🩺Registered Nurses
National Median Wage
$86,070
National Employment
3.2M
Best Value: Top Metros by Cost-Adjusted Wage
Wages adjusted for local cost of living. Higher = your salary goes further.
All Metro Areas
78 metro areas
| # | Metro Area | State | Median Wage | Cost-Adj. Wage▼ | Employment | Emp / 1K |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA | CA | $157,873 | $139,711 | 29,858 | 25.0 |
| 2 | San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | CA | $125,349 | $110,928 | 21,591 | 25.0 |
| 3 | Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | VA | $107,670 | $106,604 | 45,856 | 25.0 |
| 4 | Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | CA | $117,159 | $103,681 | 77,863 | 25.0 |
| 5 | New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | NY | $111,649 | $103,379 | 60,178 | 25.0 |
| 6 | Honolulu, HI | HI | $109,833 | $100,764 | 3,867 | 25.0 |
| 7 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | WA | $109,799 | $100,733 | 21,684 | 25.0 |
| 8 | Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | CT | $101,981 | $98,059 | 5,449 | 25.0 |
| 9 | Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown, TX | TX | $94,555 | $97,479 | 17,913 | 25.0 |
| 10 | Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | CO | $98,164 | $97,192 | 23,376 | 25.0 |
| 11 | Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN | TN | $90,134 | $96,918 | 13,179 | 25.0 |
| 12 | Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | MN | $94,402 | $96,329 | 25,958 | 25.0 |
| 13 | Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Alpharetta, GA | GA | $93,262 | $96,146 | 40,506 | 25.0 |
| 14 | Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | IL | $95,044 | $96,004 | 56,819 | 25.0 |
| 15 | Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH | MA | $103,194 | $95,550 | 26,165 | 25.0 |
| 16 | Wilmington, DE-MD-NJ | DE | $94,461 | $95,415 | 2,305 | 25.0 |
| 17 | Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | TX | $91,865 | $94,706 | 44,503 | 25.0 |
| 18 | Kansas City, MO-KS | MO | $86,526 | $94,050 | 12,276 | 25.0 |
| 19 | Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | PA | $91,840 | $93,714 | 38,495 | 25.0 |
| 20 | Milwaukee-Waukesha, WI | WI | $86,960 | $93,505 | 8,790 | 25.0 |
| 21 | Anchorage, AK | AK | $95,375 | $93,505 | 3,255 | 25.0 |
| 22 | Cleveland-Elyria, OH | OH | $85,753 | $93,210 | 9,936 | 25.0 |
| 23 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | OR | $97,203 | $92,574 | 11,502 | 25.0 |
| 24 | Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | TX | $89,641 | $92,413 | 47,357 | 25.0 |
| 25 | New Orleans-Metairie, LA | LA | $81,089 | $92,147 | 7,726 | 25.0 |
| 26 | Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN | KY | $82,428 | $91,587 | 11,716 | 25.0 |
| 27 | Raleigh-Cary, NC | NC | $85,507 | $90,965 | 7,536 | 25.0 |
| 28 | Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | IN | $83,509 | $90,771 | 14,652 | 25.0 |
| 29 | Des Moines-West Des Moines, IA | IA | $80,495 | $90,444 | 5,723 | 25.0 |
| 30 | Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA | NE | $81,046 | $90,051 | 7,821 | 25.0 |
| 31 | Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | MI | $84,590 | $89,989 | 24,230 | 25.0 |
| 32 | Columbus, OH | OH | $82,593 | $89,775 | 15,413 | 25.0 |
| 33 | Madison, WI | WI | $83,166 | $89,426 | 3,642 | 25.0 |
| 34 | Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | NC | $83,716 | $89,060 | 12,544 | 25.0 |
| 35 | Salt Lake City, UT | UT | $84,052 | $88,476 | 11,374 | 25.0 |
| 36 | St. Louis, MO-IL | MO | $81,377 | $88,453 | 19,681 | 25.0 |
| 37 | Birmingham-Hoover, AL | AL | $79,147 | $87,941 | 6,171 | 25.0 |
| 38 | Tulsa, OK | OK | $76,430 | $86,852 | 4,816 | 25.0 |
| 39 | Burlington-South Burlington, VT | VT | $84,183 | $86,787 | 1,415 | 25.0 |
| 40 | Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | OH | $79,650 | $86,576 | 12,183 | 25.0 |
| 41 | Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, CT | CT | $89,827 | $86,372 | 6,400 | 25.0 |
| 42 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL | FL | $88,410 | $85,835 | 40,039 | 25.0 |
| 43 | Grand Rapids-Kentwood, MI | MI | $80,453 | $85,588 | 6,828 | 25.0 |
| 44 | Pittsburgh, PA | PA | $83,395 | $85,097 | 14,891 | 25.0 |
| 45 | Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | RI | $85,824 | $84,974 | 11,715 | 25.0 |
| 46 | Memphis, TN-MS-AR | TN | $79,022 | $84,970 | 7,456 | 25.0 |
| 47 | Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ | AZ | $85,222 | $84,378 | 23,284 | 25.0 |
| 48 | Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | MD | $87,440 | $84,077 | 17,490 | 25.0 |
