Massage Therapists

Perform therapeutic massages of soft tissues and joints. May assist in the assessment of range of motion and muscle strength, or propose client therapy plans.

Most important skills

Active Listening
Speaking
Social Perceptiveness
Service Orientation
Reading Comprehension
Critical Thinking
Judgment and Decision Making
Monitoring

Key knowledge

Customer and Personal Service
English Language
Biology
Medicine and Dentistry
Psychology
Education and Training
Therapy and Counseling
Sales and Marketing

What the work involves

Confer with clients about their medical histories and problems with stress or pain to determine how massage will be most helpful.
Apply finger and hand pressure to specific points of the body.
Massage and knead muscles and soft tissues of the body to provide treatment for medical conditions, injuries, or wellness maintenance.
Maintain treatment records.
Provide clients with guidance and information about techniques for postural improvement and stretching, strengthening, relaxation, and rehabilitative exercises.
Assess clients' soft tissue condition, joint quality and function, muscle strength, and range of motion.
Develop and propose client treatment plans that specify which types of massage are to be used.
Refer clients to other types of therapists when necessary.

Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Social, Realistic, Investigative.

Qualifications and licensing

Most common education: Post-Secondary Certificate (48.2% of expert ratings)
Related experience: None (35.7%)
On-the-job training: Anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month (40.7%)
Preparation level: O*NET job zone 3: Job Zone Three: Medium Preparation Needed
Licensing: Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.

Check before planning

Licensing for Massage Therapists is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.

Limits

Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0

Work environment

How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).

Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.

Rankings compare typical U.S. occupation-level work conditions; individual jobs and employers vary. Data: O*NET 31.0 Work Context and BLS wages (May 2025).
Condition	Level	Compared with other occupations	Most common answer (O*NET survey)
Contact with others	Moderate	Lower on contact with others than 58% of occupations compared	61% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others”
Dealing with the public	Moderate	Higher on dealing with the public than 50% of occupations compared	39% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important”
Teamwork	Very low	Lower on teamwork than 99% of occupations compared	32% of surveyed respondents chose “Important”
Freedom to make decisions	Very high	Higher on freedom to make decisions than 93% of occupations compared	74% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom”
Time pressure	Very low	Lower on time pressure than 91% of occupations compared	43% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day”
Conflict situations	Very low	Lower on conflict situations than 97% of occupations compared	46% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month”
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people	Very low	Lower on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 92% of occupations compared	54% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month”
Consequence of error	Moderate	Lower on consequence of error than 60% of occupations compared	32% of surveyed respondents chose “Not serious at all”

Work-pressure profile

Time pressure: very low
Conflict situations: very low
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: very low
Consequence of error: moderate

Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.

Full answer distributions