is that an Occupational Therapist in Colombia can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 6% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Colombia for 2026

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in Colombia.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
2%
Energy-
4%
Information Technology-
6%
Healthcare-
8%
Travel-
1%
Construction-
3%
Education-
5%

Occupational Therapist Bonus and Incentive Rates in Colombia

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

An Occupational Therapist is a moderate bonus based job, with 55% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

45% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 2% to 7%.

Received Bonus-
55%
No Bonus-
45%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in Colombia earn approximately 11% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
58,559,300 COP
Private Sector-11%
52,800,100 COP

Salaries for Jobs Similar to an Occupational Therapist

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to an Occupational Therapist in Colombia.

Job TitleCategorySalary
AromatherapistFitness / Hair / Beauty58,680,100 COP
Art TherapistFitness / Hair / Beauty42,719,800 COP
Assistant Spa ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty44,998,200 COP
Beauty AdvisorFitness / Hair / Beauty46,199,800 COP
Beauty EducatorFitness / Hair / Beauty54,719,600 COP
Beauty Shop CoordinatorFitness / Hair / Beauty29,641,500 COP
Beauty SpecialistFitness / Hair / Beauty45,599,600 COP
Beauty Supply ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty76,078,800 COP
Beauty TherapistFitness / Hair / Beauty43,438,200 COP
Cosmetic SalesFitness / Hair / Beauty24,119,700 COP
CosmetologistFitness / Hair / Beauty36,718,100 COP
Day Spa ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty81,119,300 COP
EstheticianFitness / Hair / Beauty19,439,300 COP
Fitness InstructorFitness / Hair / Beauty30,360,800 COP
Fitness and Wellness CoordinatorFitness / Hair / Beauty45,119,800 COP
Grooming Salon ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty71,039,200 COP
Hair Replacement SpecialistFitness / Hair / Beauty70,079,900 COP
Hair StylistFitness / Hair / Beauty24,119,700 COP
Health CoachFitness / Hair / Beauty56,998,400 COP
Health EducatorFitness / Hair / Beauty68,281,500 COP
Manicurist and PedicuristFitness / Hair / Beauty16,561,800 COP
Massage TherapistFitness / Hair / Beauty32,038,500 COP
MasseurFitness / Hair / Beauty25,919,400 COP
Natural Remedy ConsultantFitness / Hair / Beauty60,361,600 COP
Naturopath and AcupuncturistFitness / Hair / Beauty25,440,400 COP
Occupational Therapy AssistantFitness / Hair / Beauty26,880,900 COP
Physical Therapy AttendantFitness / Hair / Beauty27,118,300 COP
Recreational TherapistFitness / Hair / Beauty33,119,100 COP
Salon AssistantFitness / Hair / Beauty26,880,900 COP
Salon ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty70,079,900 COP
Spa ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty82,080,500 COP
Spa SupervisorFitness / Hair / Beauty64,439,700 COP
Sport and Recreation ManagerFitness / Hair / Beauty81,359,100 COP
Tattoo ArtistFitness / Hair / Beauty20,639,100 COP
Weight Loss ConsultantFitness / Hair / Beauty76,801,100 COP
Yoga InstructorFitness / Hair / Beauty50,158,700 COP

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in Colombia, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Barranquilla54,719,500 COP
Bello52,319,850 COP
Bogota58,319,600 COP
Bucaramanga54,720,950 COP
Buenaventura51,000,050 COP
Cartagena57,840,150 COP
Cucuta55,200,200 COP
Ibague55,199,600 COP
Manizales49,080,600 COP
Medellin59,518,600 COP
Monteria50,580,550 COP
Neiva48,779,900 COP
Pereira51,839,300 COP
Santa Marta51,479,350 COP
Soacha56,880,000 COP
Soledad56,519,850 COP
Valledupar50,280,250 COP
Villavicencio52,379,550 COP

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