| 49 | Baton Rouge, LA | LA | $73,840 | $83,909 | 4,649 | 25.0 |
| 50 | Boise City, ID | ID | $76,186 | $83,721 | 3,884 | 25.0 |
| 51 | Richmond, VA | VA | $83,622 | $82,794 | 7,648 | 25.0 |
| 52 | Oklahoma City, OK | OK | $72,851 | $82,785 | 10,049 | 25.0 |
| 53 | Portland-South Portland, ME | ME | $80,086 | $82,563 | 1,893 | 25.0 |
| 54 | Manchester-Nashua, NH | NH | $86,520 | $82,400 | 3,630 | 25.0 |
| 55 | Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway, AR | AR | $71,671 | $82,380 | 5,016 | 25.0 |
| 56 | Charleston-North Charleston, SC | SC | $75,932 | $81,647 | 5,769 | 25.0 |
| 57 | Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise, NV | NV | $78,947 | $81,389 | 10,643 | 25.0 |
| 58 | Fargo, ND-MN | ND | $72,280 | $81,213 | 2,087 | 25.0 |
| 59 | Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC | VA | $81,979 | $81,167 | 10,596 | 25.0 |
| 60 | Albuquerque, NM | NM | $72,904 | $81,004 | 7,337 | 25.0 |
| 61 | Wichita, KS | KS | $72,036 | $80,040 | 3,805 | 25.0 |
| 62 | Sioux Falls, SD | SD | $69,768 | $79,282 | 2,697 | 25.0 |
| 63 | San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | TX | $76,565 | $78,933 | 14,360 | 25.0 |
| 64 | Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA | CA | $88,948 | $78,715 | 11,448 | 25.0 |
| 65 | Columbia, SC | SC | $73,200 | $78,710 | 5,274 | 25.0 |
| 66 | Cheyenne, WY | WY | $70,497 | $77,469 | 671 | 25.0 |
| 67 | Rochester, NY | NY | $82,550 | $76,435 | 6,883 | 25.0 |
| 68 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | FL | $78,517 | $76,230 | 17,251 | 25.0 |
| 69 | Knoxville, TN | TN | $70,566 | $75,877 | 5,765 | 25.0 |
| 70 | Buffalo-Cheektowaga, NY | NY | $81,484 | $75,448 | 5,807 | 25.0 |
| 71 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | CA | $85,031 | $75,249 | 27,950 | 25.0 |
| 72 | Jackson, MS | MS | $65,234 | $74,982 | 3,097 | 25.0 |
| 73 | Billings, MT | MT | $67,447 | $74,941 | 1,262 | 25.0 |
| 74 | Tucson, AZ | AZ | $74,714 | $73,974 | 6,048 | 25.0 |
| 75 | Charleston, WV | WV | $66,384 | $73,760 | 1,833 | 25.0 |
| 76 | Jacksonville, FL | FL | $75,330 | $73,136 | 11,474 | 25.0 |
| 77 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | FL | $73,884 | $71,732 | 12,729 | 25.0 |
| 78 | El Paso, TX | TX | $68,066 | $70,171 | 4,278 | 25.0 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the median salary for Registered Nurses?
The national median annual wage for registered nurses is $86,070, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) data.
Where do registered nurses earn the most after adjusting for cost of living?
After adjusting for local cost of living, the top-paying metro areas for registered nurses are San Francisco-Oakland-Berkeley, CA ($139,711), San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA ($110,928), Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV ($106,604).
How many metro areas have data for registered nurses?
We have wage and employment data for registered nurses across 78 metro areas in the United States.
Data Sources
📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, LAUS (Dec 2025)📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024📎FBI Uniform Crime Reporting, 2024📎America's Health Rankings, 2025📎WalletHub/NAEP, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024📎Cook Political Report, PVI 2024📎Tax Foundation, Facts & Figures 2025📎ALEC Rich States Poor States, 2025📎WalletHub Tax Burden Study, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau / FHFA, 2025📎BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023📎EPA AirData, Median AQI by County 2024📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎FEMA National Risk Index v1.20, 2025📎U.S. Census Bureau, Net Domestic Migration 2024📎FCC / BroadbandNow, Broadband Access 2025📎National Park Service API, 2024📎USGS Protected Areas Database (PAD-US), 2024📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2023 (Commuting)📎FHWA Highway Statistics, 2023📎U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns 2022📎EIA State Electricity Profiles, 2024📎EIA Natural Gas Prices, 2024📎DOL National Database of Childcare Prices, 2023📎BEA Regional Price Parities (Food), 2023📎NCES Common Core of Data (CCD), 2023-24📎EDFacts ACGR Graduation Rates, 2021-22📎NCES School District Finance Survey (F-33), 2022-23📎BEA GDP by State (SAGDP9), 2023📎NASBO Fiscal Survey of States, FY2023📎Census Bureau State Government Finances, FY2022📎Pew Charitable Trusts Fiscal 50, FY2023📎Pew Charitable Trusts, FY2022📎S&P/Moody's via Ballotpedia, 2025📎Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES (May 2023)📎IRS Statistics of Income, Migration Data 2021-2022