The highest-paying states for registered nurses (ranked by average annual salary) are listed in Table 1. The entry level salary (as measured by the salary of the lowest 10% paid earners) and the number of employment of registered nurses in those states are also shown in the table. As shown in the table, with an annual salary of $132,660, California is the highest paying state for registered nurses. It is followed by Hawaii (average annual salary $120,100). The salary and employment information is computed from data published by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in April 2023 [1]. For more salary information of registered nurses in a specific state, use the links in the table.
| Rank | State | Average Salary i | Entry Level Salary i |
# of Empl. i |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $132,660 |
$84,700 | 325,620 |
| 2 | Hawaii | $120,100 |
$76,640 | 11,800 |
| 3 | Oregon | $106,680 |
$81,470 | 37,400 |
| 4 | Alaska | $102,260 |
$80,950 | 6,730 |
| 5 | Washington | $101,230 |
$77,460 | 64,920 |
| 6 | New York | $100,370 |
$64,840 | 190,470 |
| 7 | District of Columbia | $98,970 |
$66,260 | 11,820 |
| 8 | Massachusetts | $98,520 |
$67,480 | 94,100 |
| 9 | New Jersey | $98,090 |
$76,650 | 78,340 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $95,210 |
$71,050 | 34,290 |
| 11 | Nevada | $94,930 |
$74,200 | 23,970 |
| 12 | Rhode Island | $85,960 |
$65,260 | 11,190 |
| 13 | Minnesota | $84,060 |
$65,500 | 63,800 |
| 14 | Maryland | $83,850 |
$64,680 | 49,790 |
| 15 | Colorado | $82,430 |
$66,130 | 52,390 |
| 16 | Arizona | $82,330 |
$66,040 | 56,040 |
| 17 | Delaware | $82,230 |
$64,100 | 11,490 |
| 18 | New Mexico | $81,990 |
$64,510 | 15,910 |
| 19 | New Hampshire | $80,550 |
$62,790 | 13,510 |
| 20 | Texas | $79,830 |
$61,950 | 231,060 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | $79,750 |
$65,110 | 61,100 |
| 22 | Virginia | $79,700 |
$61,970 | 69,510 |
| 23 | Georgia | $79,440 |
$60,400 | 82,970 |
| 24 | Michigan | $79,180 |
$64,270 | 101,470 |
| 25 | Illinois | $78,980 |
$62,180 | 129,390 |
| 26 | Pennsylvania | $78,740 |
$61,450 | 137,970 |
| 27 | Idaho | $77,940 |
$61,530 | 13,680 |
| 28 | Wyoming | $77,730 |
$60,910 | 5,070 |
| 29 | Florida | $77,710 |
$61,190 | 197,630 |
| 30 | Maine | $77,340 |
$61,170 | 14,610 |
| 31 | Utah | $77,240 |
$61,850 | 22,830 |
| 32 | Vermont | $77,230 |
$60,900 | 6,930 |
| 33 | Ohio | $76,810 |
$61,860 | 130,370 |
| 34 | Montana | $76,550 |
$62,930 | 10,020 |
| 35 | North Carolina | $76,430 |
$59,580 | 104,300 |
| 36 | Kentucky | $75,800 |
$56,120 | 44,970 |
| 37 | South Carolina | $75,610 |
$52,620 | 44,030 |
| 38 | Nebraska | $74,990 |
$58,900 | 19,870 |
| 39 | Oklahoma | $74,520 |
$53,560 | 30,320 |
| 40 | West Virginia | $74,160 |
$47,640 | 21,110 |
| 41 | Indiana | $73,290 |
$55,200 | 67,350 |
| 42 | Louisiana | $73,180 |
$57,500 | 43,790 |
| 43 | Missouri | $71,460 |
$51,440 | 70,440 |
| 44 | North Dakota | $69,640 |
$60,780 | 11,300 |
| 45 | Kansas | $66,460 |
$52,010 | 30,520 |
| 46 | Tennessee | $65,800 |
$51,270 | 60,840 |
| 47 | Iowa | $65,000 |
$56,330 | 34,050 |
| 48 | Virgin Islands | $64,970 |
$48,960 | 340 |
| 49 | Arkansas | $64,130 |
$37,630 | 28,490 |
| 50 | Mississippi | $63,330 |
$49,980 | 29,370 |
| 51 | Alabama | $63,090 |
$48,820 | 49,370 |
| 52 | South Dakota | $62,920 |
$51,240 | 14,360 |
| 53 | Guam | $58,980 |
$39,290 | 660 |
| 54 | Puerto Rico | $35,280 |
$28,640 | 21,270 |