Registered Nurse Salary in 2026: How Much RNs Earn
Registered Nurse Salary in 2026: How Much RNs Earn
Nursing is one of the largest and best-paid careers in American healthcare. Registered nurses (RNs) held about 3.4 million jobs in 2024, and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), they earn a median wage close to double the national average for all jobs.
This guide breaks down what RNs actually earn in 2026 — the national median, how pay shifts with work setting and experience, and how location changes the number. All figures come from the most recent BLS data (the May 2024 release).
What the typical registered nurse earns
The median annual wage for registered nurses was $93,600 in May 2024. Median means half of all RNs earned more than that figure and half earned less. For comparison, the median wage across all U.S. occupations was $49,500.
The full range is wide:
- The lowest-paid 10% of RNs earned less than $66,030.
- The highest-paid 10% earned more than $135,320.
That spread — roughly $66,000 to $135,000 — is the most important thing to understand about nurse pay. "RN salary" is not a single number; it depends heavily on where a nurse works, how long they have been working, and what they specialize in.
RN pay by work setting
Where a nurse works is one of the biggest factors in pay. BLS reports these median wages by employer type:
| Work setting | Median RN pay (2024) |
|---|---|
| Government (non-hospital) | $106,480 |
| Hospitals (state, local & private) | $97,260 |
| Ambulatory healthcare services | $83,780 |
| Nursing & residential care facilities | $81,820 |
| Educational services | $74,360 |
Hospitals employ the majority of RNs — about 59% — and pay close to the national median. The highest-paying setting is government work outside hospitals; the lowest among major settings is education, which includes school nurses. The gap between the top and bottom setting is more than $30,000 a year for the same core credential.
Experience and specialty move the number
The other major factor is experience. New-graduate nurses typically start near the lower end of the range, while nurses with years of experience — especially in high-acuity specialties such as critical care, operating-room, or emergency nursing — earn toward the top.
Nurses who move into advanced-practice roles earn substantially more. Nurse practitioners, nurse anesthetists, and nurse midwives — roles that require a master's degree — had a median wage of about $132,050 in 2024. That is a separate career step, but it shows the earnings ceiling the profession can reach.
Where registered nurses earn the most
RN wages vary widely from state to state, and even between metro areas within the same state. Two forces drive that: local cost of living and local demand for nurses. A median wage in a high-cost coastal metro can sit tens of thousands of dollars above the same role in a lower-cost rural area.
Because those figures are updated every year and differ for all 50 states, the most reliable source for a location-specific number is the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, which publishes median RN wages for every state and metropolitan area. Anyone weighing a nursing job offer should check the figure for their specific state and city rather than relying on the national median.
The job outlook for nurses
Pay is only half the picture; job security is the other. BLS projects employment of registered nurses to grow 5% from 2024 to 2034, faster than the average for all occupations, with about 189,100 openings every year over the decade. An aging population and a wave of retirements among current nurses drive that demand. For a profession this large and this well paid, that is an unusually steady outlook.
How nurses qualify
Registered nurses reach the role through one of three education paths: a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN), or a hospital-based diploma program. All three lead to the same licensing exam, the NCLEX-RN, and every RN must hold a license in the state where they work. Many hospitals now prefer or require a BSN, and nurses who start with an ADN often complete a BSN later through an RN-to-BSN program.
A note on your nursing diploma
A nursing diploma is a credential many nurses want to display once they have earned it. If your original has been lost or damaged, your nursing school can issue an official replacement for any formal purpose. For a framed copy to hang at home or in an office, DiplomaCraft also offers replica nursing school diplomas for display and novelty use.
Sources
- Wage, employment, and outlook data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Registered Nurses, reflecting the May 2024 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release (updated August 2025).
- State and metro wage data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS).
All wage figures are medians and reflect the most recent BLS data available as of 2026. Actual pay varies by employer, location, experience, and specialty.