Physical therapy website design: conditions, locations and referrals

Build around what patients search: conditions and services

Here is the demand behind a PT site, from both sides of the screen.

Google Ads Keyword Planner data via DataForSEO, US, 12-month average to Sep 2026.

Website vendors pay about $49.58 a click to reach clinic owners, more than seven times what a back pain click costs. That gap tells you who the typical PT website is built to impress. Build yours for the 40,500.

What good looks like

• One page per condition: low back pain, neck pain, knee replacement rehab, ACL and sports injuries, shoulder pain, balance and falls, plus pelvic floor or vestibular care if you offer them.
• One page per service: dry needling (only where your state allows PTs to do it), aquatic therapy if you have a pool, sports rehab, running analysis, wellness programs.
• Each page answers four questions: how PT helps with this problem, what the first visit looks like, how many visits patients usually need at your clinic, and when to go elsewhere.

That last point builds trust. APTA's patient guide to low back pain (opens in a new tab), reviewed by a board-certified orthopaedic PT, tells readers to go to an emergency department right away if they lose bowel or bladder control or have numbness in the groin or inner thigh. A condition page that includes that kind of warning reads like a clinician wrote it.

Source medical content from MedlinePlus (for example its rehabilitation (opens in a new tab) overview) and APTA's ChoosePT (opens in a new tab) condition guides, then have a licensed PT on your team review every page. Don't promise outcomes ("pain-free in three visits"); describe the approach and typical course instead. For how this fits the rest of your marketing, see the physical therapy marketing hub.

Insurance, cost and direct-access pages

These three pages answer the questions that stop people from booking.

Insurance. List the plans you're in network with, by name, and say what happens if a patient's plan isn't on the list. Keep copay language general because benefits vary by plan.

Cost. List self-pay prices for evaluations, follow-ups and cash services. If you publish self-pay prices, 45 CFR 149.610 (opens in a new tab) requires providers to tell uninsured and self-pay patients that a good faith estimate is available, with a notice prominently displayed on the website, in the office and orally when patients ask about cost.

Direct access. APTA says every state, DC and the U.S. Virgin Islands allow provisional or unrestricted direct access (opens in a new tab) as of July 1, 2025, but some states still attach conditions to treatment without a referral, and some insurance plans still require one. Write the page for your state and your top payers. For Medicare patients, explain that a physician or other qualified practitioner signs off on the plan of care; under 42 CFR 424.24(c) (opens in a new tab) that certification is renewed at least every 90 days.

Location pages for each clinic

If you have more than one clinic, each one needs its own page. A patient comparing two locations wants:

• the address, a map, parking and the entrance to use;
• hours, including early mornings and evenings if you offer them;
• the therapists at that location and their specialties;
• the services available there (the pool may only be at one site);
• a phone number and a booking link for that location.

Mark each page up with structured data so Google can read the hours and address. Google's local business documentation (opens in a new tab) explains opening-hours markup, including seasonal hours and closed days. Keep the page, the markup and your Google Business Profile identical. Mismatched hours are a common reason patients call the wrong clinic.

A referral page for physicians and surgeons

Referring offices want speed and fewer phone calls. A single page for them should include:

• your referral fax number and any e-referral or portal option;
• what to send (order, demographics, insurance, surgical protocol);
• how fast you schedule evaluations and how you send notes back;
• protocols you follow for common surgeries such as ACL reconstruction or total knee replacement;
• one named contact for referral questions.

Keep anything of value out of the page. Offers to referring offices raise Anti-Kickback Statute questions, which the hub covers under referral rules.

Booking an evaluation: forms and scheduler links

Most PT clinics already have scheduling in their EMR or a booking tool. Your website should link to it from every condition, service and location page, with one clear button: "Book an evaluation." If you take requests instead, use a short form: name, phone, email, preferred location, insurance and a free-text box with a note not to include detailed medical history. Our guide to appointment request forms covers the HIPAA side.

Keep ad and analytics pixels off pages that collect patient details. In June 2024 a federal court vacated one part of HHS's tracking guidance (opens in a new tab), the part that treated an IP address plus a visit to a public health page as protected, and said the rest of the guidance wasn't limited by the ruling. Forms that capture names and health details are not the public-page case.

Evaluation checklist for a PT website project

• Does every condition and service get its own page, with a PT reviewer named?
• Are insurance, self-pay cost and direct-access pages included, with the good faith estimate notice?
• Is there a page per location with matching structured data?
• Is there a physician referral page?
• Do forms go to a HIPAA-compliant system, with a signed BAA?
• Do you own the domain, the content and the analytics account?
• How fast does the site load on a phone?

Red flags

• Services listed in one paragraph, or one "conditions we treat" page.
• Outcome promises in sample copy, such as "pain-free in three visits."
• Facebook or Google pixels on the contact form.
• The vendor registers the domain in its own name.
• Stock photos of models in a gym instead of your clinic and team.
• A multi-year contract with no way to export your content.

What drives the cost

Cost scales with the number of pages (conditions times locations), whether content is written and clinically reviewed for you, custom design versus a template, integrations with your scheduler or intake, HIPAA-compliant form hosting under a BAA, and ongoing edits. Get quotes that separate these, and compare them with the pages a practice site needs rather than a page count. Our broader guide to medical website design covers speed, accessibility and hosting.

How Medfy rebuilds a PT clinic website

Medfy's base plan, $349/month, includes your website rebuilt and hosted on your own domain. It is fast, with a page per service, structured data and HIPAA-compliant forms, plus 500 AI credits a month for edits you ask for in plain English, such as "add a page for vestibular rehab at the Northside clinic." Form submissions go to separate, encrypted HIPAA databases, and Medfy signs a BAA with your practice.

Medfy isn't scheduling software. It links your existing scheduler from every page, and its first-party analytics count booking clicks, calls, form requests and directions so you can see which pages produce evaluations. The plan also includes automated SEO (weekly articles drafted from MedlinePlus and PubMed that you approve), AI visibility tracking, Google reporting and a patient CRM.

You can see it before paying. Start with a free audit of your current site, then get a free preview of your rebuilt website. Full plan details are on the pricing page. If you're comparing this with hiring a firm, read our guide to PT marketing agencies, and for what to do once the site is live, see PT marketing ideas.

Frequently asked questions

What should a physical therapy website include?

A page for each condition and service you treat, an insurance and self-pay cost page, a page explaining direct access in your state, a page for each location with hours and parking, a referral page for physicians, therapist bios with credentials, and a short HIPAA-compliant evaluation request form or a link to your scheduler. Each page should answer one patient question in plain language.

Should PT clinics list prices on their website?

Usually yes, at least for self-pay services such as evaluations, follow-up visits, dry needling and wellness packages. 'How much does physical therapy cost' draws about 2,400 US searches a month. If you list self-pay prices, also post the notice that good faith estimates are available to uninsured and self-pay patients, and keep insured-patient wording general, since copays depend on the plan.

How many pages does a physical therapy website need?

Enough to give every condition, service and location its own page. Count home, about, team, eight to fifteen condition pages, a few service pages, insurance and cost, direct access, a physician referral page, a location page, contact and policies, and a single-location clinic ends up with roughly 20 to 30 pages. Add pages when you add services or locations, not to hit a number.