Radiation Therapist Salary, Skills & Requirements (2026)
Advertised pay, starting pay, skills and experience from 1,147 US job postings by 334 employers. Data as of October 2026.
What US employers post for radiation therapists: advertised pay, the skills and experience they ask for, and the job titles they use, from 1,147 open job postings (October 2026).
- The median advertised pay for radiation therapists in US job postings is $110,000 a year (250 postings from 96 employers, October 2026).
- The middle half of those postings offer $98,000 to $129,000.
- The skills that most set radiation therapist postings apart are radiation therapy, linear accelerators, imrt.
- Postings that state a minimum ask for a median of 1 year of experience.
Radiation Therapist job postings in the US, October 2026
- $110,000
- Median advertised pay (250 postings)
- $98,000–$129,000
- Middle 50% of postings
- 1,147
- US job postings from 334 employers
- 1 year
- Median experience asked
How much does a radiation therapist make?
The median advertised pay is $110,000 a year, from 250 US job postings by 96 employers that state pay. One in ten postings offers $165,000 or more.
Advertised pay in 250 US radiation therapist job postings: median $110,000 a year, middle half $98,000 to $129,000.
- Median: $110,000
- 25th percentile: $98,000
- 75th percentile: $129,000
The figures as a table
| Annual pay | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| $50K–$60K | 0.4% |
| $60K–$70K | 0.8% |
| $70K–$80K | 1.2% |
| $80K–$90K | 6.9% |
| $90K–$100K | 20.4% |
| $100K–$110K | 18.8% |
| $110K–$120K | 17.1% |
| $120K–$130K | 9.4% |
| $130K–$140K | 3.7% |
| $140K–$150K | 4.5% |
| $150K–$160K | 3.7% |
| $160K–$170K | 5.3% |
| $170K–$180K | 1.6% |
| $190K–$200K | 2.9% |
| $200K–$210K | 0.4% |
| $210K–$220K | 0.4% |
| $240K–$250K | 1.6% |
Midpoint of each posting's pay range, hourly pay × 2,080 hours; at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026.
| Median | Middle 50% | Postings | |
|---|---|---|---|
| All pay postings, annualised | $110,000 | $98K–$129K | 250 |
For comparison, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the national median annual wage of Radiation Therapists (29-1124) at $105,000 (May 2025). Postings advertise pay; the BLS measures what people earn, across all employers and levels.
What is the starting salary for a radiation therapist?
Figure withheld: fewer than 250 US postings list pay. How we decide.
Skills employers ask for in radiation therapist job postings
| Skill | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| Communication | 23% |
| Interpersonal skills | 19% |
| Radiation therapy | 15% |
| Attention to detail | 10% |
| Problem-solving | 9% |
| Organizational skills | 9% |
| Microsoft Office | 8% |
| Work independently | 8% |
| Customer service | 7% |
| Critical thinking | 6% |
Skills named in the posting text; at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026. Methodology.
Skills that set radiation therapists apart
- Radiation therapy1056.6× as often as in all postings · 15%
- Linear accelerators981× as often as in all postings · 6%
- Critical thinking3.9× as often as in all postings · 6%
Skills named in at least 5% of these postings and at least 3 times as often as in job postings overall.
Have a radiation therapist job posting in front of you? See which of its skills your resume is missing.
What does a radiation therapist do?
Employers post these jobs as Radiation Therapy Tech, Radiation Therapist I, Radiation Therapy Technologist, Radiation Therapist II, PRN Radiation Therapist and other titles.
The closest official occupation is Radiation Therapists (29-1124.00). Its most important tasks:
- Position patients for treatment with accuracy, according to prescription.
- Administer prescribed doses of radiation to specific body parts, using radiation therapy equipment according to established practices and standards.
- Follow principles of radiation protection for patient, self, and others.
- Review prescription, diagnosis, patient chart, and identification.
- Conduct most treatment sessions independently, in accordance with the long-term treatment plan and under the general direction of the patient's physician.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (CC BY 4.0).
