Highest Paying States For Registered Nurses

klone, MSN, RN · May 3, 2017

Interesting! Oregon is the 3rd highest paying state, and their cost of living is fairly inexpensive compared to CA and HI. There's a strong union presence here, which I'm sure is part of why it ranks so high.

nursephillip · May 3, 2017

Yeah Oregon was very surprising although I hear their cost of living is going way up, especially rent.

Meriwhen, ASN, BSN, MSN, RN · May 10, 2017

Article that lists the highest paying states for registered nurses by state. Only thing missing is Cost of Living for each state.
RN Salaries By State - 216 Data | Nurse.org

And that kind of skews how that list can be perceived. I may make mad money working in CA, but it takes mad money to live here because the cost of living is so high.

I've seen lots of coworkers and other nurses work more than one job to make ends meet. Granted, I don't know exactly what type of lifestyles they are living and whether they are living above their means.

I make it work because savings comes first, then spending. And because I chose to live a bit inland where the housing prices are lower than right in the city or on the coast. After the bills and savings is taken care of, there's not a lot of extra fun money. But I've learned to adjust the fun level to accommodate that.

SouthpawRN · May 10, 2017

NV is number 6 but I have the NV State Board of Nursing magazine here that states the number of active licenses/ Certifications in NV is not 20K as listed but much higher as of Feb 10, 2017

RN 35,150

LPN, 3670

CNA, 8612

APRN 1585.

Thus, I am not sure how much trust can be placed in teh Nurse.org report.

Orca, ADN, ASN, RN · May 10, 2017

Another thing that Nevada has going for it: No state income tax. I was contacted by an employer in Oregon who wanted me to pursue a job in Astoria. I did the math, and after paying Oregon state income tax (which is higher than a lot of people believe), even with a higher salary it was essentially a break-even proposition, not worth relocating for. Another headhunter contacted me about a position in Orange County, CA at a salary about 50 percent above my current wage. Again, add in state income tax and housing costs about three times what I am paying, not so attractive.

RN>20yr · May 11, 2017

California pays so well because of the strong union presence in our state.

Thank You California Nurses Association and others.

Some of those wages are shameful!

**NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN** · May 13, 2017

I don't know....I've looked at other states compared to California and they don't seem much cheaper for me to take a 60% pay cut... my mortgage is only 290 and it's nice house in a good area with good schools. I feel like the homes need to be running 150k to justify such a move but they aren't. Not sure how nurses are surviving in many other states. Colorado, Arizona, etc. I feel like everyone equates California with Bay Area or LA housing. But many areas aren't that expensive and still pay significantly more than other states. I will say our property taxes do suck, but otherwise I'm not convinced.

nursephillip · May 18, 2017

Looks like they've updated the article to include cost of living. I'll post it in a new thread?