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    Salary / COTA / Iowa

    COTA salary in Iowa

    What COTA roles are advertised at, and the Iowa factors that change the number.

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    How much does a COTA earn in Iowa?

    Federal wage data for Iowa puts the median for occupational therapy assistants at $64,140 a year, with the middle of the market between $47,670 and $79,800 and about 400 people employed in the state (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). School-linked and Medicaid-funded work dominates. Roles are often the only opening in their county, so search is slower and retention matters more. Nationally, the COTA roles we recruit are advertised at roughly $28/hr – $42/hr; the national COTA salary guide sets out the entry, mid-career and senior figures behind that.

    COTA advertised pay by experience

    Entry
    $28/hr
    First role after certification
    Mid-career
    $34/hr
    Two to five years, full caseload
    Senior
    $42/hr
    Supervisory scope or specialist skill

    Official Iowa wage data

    Federal wage data for Iowa puts the median for occupational therapy assistants at $64,140 a year, with the middle of the market between $47,670 and $79,800 and about 400 people employed in the state (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025).

    Median
    $64,140
    Mean
    $63,970
    10th percentile
    $47,670
    90th percentile
    $79,800

    Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. State wage tables

    What changes a COTA offer in Iowa

    • Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant practice in Iowa is regulated by the state board for that therapy profession (speech-language pathology and audiology, occupational therapy or physical therapy, depending on the credential), not by the counseling boards. We do not publish IA-specific requirements for this credential, so confirm them with that board before you accept a start date.
    • Setting: Pediatric clinics, Schools, Skilled nursing price differently for the same credential.
    • Caseload cap and billable or productivity target, which decide whether a bonus is real.
    • Metro cost of living within the state; a city premium is not the same as a better offer.
    • Scarcity: Steady, with the sharpest need in skilled nursing and school contract work.

    How to read the IA figures

    The federal estimates above are the official Iowa picture for occupational therapy assistants, published annually and lagging the market by about a year. What we publish alongside them is what we actually see advertised on roles we recruit today. Use the federal median as a floor for negotiation and the advertised range as the live signal.

    BLS state occupational wage data

    Last reviewed August 2026.

    Live COTA roles in Iowa

    No live COTA roles in Iowa right now. Tell us your license status and target setting and we will contact you when the next Iowa search opens.

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    How to work as a COTA in Iowa

    1. 1

      Confirm the credential

      State licensure; NBCOT certification (COTA). This is the baseline every Iowa employer screens on before anything else.

    2. 2

      Check the IA requirement

      Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant practice in Iowa is regulated by the state board for that therapy profession (speech-language pathology and audiology, occupational therapy or physical therapy, depending on the credential), not by the counseling boards. We do not publish IA-specific requirements for this credential, so confirm them with that board before you accept a start date.

    3. 3

      Check the multi-state routes

      PSYPACT: confirm current status with the state board; Counseling Compact: enacted (privileges not yet live) Compact participation changes, so confirm the current position with the Iowa board rather than a secondary source.

    4. 4

      Build board processing into your start date

      Processing time, not eligibility, is the usual cause of a delayed start. Agree a start date with the licensing timeline already in it.

    5. 5

      Match the credential to open work

      Compare the advertised range for COTA roles, roughly $28/hr – $42/hr, against the live Iowa vacancies on this page, or join the talent network to be contacted when the next Iowa search opens.

    Continue with COTA in Iowa

    COTA pay and licensure in Iowa: common questions

    Do you need a license to work as a COTA in Iowa?
    Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant practice in Iowa is regulated by the state board for that therapy profession (speech-language pathology and audiology, occupational therapy or physical therapy, depending on the credential), not by the counseling boards. We do not publish IA-specific requirements for this credential, so confirm them with that board before you accept a start date. Confirm the current position with the Iowa board before you accept a start date, as processing time is the usual cause of a delayed start.
    What is the average COTA salary in Iowa?
    Federal wage data for Iowa puts the median for occupational therapy assistants at $64,140 a year, with the middle of the market between $47,670 and $79,800 and about 400 people employed in the state (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). Advertised pay on the COTA roles we recruit nationally sits at roughly $28/hr – $42/hr, and offers land inside that band according to setting, caseload and metro cost of living.
    Does COTA pay in Iowa differ from the rest of the US?
    We publish advertised pay on the roles we recruit, not a Iowa average. Across the US those COTA roles are advertised at roughly $28/hr – $42/hr, and where a Iowa offer lands inside that band is driven by setting, caseload and metro cost of living. For an official comparison, Iowa median pay for occupational therapy assistants is $64,140; treat that as a negotiating floor.
    Where are the COTA jobs in Iowa?
    School-linked and Medicaid-funded work dominates. Roles are often the only opening in their county, so search is slower and retention matters more. The live COTA vacancies we hold in Iowa are listed on this page; when nothing is open there today, the national COTA board carries every role we currently hold.
    Who employs COTAs in Iowa?
    The employers hiring this credential are pediatric clinics, schools, skilled nursing, home health. Which of those dominates in Iowa follows the local funding and provider mix rather than any national pattern, and it is the single biggest driver of what an offer looks like: the same COTA is priced differently by a center-based provider, a school district and a hospital system.
    What do employers look for when hiring a COTA in Iowa?
    First, the credential and the right to practise: state licensure; nbcot certification (cota). Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant practice in Iowa is regulated by the state board for that therapy profession (speech-language pathology and audiology, occupational therapy or physical therapy, depending on the credential), not by the counseling boards. We do not publish IA-specific requirements for this credential, so confirm them with that board before you accept a start date. After that, hiring managers screen on the specifics of the work — caseload size you have carried, the settings you have worked in, supervision responsibility, and documentation or payer experience. Availability matters too: a realistic start date that accounts for board processing usually beats a stronger resume that cannot start.
    What does the salary range on this page actually mean?
    Two different things, kept separate on purpose. $28/hr – $42/hr is what COTA roles we recruit are advertised at across the US — a live market signal, not a survey. The federal figures are official Iowa estimates for occupational therapy assistants: $64,140 median, with $47,670 at the 10th percentile and $79,800 at the 90th. They cover the whole occupation in the state, are published annually and lag the market by roughly a year, so read the median as a negotiating floor rather than a target. Neither number is an offer; where you land inside a range is set by setting, caseload and metro cost of living.

    COTA pay in other states

    A clinical director and a hiring lead shaking hands across a meeting-room table.

    Hiring COTAs in Iowa

    Pay is the last thing that fixes a stalled search

    Supervision access and productivity targets are the two questions every COTA candidate asks.

    Join the COTA talent networkHire a COTA in Iowa
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    • Behavioral health only
    • Recruiting across all 50 states
    • Pay published on every role
    • Recruitment partnerships, not job spam