How much experience do you need to be a radiation therapist?
Among 490 postings that state a minimum, the median is 1 year. 2% say 0 years and 53% ask for 1 year or less.
Minimum experience asked in 490 US radiation therapist job postings: median 1 year, and 53% ask for 1 year or less.
The figures as a table
| Minimum experience asked | Share of postings |
|---|---|
| 0 yr | 3% |
| 1 yr | 50% |
| 2 yrs | 30% |
| 3-4 yrs | 12% |
| 5-7 yrs | 3% |
| 8-9 yrs | 0% |
| 10+ yrs | under 1% |
Postings that state a minimum (required or preferred); at most 20 postings per employer; US, October 2026.
We do not show a degree figure: in our checks, degree requirements in posting text were found too rarely to publish one. Why.
Other names for a radiation therapist: job titles employers use
| Job title | Employers using it |
|---|---|
| Radiation Therapist | 263 (78.7%) |
| Radiation Therapy Tech | 16 (4.8%) |
| Radiation Therapist I | 16 (4.8%) |
| Radiation Therapy Technologist | 12 (3.6%) |
| Radiation Therapist II | 12 (3.6%) |
| PRN Radiation Therapist | 11 (3.3%) |
| Radiation Therapist PRN | 8 (2.4%) |
| Lead Radiation Therapist | 8 (2.4%) |
| Staff Radiation Therapist | 8 (2.4%) |
| Senior Radiation Therapist | 7 (2.1%) |
| Radiation Therapist Lead | 5 (1.5%) |
| Radiation Therapist, PRN | 5 (1.5%) |
| Chief Radiation Therapist | 4 (1.2%) |
| Sr Radiation Therapist | 3 (0.9%) |
| Per Diem - Radiation Therapist | 3 (0.9%) |
| Radiation Therapist Float | 3 (0.9%) |
| Radiation Therapist, PT | 3 (0.9%) |
| Radiation Medicine Therapist - Radiation Oncology | 3 (0.9%) |
Titles read in our audit and used by at least 3 employers.
Radiation Therapist compared with similar careers
| Career | Median pay | Median experience | Postings | Shares N of top 25 skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Radiation Therapist | $110K | 1 year | 1,147 | – |
| Radiologic Technologist | $42.58/hr | 1 year | 22,330 | 16 |
| Diagnostic Medical Sonographer | $47.00/hr | 1 year | 4,989 | 15 |
| Nuclear Medicine Technologist | $52.73/hr | 1 year | 1,707 | 15 |
| Physicist | – | 3 years | 678 | 12 |
Similar careers
| Career | Shares N of the top 25 skills | Median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Radiologic Technologist | 16 | $42.58/hr |
| Diagnostic Medical Sonographer | 15 | $47.00/hr |
| Nuclear Medicine Technologist | 15 | $52.73/hr |
| Physicist | 12 | – |
| Neurodiagnostic Technologist | 16 | – |
| Patient Services Representative | 17 | $21.50/hr |
Applying for radiation therapist jobs?
- Radiation therapist resume examples: one-page examples for these roles
- Match your resume to a job: paste a posting and see the skills your resume is missing
- Check your resume: see how an applicant tracking system reads it
- Find radiation therapist jobs: search open postings
Frequently asked questions
How much does a radiation therapist make?
Source and method
Open US job postings collected from employers' applicant tracking systems, de-duplicated, counted only when their job title was read in our audit. Shares count at most 20 postings per employer, and franchise locations of one brand count as one employer. Pay uses hourly and annual figures only; a figure is shown when leaving out the largest employer moves it by 10% or less. Every figure states its number of postings. Methodology and measured accuracy.
Accuracy check: we read 20 randomly chosen postings counted on this page in full; 20 of them were this career or a closely related one (October 2026).
Download the figures on this page (CSV): every number above with its count of postings. Aggregate figures are licensed CC BY 4.0; cite the page when you reuse them.