UNDATED – With National Nurses Week kicking off May 6, and nurses having a mean annual wage of more than $89,000, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2023’s Best & Worst States for Nurses, as well as expert commentary.
In order to help new nursing graduates find the best markets for their profession, WalletHub compared the relative attractiveness of the 50 states across 20 key metrics. The data set ranges from monthly average starting salary for nurses to health-care facilities per capita to nursing-job openings per capita.
South Dakota ranked 27th overall. It ranked highest, 5th, for its work environment and lowest, 48th, for its opportunities and competition.
Best States for Nurses Worst States for Nurses
1. Washington 41. Delaware
2. Maine 42. Vermont
3. New Mexico 43. Tennessee
4. Oregon 44. Nebraska
5. New Hampshire 45. Louisiana
6. Minnesota 46. Mississippi
7. Montana 47. Alabama
8. Arizona 48. Arkansas
9. Texas 49. Oklahoma
10. Wyoming 50. Hawaii
Best vs. Worst
California has the highest annual mean wage for registered nurses (adjusted for cost of living), $91,719, which is 1.5 times higher than in South Dakota, the lowest at $60,848.
Utah has the lowest current competition (number of nurses per 1,000 residents), 8, which is 2.5 times lower than in North Dakota, the highest at 20.
Nevada has the lowest future competition (projected number of nurses per 1,000 residents by 2030), 8, which is three times lower than in North Dakota, the highest at 24.
Minnesota has the highest ratio of nurses to hospital beds, 5.09, which is 2.1 times higher than in Wyoming, the lowest at 2.44.
To view the full report and your state’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-states-for-nurses/4041
