Travel Allied Health Pay in 2026
Travel contracts aren't just for RNs. Respiratory therapists, imaging techs, surgical techs, and therapists take the same 13-week contracts with the same pay structure — a taxable hourly rate plus tax-free stipends capped by GSA per diem rates. The stipend math on this site works identically for every profession below.
Data reviewed July 3, 2026 · allied travel pay estimates, FY2026 GSA rates
Pay figures on this page are our own editorial estimates, reviewed July 31, 2026 — not survey or government wage data. How we produce these numbers.
Respiratory Therapist
High demand$2,150/wk avg
$1,800–$3,600/wk range · RRT/CRT
Travel respiratory therapists manage ventilators, administer breathing treatments, and respond to codes in ICUs, ERs, and NICUs. Demand spikes every respiratory season.
Full RT salary guide →Radiology Tech
High demand$2,080/wk avg
$1,700–$3,200/wk range · ARRT
X-ray, CT, and interventional radiology techs. CT and IR carry the premiums.
Surgical Tech
High demand$1,800/wk avg
$1,500–$2,800/wk range · CST
OR scrub techs. CVOR and neuro service lines pay above baseline.
Physical Therapist
Moderate demand$2,200/wk avg
$1,900–$2,900/wk range · DPT
Inpatient acute, SNF, and home health settings; PT Compact speeds licensing in 30+ states.
How allied travel differs from RN travel
The contract structure is identical — 13 weeks, a taxable hourly rate plus tax-free housing and meal stipends, the same GSA ceilings, the same tax home requirement. What differs is the market around it, and those differences matter more than the pay rate when you are deciding whether to take a contract.
- Licensure is slower and rarely compact. The Nurse Licensure Compact covers RNs and LPNs only. Respiratory therapists, imaging techs and therapists generally need a separate state licence for each state, with no multi-state shortcut, and processing can run six to ten weeks. Allied travellers plan licences a contract ahead rather than reacting to an offer.
- Fewer openings, so less leverage per market. A hospital runs hundreds of RNs and perhaps a dozen RTs. That means fewer simultaneous openings in any one city, longer gaps between contracts, and less room to play two offers against each other — but it also means a hospital with a genuine vacancy is often under more pressure to fill it.
- Certifications move the rate more than years do. In allied roles a specific credential — NPS or ACCS for RTs, MRI or CT registry for imaging, CNOR for surgical techs — frequently matters more to the bill rate than general experience. If you are within reach of one, the return is usually faster than waiting for a seniority bump.
- Call and weekend requirements are more common. Smaller departments cover the same hours with fewer staff, so call obligations appear in allied contracts more often than in RN ones. Check how call is paid — a flat on-call rate plus a callback rate is normal, and it is genuinely worth money if the department is busy.
We currently publish a full pay page for respiratory therapy; imaging, surgical tech and physical therapy pages are in progress. The calculators below already work for any allied contract — nothing in the stipend or tax maths is nurse-specific.
The Stipend Math Is Profession-Agnostic
GSA per diem ceilings, tax home rules, and the taxable-vs-stipend split don't care about your credential — an RT and an RN on contract in the same city have the same stipend ceiling and the same tax rules. Every tool on this site works for allied travelers: