Registered Nurse Salary

The average Registered Nurse Salary is calculated by the US Government Bureau of Labor Statistics from a variety of sources. Registered Nurses work in a number of settings including hospitals, clinics and schools.  The salaries of Registered Nurses varies depending on the location and the setting.  The assumption was made that the Registered Nurses reflected here were working an average of 40 hours per week with a total of 2080 hours per year.

Registered Nurse Salary: Median Hourly & Annual Data

HOURLY

Registered Nurses median salary is $25.79 per hour.  The lowest 10% earn  $18.29 per hour and those in the upper 10% earn more than $37.10 per hour.

ANNUALLY

On an annual basis  the median Registered Nurse salary is $53,640.  The lowest 10% earn $38,050 per year while the upper 10% earn more than $77,170 per year.  These salaries are calculated as a mean or average. 

Lowest and Highest Registered Nurse Salary

The lowest paid Registered Nurses earn less than $37,000 annually while the highest paid Registered Nurses earn as much as $85,000 per year. 

Top 5 States

The best paying states for Registered Nurses to earn a salary are California $69,140, Maryland $65,750, Hawaii $64,320, Massachusetts $64,120, and New York $62,140

 top 5 Metropolitan Areas

The best city or metropolitan areas to earn a Registered Nurse salary are San Jose, CA $87,500, Oakland, CA $80,470, San Francisco, CA $78,240, Salinas, CA $74,100, and Modesto, CA $72,990.

Private Practice Vs Employment

A rapidly growing trend in the healthcare arena is the use of the travel nurse.  Travel Nurses agree to take short term employment contracts in return for additional incentives such as housing, travel allowances and bonuses.  They usually work directly for a nursing employment agency but a few of them actually negotiate their own employment contracts and are truly self-employed. 

Other self-employment opportunities exist for nurses as legal consultants, educators and a variety of health care related small businesses.

EMPLOYMENT DATA

There are 2,338,530 Registered Nurses working in the U.S. according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Approximately 1,341,840, or 57% of them, are listed as working in hospitals.

Where They Work

Of all the Registered Nurses employed in the United States over 50% of them work in hospitals. Approximately 204,000 work in doctor's offices or clinics.  There are 104,000 working in nursing homes and almost 100,000 working for employment agency or travel nurse positions.  An additional 114,000 are listed as working in home health.

Other Industries that employ Registered Nurses

The  U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics the federal government, securities brokerages, and Electronic or mail order businesses as also employing registered nurses.  

Benefits

Fringe benefits are going to be similar to those offered by small business's or single proprietor business's. A typical employment benefits package is worth over $20,000 per year.

Links to other health care salary occupations:

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