Real salary data
What Nurses actually earn in 2026.
The median for Nurse is $78,043 across 2427 real salary records (H-1B visa filings and tech job postings), updated Aug 10, 2026.
01 / By source
Real salary bands, by source.
Bands come from 2427 real records. Each source has a different bias, disclosed below.
Density curve fitted to the observed quartiles (log-normal). $70,000–$87,360 contains the middle 50% of records in the best-represented source; the shape between them is an approximation.
| Source | Records | 25th pct | Median | 75th pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| H-1B visa filings | 2,427 | $70,000 | $78,043 | $87,360 |
| Job postings | 12 | $89,512 | $113,589 | $133,632 |
- H-1B visa filings (DOL) — over-represents visa-eligible roles (typically high-skill, high-wage)
- Job postings that disclose salary in the ad text
Salary data updated Aug 10, 2026. Bands are percentiles, not averages; n is the number of underlying records.
02 / By city
What Nurses earn, by city.
Real records; cities with at least 10 observations.
| City | Records | Range (p25–p75) | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester, NY | 132 | $84,521 – $92,851 | $88,660 |
| Dubois, PA | 97 | $64,147 – $70,366 | $66,102 |
| Oak Park, IL | 90 | $78,624 – $83,200 | $83,200 |
| Knoxville, TN | 89 | $66,560 – $69,826 | $69,826 |
| Chicago, IL | 80 | $76,877 – $85,018 | $76,877 |
| Baltimore, MD | 59 | $86,445 – $93,808 | $93,808 |
| Atlanta, GA | 55 | $75,192 – $93,766 | $82,888 |
| New Orleans, LA | 54 | $62,400 – $67,392 | $67,392 |
| Bangor, ME | 51 | $83,075 – $83,075 | $83,075 |
| Davenport, IA | 51 | $67,122 – $70,262 | $69,389 |
| Columbus, OH | 48 | $71,926 – $77,875 | $71,926 |
| Billings, MT | 47 | $73,674 – $73,674 | $73,674 |
03 / By state
What Nurses earn, by state.
| State | Records | Range (p25–p75) | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| NY | 303 | $83,595 – $95,347 | $87,360 |
| IL | 188 | $76,877 – $83,200 | $79,040 |
| PA | 172 | $65,166 – $80,704 | $69,389 |
| GA | 116 | $75,192 – $82,888 | $78,043 |
| TN | 105 | $66,560 – $69,826 | $69,826 |
| MD | 92 | $84,152 – $93,808 | $90,834 |
| NE | 90 | $70,720 – $79,040 | $74,880 |
| LA | 88 | $62,400 – $68,432 | $67,392 |
| OH | 86 | $71,926 – $80,538 | $71,926 |
| NJ | 83 | $89,440 – $94,952 | $89,440 |
| VA | 79 | $72,738 – $79,872 | $72,738 |
| NC | 70 | $74,506 – $84,926 | $79,040 |
04 / Context
How Nurses pay compares with similar roles.
| Profession | Risk | Median | Outlook |
|---|---|---|---|
| Occupational Health and Safety Specialist | Medium | $76,523 | +12.5% (2024–34) |
| Teacher | Low | $59,354 | -2.0% (2024–34) |
| Therapist | Low | $81,536 | +10.9% (2024–34) |
05 / Next step
How to move up the pay band.
The skills below appear most often in higher-paid roles:
- udemyCertified Flight Registered Nurse (CFRN)Intermediate
- udemyCertified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA)Intermediate
- udemyNCLEX-RN (Registered Nurse): 5 Practice Exams [Unofficial]Intermediate
- udemyCertified Addictions Registered Nurse (CARN)Intermediate
- udemyPractice Exams for PNP-AC (Pediatric Acute Care NP)Intermediate
- udemyCertified Ostomy Care Nurse (COCN)Intermediate
- udemyPractice Exams for Medical College Admission Test (MCAT)Intermediate
- udemyMCAT Medical College Admission Test Practice Exams 2026Intermediate
06 / FAQ
Salary questions, answered.
01Why are the bands different from the BLS median?
The BLS median covers all Nurse in the US. These bands come from real records with known biases — H-1B filings skew to visa-eligible (high-skill) roles and tech postings skew to tech employers — so they sit above the national median. We disclose the source of every band.
02How often is this data updated?
The dataset refreshes weekly from live job postings and quarterly from new H-1B disclosures.