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Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics

Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2019

29-1141 Registered Nurses

Assess patient health problems and needs, develop and implement nursing care plans, and maintain medical records. Administer nursing care to ill, injured, convalescent, or disabled patients. May advise patients on health maintenance and disease prevention or provide case management. Licensing or registration required. Includes Clinical Nurse Specialists. Excludes “Nurse Anesthetists” (29-1151), “Nurse Midwives” (29-1161), and “Nurse Practitioners” (29-1171).


National estimates for this occupation
Industry profile for this occupation
Geographic profile for this occupation

National estimates for this occupation:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for this occupation:

Employment (1) Employment
RSE (3)
Mean hourly
wage
Mean annual
wage (2)
Wage RSE (3)
2,982,280 0.5 % $37.24 $77,460 0.2 %

Percentile wage estimates for this occupation:

Percentile 10% 25% 50%
(Median)
75% 90%
Hourly Wage $25.04 $28.90 $35.24 $43.64 $53.47
Annual Wage (2) $52,080 $60,110 $73,300 $90,760 $111,220


Industry profile for this occupation:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 1,713,120 30.69 $38.20 $79,460
Offices of Physicians 197,890 7.47 $33.45 $69,570
Home Health Care Services 177,790 11.86 $35.41 $73,660
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 151,300 9.43 $33.53 $69,740
Outpatient Care Centers 147,550 15.47 $40.73 $84,720

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
General Medical and Surgical Hospitals 1,713,120 30.69 $38.20 $79,460
Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals 62,670 23.63 $38.86 $80,840
Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals 40,390 16.35 $35.87 $74,610
Outpatient Care Centers 147,550 15.47 $40.73 $84,720
Home Health Care Services 177,790 11.86 $35.41 $73,660

Top paying industries for this occupation:

Industry Employment (1) Percent of industry employment Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Business Support Services 650 0.07 $44.33 $92,200
Federal Executive Branch (OES Designation) 83,210 4.14 $43.43 $90,340
Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing 260 0.09 $41.54 $86,400
Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing 120 0.02 $41.07 $85,430
Traveler Accommodation 50 (7) $40.92 $85,120


Geographic profile for this occupation:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for this occupation are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in this occupation, see the Create Customized Tables function.



Employment of registered Nurses, by state, May 2019


States with the highest employment level in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 302,770 17.42 0.86 $54.44 $113,240
Texas 218,090 17.54 0.86 $35.84 $74,540
Florida 181,670 20.66 1.02 $32.50 $67,610
New York 178,320 18.73 0.92 $42.23 $87,840
Pennsylvania 148,040 25.08 1.24 $34.33 $71,410


Location Quotient of Registered Nurses, by state, May 2019


States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
South Dakota 12,950 30.47 1.50 $28.63 $59,540
West Virginia 19,830 28.24 1.39 $30.39 $63,220
Mississippi 29,550 26.19 1.29 $28.73 $59,750
Rhode Island 12,630 26.12 1.29 $39.57 $82,310
Delaware 11,730 25.96 1.28 $35.63 $74,100


Annual mean wage of Registered Nurses, by state, May 2019


Top paying States for this occupation:

State Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
California 302,770 17.42 0.86 $54.44 $113,240
Hawaii 11,330 17.83 0.88 $50.03 $104,060
District of Columbia 10,890 15.05 0.74 $45.59 $94,820
Massachusetts 81,020 22.38 1.10 $44.79 $93,160
Oregon 36,660 19.23 0.95 $44.69 $92,960



Employment of registered nurses, by area, May 2019


Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA 174,210 18.04 0.89 $44.85 $93,280
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA 111,780 17.91 0.88 $51.05 $106,190
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI 97,030 20.75 1.02 $37.22 $77,430
Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD 71,120 24.73 1.22 $37.33 $77,640
Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX 60,620 16.58 0.82 $36.89 $76,740
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH 58,690 20.98 1.03 $46.40 $96,510
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX 54,780 17.95 0.88 $39.11 $81,350
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL 54,020 20.44 1.01 $33.61 $69,920
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV 43,450 13.67 0.67 $40.08 $83,370
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI 41,640 21.12 1.04 $40.58 $84,400


Annual mean wage of registered nurses, by area, May 2019


Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Bloomsburg-Berwick, PA 2,620 64.98 3.20 $33.03 $68,690
Morgantown, WV 3,210 49.16 2.42 $31.63 $65,800
Greenville, NC 3,550 45.60 2.25 $32.06 $66,680
Ann Arbor, MI 9,340 41.68 2.05 $38.14 $79,340
Sioux Falls, SD 6,310 40.23 1.98 $28.92 $60,140
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC 12,470 39.67 1.95 $32.95 $68,540
Gainesville, FL 5,590 39.46 1.94 $34.11 $70,940
Iowa City, IA 3,600 39.23 1.93 $33.14 $68,920
La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN 2,990 39.12 1.93 $35.03 $72,870
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH 4,850 37.38 1.84 $30.89 $64,240


Location Quotient of registered nurses, by area, May 2019


Top paying metropolitan areas for this occupation:

Metropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 16,650 14.60 0.72 $67.67 $140,740
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA 38,580 15.60 0.77 $66.35 $138,000
Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 1,410 14.27 0.70 $64.42 $134,000
Salinas, CA 2,740 15.00 0.74 $64.22 $133,580
Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 3,720 26.21 1.29 $63.45 $131,970
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA 19,860 19.59 0.96 $60.85 $126,560
Yuba City, CA 920 20.43 1.01 $57.34 $119,260
Modesto, CA 4,880 26.18 1.29 $54.22 $112,790
Stockton-Lodi, CA 4,470 17.69 0.87 $52.99 $110,220
Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA 3,180 16.60 0.82 $52.38 $108,940

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Kansas nonmetropolitan area 8,160 20.71 1.02 $27.78 $57,790
Piedmont North Carolina nonmetropolitan area 5,770 22.20 1.09 $30.29 $63,010
Northeast Mississippi nonmetropolitan area 5,320 22.66 1.12 $26.95 $56,060
North Northeastern Ohio non-metropolitan area (non-contiguous) 4,960 14.83 0.73 $30.12 $62,650
Southern Ohio non-metropolitan area 4,570 28.81 1.42 $30.48 $63,400

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Upper Savannah South Carolina nonmetropolitan area 2,980 36.18 1.78 $31.09 $64,660
West Central-Southwest New Hampshire nonmetropolitan area 3,110 30.33 1.49 $35.89 $74,650
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area 3,050 30.22 1.49 $28.95 $60,220
Southern Ohio non-metropolitan area 4,570 28.81 1.42 $30.48 $63,400
Northwest Nebraska nonmetropolitan area 1,100 27.68 1.36 $30.85 $64,160

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for this occupation:

Nonmetropolitan area Employment (1) Employment per thousand jobs Location quotient (9) Hourly mean wage Annual mean wage (2)
Eastern Sierra-Mother Lode Region of California nonmetropolitan area 890 14.99 0.74 $50.98 $106,030
Alaska nonmetropolitan area 1,240 11.47 0.57 $47.64 $99,090
North Valley-Northern Mountains Region of California nonmetropolitan area 1,330 13.22 0.65 $47.10 $97,970
Hawaii / Kauai nonmetropolitan area (8) (8) (8) $45.61 $94,870
North Coast Region of California nonmetropolitan area 1,940 18.04 0.89 $44.26 $92,060


About May 2019 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate--50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.


(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(7) The value is less than .005 percent of industry employment.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.


Other OES estimates and related information:

 

Last Modified Date: July 6, 2020