The Average Starting Salary for a Registered Nurse
Registered nurses (RNs) are licensed health care professionals who provide patient care in hospitals, schools, doctors' offices and other health care facilities. Along with physicians, registered nurses evaluate patients and devise treatment plans for ailments. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were 2,542,760 registered nurses working in the United States, as of May 2008. Earnings are impacted by factors like work experience, geographic location and industry.
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Starting Salary for a Registered Nurse
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According to an April 2010 salary survey conducted by Payscale.com, the median annual salary for registered nurses with less than one year of work experience was between $38,493 and $53,545. According to a separate report, the median expected hourly wage range for starting registered nurses was $19.58 to $25.08.
Wage Increases
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While starting wages are modest, the earnings of registered nurses increase with experience. According to the Payscale.com report, the median salary range for registered nurses with between one and four years of experience increases to $40,591 to $59,064. Registered nurses with between five and nine years of experience earn between $46,743 and $64,905. Those with 10 to 19 years of experience have a median salary range of $49,426 to $69,844. Registered nurses who have been on the job more than 20 years earn between $50,364 and $72,028.
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Average Salaries for Registered Nurses
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The national average salary for the occupation was $65,130, as of May 2008, according to the BLS. That works out to an average hourly wage of $31.31. The middle 50 percent of the occupation earned between $51,640 and $76,570, and the highest-earning 10 percent made upward of $92,240 annually. The lowest-paid 10 percent made less than $43,410 a year.
Industry
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Among the factors that can impact the starting salary of a registered nurse is industry. The BLS computed the average annual salaries of registered nurses in the five U.S. industries with the highest levels of employment for the occupation and found that the highest-paid registered nurses work in employment services. Those in general surgical and medical hospitals are the second-best compensated, followed by registered nurses who work in the offices of physicians. On the lower end of the earnings scale are registered nurses working in nursing care facilities and the home health care industry.
Geographic Location
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Geographic location can also impact the earnings of a registered nurse. The registered nurses who earn the highest salaries tend to live in metropolitan areas. The cost of living in urban areas is relatively higher than rural areas, which inflates salaries in cities. The highest-paid registered nurses in the United States live in the states of California, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Maryland and New York.
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