Hire a 1099 Physical Therapist in Tennessee
What it costs to engage an independent physical therapist in Tennessee, and how to keep the engagement compliant.
- Physical Therapists employed
- 4,420
- Median annual pay
- $100,660
- 1099 equivalent
- $134,265
- Suggested hourly
- $80.69
- State income tax
- None
BLS OEWS, May 2024
all employment types
1.33× — estimate
at 80% utilisation
one of nine states
Engaging a 1099 physical therapist in Tennessee means competing for people inside a pool of 4,420 physical therapists, against a median wage of $100,660. This page works through what that means for an independent contractor: the pay spread, the rate you need to quote to come out ahead of payroll, and the tax and classification rules that apply in Tennessee.
Every figure is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics programme (May 2024) or the Census Bureau's 2024 population estimates. Where BLS suppressed a number for this market, the sentence that would have used it is simply absent — nothing here is filled in with an estimate unless it is labelled as one.
What Tennessee looks like for physical therapists
The Tennessee market supports 4,420 physical therapists. That figure counts every employment arrangement, W-2 and 1099 alike — BLS does not split the two. Applying 1099WORK's estimate that roughly 30% of physical therapists work on a 1099 basis puts the independent share near 1,326 people. Treat that as an order of magnitude, not a census.
The location quotient is 0.84 — physical therapists are 16% less concentrated here than in the average US market. That thins the employer pool, but it also thins the competition for the contracts that do exist.
One local factor never shows up in wage data at all: Tennessee levies no state income tax, so a given gross goes further here than the same gross in a taxed state.
Budgeting for a 1099 physical therapist
The honest comparison is not salary against contract rate — it is fully loaded cost against contract rate. A W-2 physical therapist in Tennessee at the $100,660 median costs roughly $124,615 once you add employer payroll tax and a conservative benefits load. A contractor quoting $134,265 for the same output is close to cost-neutral, and you carry none of the unemployment insurance, benefits administration or severance exposure.
Where 1099 genuinely wins is variable demand. You pay for the engagement, not the calendar, and you can scale a territory or a project up and down without a headcount decision. Where it loses is control: the moment you need to set someone's hours, supply their tools and forbid other clients, you are describing an employee, and Tennessee's agencies will say so.
Costs a 1099 engagement avoids that payroll does not:
- Employer FICA at 7.65% of wages
- Federal and state unemployment insurance
- Workers' compensation premiums in most classifications
- Health, dental and retirement contributions
- Paid leave, holidays and severance exposure
The classification caveat
Labelling an engagement 1099 does not make it 1099 — the IRS weighs who controls the work, who supplies the tools and who carries the risk. For physical therapists the usual flashpoints are set schedules, employer-supplied equipment and exclusivity clauses. Tennessee also applies its own test, which can reach a different answer than the IRS does on identical facts.
Where the physical therapists are in Tennessee
Statewide totals hide how concentrated the work is. These 8 metros account for the bulk of Tennessee's physical therapist employment:
| Metro | Employed | Median annual | Population |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nashville | 1,350 | $103,750 | 2.2 million |
| Memphis | 750 | $101,360 | 1.3 million |
| Knoxville | 560 | $97,080 | 958,000 |
| Chattanooga | 430 | $98,650 | 588,000 |
| Clarksville | 130 | $94,240 | 346,000 |
| Kingsport | 200 | $93,250 | 314,000 |
| Johnson City | 160 | $96,740 | 215,000 |
| Jackson | 140 | $96,910 | 184,000 |
What physical therapists earn in Tennessee
BLS puts median annual pay in Tennessee at $100,660. That works out to $48.40 an hour at a standard 2,080-hour year. That is in line with the national median of $101,020.
The spread matters more than the midpoint for anyone working 1099. The gap between the 10th and 90th percentile is $49,640, which is the range your negotiating position, client mix and specialisation actually move you across. Top-decile earners clear $123,800, against $74,160 at the bottom decile. These are W-2 and 1099 earnings combined, before any contractor adjusts for self-employment tax and unfunded benefits — which is what the next section is for.
| Percentile | Annual | Hourly |
|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $74,160 | $35.65 |
| Median | $100,660 | $48.40 |
| Mean | $98,090 | $47.16 |
| 90th percentile | $123,800 | $59.52 |
Benchmarking Tennessee
Against the national median of $101,020 it is effectively level. The location quotient column is the one worth reading twice: it measures how concentrated the occupation is relative to the national average, and it moves independently of pay.
| Area | Employed | Median annual | 90th percentile | Location quotient |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tennessee | 4,420 | $100,660 | $123,800 | 0.84 |
| United States | 248,630 | $101,020 | $132,500 | — |
Turning the distribution into a price list
The percentile spread above is more useful as a rate card than as a statistic. Each row below takes a point in the local wage distribution and applies the same 1.33× contractor multiplier, then divides across a realistic 80% billable year. Treat the middle row as your default and the bottom row as a floor you do not go under — not as a starting offer.
| Position in the local market | Annual equivalent | Hourly at 80% utilisation |
|---|---|---|
| Entering the market (10th percentile) | $98,918 | $59.45 |
| Established (median) | $134,265 | $80.69 |
| Specialised (90th percentile) | $165,130 | $99.24 |
Where to look next
1099WORK is a marketplace built for 1099 engagements specifically: companies post a defined scope, physical therapists keep one verified profile, and agreements, onboarding and payment happen in the same place. It launched as 1099REPS for independent medical sales reps and now covers the wider 1099 economy, Tennessee included.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need an LLC to work 1099 in Tennessee?
No. A sole proprietor can accept 1099 work under their own name and Social Security number, and many contractors start that way. An LLC adds liability separation and lets you elect S-corp taxation once profit is high enough for the payroll-tax saving to beat the extra filing cost. Tennessee sets its own formation fee and annual report requirements.
How many physical therapists work in Tennessee?
BLS counts 4,420 physical therapists in Tennessee. 1099WORK estimates roughly 1,326 of them work on a 1099 basis, though BLS does not publish that split.
How often do 1099 contractors pay taxes in Tennessee?
Quarterly. The IRS expects estimated payments in mid-April, mid-June, mid-September and mid-January, and charges an underpayment penalty for missing them even if you pay in full at filing. Tennessee has no state income tax, so the federal schedule is the whole calendar for most contractors there.
Is 1099 work better than a W-2 job in Tennessee?
It depends entirely on rate and stability. 1099 wins on control, deductibility and upside; W-2 wins on predictability, benefits and unemployment cover. As a rule of thumb, a 1099 engagement needs to pay about 1.33× the equivalent salary before it is genuinely better money.
How much does a 1099 physical therapist make in Tennessee?
The median physical therapist in Tennessee earns $100,660 a year according to BLS OEWS data for May 2024, covering W-2 and 1099 workers together. The top decile clears $123,800. Working 1099, you would need roughly $134,265 in gross billings to match that median after self-employment tax and unfunded benefits.
What hourly rate should a 1099 physical therapist charge in Tennessee?
About $80.69 an hour at 80% utilisation, derived from the $100,660 local median. That builds in the employer half of payroll tax, twenty unpaid days a year and a 15% allowance for self-funded health cover and retirement. It excludes business insurance, mileage and unbilled sales time.