How much does a CRNA really make?

WntrMute2 · Sep 5, 2001

The hospital I just left in Miami Fl. (in order to go to NA school) just settled on a new contract that started new hires at 105,000/year. They will max out @ 145,000. I don't have all the details such as new grads vs experienced CRNAs. Some places are offering as low as 85,000 or so so the salaries are all over the map.

nilepoc · Sep 6, 2001

Some of the CRNA's in the hospital I work for are making as little as $60,000/year. It all depends on the location, and what type of position you take.

I saw one position listed on http://www.gaswork.com for a CRNA in Oregon, starting at $110,000/year with 8 weeks vacation, and 2 weeks payed educational leave, no call, and no OB.

That pretty much is my dream job. Now we will see if I can get into school.

Craig

crnainfo · Jul 15, 2007

Response to question "how much a CRNA really makes?"

I am a CRNA and the info I share is from direct knowledge, not hearsay.

Compensation (whether salaried or hourly) ranges from $80,000 to over $400,000. Before you get too excited, allow me to elaborate. The vast majority of jobs fall in the $100,000 to $130,000 range (base), and by the time you factor in some overtime (which is almost always required), you are somewhere between $115,000 and $150,000 (depending on how much you end up working.)

There are a few jobs paying as little as $80,000, but these are not common, and usually have other factors at play - not 40 hrs, maybe only days 7-3 (surgi-center), heavy supervision by an anesthesiologist, highly desired geographical areas (Florida, Colorado, etc.) On a regional basis, you may find that $80,000 is NOT abnormal. But on a national basis, $80,000 is NOT normal.

On the high side... I personally know a CRNA that is making over $450,000. This person works a lot, but the money is there. I will tell you that this is EXTREMELY ABNORMAL. As a matter of fact, I would be willing to bet that most CRNA's would state that this is a lie; but it is not. Should you count on getting a job making this kind of money? No. These are rare circumstances, very hard to find. But the key is... they are out there.

If you are planning on going to school and want to have a good idea of what to expect when you get out, then I would count on a number somewhere between $115,000 and $180,000 (beginning at the lower end and moving to the higher end with 2-3 years experience.)

One thing you do need to consider... the information that is available out there can be very misleading. There are so many options for CRNA's. W-2 income (where the employer pays half of you SSN/Medicare taxes) are lower; 1099 income (where you are responsible for paying all of your own taxes, and usually there are no benefits with these jobs) are higher numerical values, but by the time you factor in taxes and benefits, you are pretty much back to the same number as stated in the W-2 jobs. Some CRNA's do self-billing, where they bill for the cases that they do. Their income varies according to how many cases they do, as well as how well they get compensated for the cases they bill for (insured vs. medicare/medicaid).

Hope I have answered some of your questions.

deepz · Jul 16, 2007

crnainfo said:
......
Hope I have answered some of your questions.

Since this thread was six years old, I doubt the OP is still awaiting your answer.

?

naturalgas · Jul 16, 2007

Hi CRNAinfo,

Thanks for digging out this old thread. I found the information that you provided very interesting. Keep up the good work!

crqna · Jul 20, 2007

CRNAs make just enough to make Regular RNs jealous but not enough to really live on the high horse. comfortable but not luxurious

ceraleigh · Jul 20, 2007

jamesfarlo said:
CRNAs make just enough to make Regular RNs jealous but not enough to really live on the high horse. comfortable but not luxurious

You actually made me laugh. Really.

proclivity · Jul 23, 2007

enough....stop asking this question unless you really want to pursue anesthesia.........not because it is the highest paying job as a nurse but because you really want to pursue anesthesia.

Do it because you you love the p450 not because you want a GX470.

Proverbs 16:3 · Jul 24, 2007

Interesting, i thought CRNA's hung out in the 100 - 300k range. Of course i know it's more if a person work in a rural setting and i've aslo found out there are more and more CRNA groups now. Which i think is great so with that people tend to make more but i never thought of 450k.

Josh L.Ac. · Jul 24, 2007

proclivity said:
enough....stop asking this question unless you really want to pursue anesthesia.........not because it is the highest paying job as a nurse but because you really want to pursue anesthesia.
Do it because you you love the p450 not because you want a GX470.

I think factoring in future earning potential is a prerequisite for any serious, life-altering career move.

If only I felt this way a decade ago...

proclivity · Jul 24, 2007

Josh L.Ac. said:
I think factoring in future earning potential is a prerequisite for any serious, life-altering career move.
If only I felt this way a decade ago...

I understand where you are coming from, but we all know that they make on average 100k+...unless you get some shotty deal or you are a shotty CRNA. It is evident that this degree program is the most bang for your buck. We need to delete these threads.