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Market intelligence· Texas · Statewide

Physician Assistant Job Market in Texas

Employer-location density, compensation data, specialty demand, and hiring trends — statewide

Texas is the #2 PA market in the U.S. by employer locations. This page summarizes Physician Assistant/Physician Associate (PA) employer-location data, compensation benchmarks, and market trends across Texas — mapped by PA JobSource, powered by the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA).

Data sourced from AAPA's PA JobSource (4,100+ total PA employer locations, snapshot October 21, 2026) and AAPA's 2026 Salary Report

PA employer locations in Texas
4,189across 12 major markets
Actively hiring or open to networking
42990 locations actively hiring, 339 locations open to networking
Median PA compensation
$131,000median total compensationAAPA's 2026 Salary Report
National rank
#2PA employer-location density

PA employer locations by Texas market

Ranked by location count · employer locations

  1. 01Dallas-Fort Worth1,116 locations27 hiring$129,842 median
  2. 02Houston892 locations20 hiring$133,000 median
  3. 03San Antonio428 locations14 hiring$130,000 median
  4. 04Austin407 locations11 hiring$132,000 median
  5. 05McAllen122 locations1 hiring$125,000 median
  6. 06El Paso104 locations3 hiring
  7. 07Killeen-Temple71 locations1 hiring$147,000 median
  8. 08Brownsville70 locations1 hiring$120,000 median
  9. 09Corpus Christi64 locations2 hiring
  10. 10Waco51 locations2 hiring$137,500 median
  11. 11Lubbock48 locations$111,856 median
  12. 12Beaumont-Port Arthur27 locations1 hiring

Compensation medians are reported for each city’s metropolitan statistical area. Every Texas location is on the PA JobSource map — log in to explore the full map →

Market breakdown

4,189 employer locations statewide

Top specialties by active job postings

% of active PA job postings statewide · may include multiple specialties per posting

Critical Care
76%
Internal Medicine
56%
Urgent Care
56%
Occupational Medicine
56%
Pulmonology
56%
Pediatrics
48%
Orthopaedic Surgery
42%
Emergency Medicine
38%
Infectious Disease
36%
Hospitalist
33%

Employer setting

% of total employer locations · may appear in multiple settings

Outpatient Clinic
72%
Hospital
42%
Ambulatory Surgical Center
22%
Urgent Care Center
10%
Academic
5%
Military
2%

Market trends

Texas PA employment landscape

  • Austin is the fastest-growing Texas PA market

    PA JobSource tracks 407 PA employer locations in Austin, 11 of them actively hiring, in a market driven by rapid population growth and the expansion of outpatient clinic networks serving the tech corridor. Primary care and urgent care roles dominate, with compensation trending toward parity with Houston as health system competition intensifies.

  • Texas Medical Center anchors Houston's surgical PA market

    The Texas Medical Center — the world's largest medical complex — employs more cardiovascular and surgical PAs per capita than any comparable geography in the United States. PAs in cardiovascular surgery, neurosurgery, and transplant surgery at TMC-affiliated institutions command the highest compensation in the Texas market, typically 15–20% above state averages for those specialties.

  • Rural Texas shows acute PA shortages with loan repayment incentives

    West Texas, the Rio Grande Valley, and the Panhandle region have significant PA shortages in primary care and general surgery. Many rural employers offer federal loan repayment programs (NHSC, HRSA) in addition to base compensation, which can substantially increase total value for early-career PAs.

  • Military and VA system adds unique PA demand in San Antonio

    San Antonio hosts the largest military medical installation in the United States — Brooke Army Medical Center and Joint Base San Antonio — alongside a major VA hospital system. This creates consistent PA demand in emergency medicine, surgery, and primary care through military and federal civilian hiring pathways that operate outside typical commercial job boards.

Frequently asked questions

Texas PA market

What is the PA job market like in Texas?

Texas has one of the strongest PA job markets in the United States, with over 4,100 PA employer locations tracked in the PA JobSource career discovery platform. The market is led by Dallas-Fort Worth (1,116 locations), Houston (892 locations), and San Antonio (428 locations). Texas ranks second nationally for PA employer-location density. The statewide median compensation of $131,000 is below the national median of $140,000, though Killeen-Temple is above it at $147,000 for its metro area.

What is the average PA salary in Texas?

The median PA compensation in Texas is $131,000 per year across all specialties and settings — below the national median of $140,000, per AAPA's 2026 Salary Report. Killeen-Temple is the strongest-compensating Texas market at $147,000, reported for the Killeen-Temple, TX metropolitan statistical area — above the national median. Compensation varies by city, specialty, and employer setting.

Which Texas cities have the most PA jobs?

Dallas-Fort Worth leads with 1,116 PA employer locations (median compensation $129,842), followed by Houston with 892 (median compensation $133,000), San Antonio with 428 (median compensation $130,000), Austin with 407 (median compensation $132,000), and McAllen with 122 (median compensation $125,000). City medians are reported for each city's metropolitan statistical area. Houston has a strong surgical PA concentration due to the Texas Medical Center. Austin is considered the fastest-growing market. San Antonio has strong military and VA system PA demand.

What specialties have the highest PA demand in Texas?

Critical care, internal medicine, and urgent care post the most active PA job openings in Texas, followed by occupational medicine and pulmonology. Pediatrics, orthopaedic surgery, emergency medicine, infectious disease, and hospitalist round out the top ten by active postings. Surgical subspecialties such as cardiothoracic surgery, neurosurgery, and transplant surgery represent a smaller share of open postings but are concentrated at high-volume centers like Houston's Texas Medical Center, where they often command premium compensation.

Is Texas a good state for new graduate PAs?

Yes. Approximately 8% of actively hiring Texas PA hiring sites have expressed interest in hiring new grads, compared to 6% nationally. Austin and San Antonio are considered particularly new-grad-friendly due to outpatient and urgent care growth. Some rural Texas employers offer federal loan repayment programs that make early-career positions financially compelling even at lower base salaries.

Is a physician associate the same as a physician assistant?

Yes — they're the same profession and the same PA credential. In 2021, the field's national association renamed itself from the American Academy of Physician Assistants to the American Academy of Physician Associates (AAPA) and adopted “physician associate” as the profession's preferred title. Six states (Alaska, Delaware, Iowa, Maine, New Hampshire, and Oregon) have passed statutory changes, and two (Kansas and Wisconsin) have passed title recognition legislation. However, many employers, job postings, and state licensing boards still use “physician assistant,” and both titles refer to the same role.

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Data reflects employer locations in the PA JobSource career discovery platform as of October 21, 2026. Compensation data from AAPA's 2026 Salary Report. Market trends represent editorial analysis based on aggregate location data.