Making 100k salary/ income as a nurse?

Nurses Career Support Nursing Q/A

I am interested in what specialties are making 100k. I have 3 daughters in nursing school and can advise them on a lot, but not necessarily give them a big pic of the financial opportunities from across the nation. I am a 25 year RN and have a 65k salary, but double it most years with ot. not much fun working 68-72 hour weeks though. please tell me your specialty, experience , salary, and salary with diff and ot. oh, and where you r in the USA thank you all and hope your practice is professionally and financially rewarding

Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.

I just went on Zillow to see what you can get in NYC for $1,500/month, and I was actually kind of surprised. If I wasn't married with kids, it would actually be kind of tempting to move out there.

1 hour ago, Horseshoe said:

Well, again we have to consider what people consider "living comfortably." If the median price of a 1 bedroom apartment in NYC is $2900, living in a studio or 1K apartment might not be considered "comfortable" for everyone. Then again, someone enamored of the NYC lifestyle who views an apartment as just a place to sleep would possibly be perfectly content with that (see articles about people paying $1200/month in very desirable parts of San Fran to have basically only a bunk bed) . It's all in what you are used to, what needs (and/or desires) you have, what compromises you are willing to make, if you have children or plan to have children someday, etc. Also, does your salary enable you to pay taxes, pay down student debt, save for retirement, save for an emergency fund, ;ay for all the extras in life that add up really fast, etc.? Everyone should consider these things when accepting a job, especially if you are going to have to move there in order to work that job.

2900 for a 1 bedroom apartment! that’s just ridiculous. lol let’s be clear though when i say nyc, i’m not just referring to manhattan or other expensive parts of brooklyn. so maybe 2900 for 1 bedroom is the price you’d find in manhattan, or unless you’re talking about a really luxurious 1 bedroom apartment, but you can easily find a lot of studio-1br apartment below this within the other remaining boroughs. i lived in queens my whole life, i moved to long island mid 2019, and even then, 2900 would be considered really high. i did mention for someone who is single. if you’re single you don’t need more than 1 bedroom to live comfortably. also you have to really take into account the outliers when considering these statistics. there are a lot of luxury apartments, especially in nyc, that can easily tilt the average towards the higher end. ppl just do the research yourself. look on zillow, trulia, etc.. yourself and you’ll see what i’m talking about.

20 minutes ago, klone said:

I just went on Zillow to see what you can get in NYC for $1,500/month, and I was actually kind of surprised. If I wasn't married with kids, it would actually be kind of tempting to move out there.

exactly. i’m not married or have kids, so are my friends , and we lived in nyc our whole lives. a nursing salary won’t make you rich. but it can give you a pretty comfortable lifestyle. heck, i know a married couple who are both rn’s who live in nassau county. close to the city and right next to queens (one of the five boroughs of nyc). these two live pretty comfortably. they just renovated their home. they own 2-3 cars, not sure now. and they’re able to afford paying for their kids’ college tuition.

Just a FYI. My daughter lives in Brooklyn and rents the whole basement of a house for $900/month.

39 minutes ago, jobellestarr said:

Just a FYI. My daughter lives in Brooklyn and rents the whole basement of a house for $900/month.

we kept our apartment in ridgewood, queens, which is considered a pretty expensive area and we pay 1600/month. it’s a 3 bedroom apartment, it’s low because we moved in a while ago. the ppl next door who moved in way after us pay between 2-2.5k/month for their 3 bedroom apartment. sometimes these statistics are deceiving, if not carefully analyzed or without any actual experience.

On 1/24/2020 at 8:05 PM, Gmilitar said:

we kept our apartment in ridgewood, queens, which is considered a pretty expensive area and we pay 1600/month. it’s a 3 bedroom apartment, it’s low because we moved in a while ago. the ppl next door who moved in way after us pay between 2-2.5k/month for their 3 bedroom apartment. sometimes these statistics are deceiving, if not carefully analyzed or without any actual experience.

Yes, she’s lived there for about 7 years. 

Travel nursing. I know a few that make that much.

Specializes in NICU.

I've been working in the NICU for 10 years in TX. I work mostly weekends, night shift, and pick up on average 1 shift per month. I also participate in my hospitals career advancement program which earns me an extra $1.5/hr for each level I complete up to 5 levels. Another way to earn great money is to refer nurses to your hospital. When they get hired it really can add up. The downside is bonuses are taxed pretty heavily. I've earned 6 fingers for 5 straight years now. 

Specializes in NICU.
Nursewilliams86 said:

 I've earned 6 fingers for 5 straight years now. 

WOW 6 fingers. Is that on one hand or both hands? LOL

Specializes in NICU.

Ha! Good catch on my typo. I might just have 6 fingers! 

Specializes in Hospice.

You'll make that easily if you live in California. And I don't kill my self working. I'm Monday through Friday 8-4:30. No weekends. No oncall. Working Hospice. 

Specializes in Oncology.

I am often confused by people who say making 100k as a nurse is near impossible. I make 94k a year as a new RN with less than one year hospital experience and 2 years LPN subacute experience, and easily hit over 100k with overtime. I live in NJ. 

+ Add a Comment