Registered nurses

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2019 Workforce

3.36M

Average Age

43.5

Estimated Job Growth

7.17%

10-year projection

Average Salary

$67,119

Average Male Salary

$78,472

Average Female Salary

$65,574

About

Registered nurses are most often employed by the General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals industry. The average yearly wage for Registered nurses was $67,119 in 2016. The top 3 most similar occupations to Registered nurses by wage are Firstline supervisors of mechanics, installers, & repairers, Geological & petroleum technicians, & nuclear technicians, and Crane & tower operators.

Registered nurses are part of the Healthcare practitioners & technical occupations, along with Chiropractors, Dentists, Dietitians & nutritionists, Optometrists, Pharmacists, and 37 more.

The top 3 locations that employ the most Registered nurses are Washington & Ozaukee Counties PUMA, WI, Niles & Evanston Townships PUMA, IL, and Middletown Town, Bear & Glasgow PUMA, DE. The top 3 locations with a relatively high concentration of Registered nurses are Saline County PUMA, AR, Fulton & Montgomery Counties PUMA, NY, and Albuquerque City (Northwest Mesa), Paradise Hills & Navajo Nation-Tohajiilee Chapter PUMA, NM.

Management, business, science, & arts occupations Healthcare practitioners & technical occupations

Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Registered nurses and on wages and locations for those in the field. General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals is the industry that employs the most Registered nurses, both by share and by number, though the highest paid industry for Registered nurses, by average wage, is Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing. Registered nurses are paid most in Sunnyvale & San Jose (North) Cities PUMA, CA but are relatively concentrated in Saline County PUMA, AR.

Wages

Yearly Wage

$67,119

AVERAGE SALARY

± $552

In 2019, Registered nurses earned an average of $67,119, $11,595 more than than the average national salary of $55,524.

Geological & petroleum technicians, & nuclear technicians make somewhat more than Registered nurses while Firstline supervisors of mechanics, installers, & repairers make somewhat less. This chart shows the various occupations closest to Registered nurses as measured by average annual salary in the US.

In 2015, Registered nurses had a wage GINI coefficient of 0.286, which is lower than than the national average of 0.478. In other words, wages are distributed more evenly for Registered nurses (shown in red) than for the overall labor force (shown in gray).

Wage by Location

HIGHEST PAYING PUMAS

This map shows the Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States shaded by average annual wage for Registered nurses.

Spatial Concentration

PUMAs with a Relatively High Concentration of Registered nurses

This map displays which Public Use Microdata Areas (PUMAs) in the United States have a relatively high population of Registered nurses.

Industries

Most Common

The most common industries employing Registered nurses, by number of employees, are General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals, Nursing Care Facilities, Outpatient care centers, Offices of physicians, Home health care services, Other health care services, Elementary & secondary schools, Insurance carriers, Administration of human resource programs, Residential care facilities, except skilled nursing facilities, and Employment services.

Highest Paying

The highest paying industries for Registered nurses, by average wage, are Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, Business, professional, political, & similar organizations, and Not specified retail trade.

Industries by Share

3.36M

2019 Workforce

± 44,472

1.79%

1 YEAR GROWTH

± 1.85%

The number of people employed as Registered nurses has been growing at a rate of 1.79%, from 3,296,499 people in 2018 to 3,355,359 people in 2019.

This graphic shows the share of Registered nurses employed by various industries. General medical and surgical hospitals, and specialty (except psychiatric and substance abuse) hospitals employs the largest share of Registered nurses at 61%, followed by Nursing Care Facilities with 6.77% and Outpatient care centers with 5.91%.

Diversity

Demographic information on Registered nurses in the US. The average age of male Registered nurses in the workforce is 41.6 and of female Registered nurses is 43.7, and the most common race/ethnicity for Registered nurses is White (Non-Hispanic).

Composition by Sex

402k

MALE WORKFORCE

± 15,546

2.95M

FEMALE WORKFORCE

± 41,780

88% of Registered nurses are Female, making them the more common sex in the occupation. This chart shows the sex breakdown of Registered nurses.

Race & Ethnicity

Most Common Race or Ethnicity of Registered nurses

White (Non-Hispanic)
Black (Non-Hispanic)
Asian (Non-Hispanic)

68.4% of Registered nurses are White (Non-Hispanic), making that the most common race or ethnicity in the occupation. Representing 11.6% of Registered nurses, Black (Non-Hispanic) is the second most common race or ethnicity in this occupation. This chart shows the racial and ethnic breakdown of Registered nurses.

Age by Sex

41.6

AVERAGE MALE AGE

± 0.474

43.7

AVERAGE FEMALE AGE

± 0.187

The median age of Registered nurses is 43.5, and Male employees are generally 2.1 years younger than than their Female counterparts.

Education

Data on higher education choices for Registered nurses from The Department of Education and Census Bureau. The most common major for Registered nurses is Health but a relatively high number of Registered nurses hold a major in Health.

Majors

ACS PUMS data only shows the major for bachelor's degrees. However, we can filter the data based on highest degree obtained.

MOST COMMON MAJORS

MOST SPECIALIZED MAJORS

Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for Registered nurses from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Registered nurses need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Registered nurses need more than the average amount of Science, Operations Analysis, and Service Orientation.

Radar Distribution

Bar Chart

Projections

Projections on job growth for Registered Nurses from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 10-year national workforce is projected to grow 3.71%, but Registered Nurses are expected to see a growth of 7.17% over the same period. This occupation is expected to grow more than the national average.

Job Growth

7.17%

Estimated Job Growth

10-year Projection

3.71%

National Growth

10-year Projection

This line chart shows the projected 10-year growth in the number of jobs for Registered Nurses. This profession is expected to grow more than than 3.71%, the average rate of national job growth.