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We look forward to helping you advance your career as a travel nurse!
If you’re looking to become a travel nurse, you probably have many factors driving your decision, from a desire to help people, expand your skills, or to simply take on a new adventure. But no matter what your motivation for becoming a travel nurse, your total compensation will vary from that of a staff nurse.
There are a lot of different factors with travel nursing that affect your salary and overall pay, like the length of the contract or your specialty. Because there are so many different factors, there can be some conflicting information about travel nurse salaries.
We’ve broken things down to make it easy for you to get the facts, including what an average travel nurse’s salary is and how much you can expect to make as a travel nurse.
Speak with a recruiter about available travel nursing assignments today!
A good starting place to base your travel nursing salary on is the median salary figure for a registered nurse in the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average salary for a registered nurse as of 2023 was $86,070 per year. However, because of the in-demand and transient nature of the job of a travel nurse, travel nurses can expect to make, in general, more than the average staff nurse.
For example, one survey of nurses who had found travel nursing positions using Indeed found that the average weekly wage of a travel nurse is $2,096 per week, which is approximately $114,578 per year. However, travel nurse salaries ranged from as low as $86,810 to as high as $151,227.
Keep in mind, though, that many travel nurses work different travel positions over the course of the year, so that figure can fluctuate based on the job’s conditions, any overtime, and the flexibility of the nurse’s schedule. Not to mention those non-taxable stipends. Your nursing specialty can also affect your total compensation as some hospitals may pay a premium for specific high-demand specialties.
A travel nurse can expect some additional compensation that a staff nurse might not have access to, including the following:
1. Sign-on bonuses when signing with a travel staffing agency
2. Referrals if they bring other nurses onto the agency to work, and receive housing and meal allotments.
3. A compensation package for the nurse, which lists the base salary, as well as additional stipends, bonuses, and payments the nurse will receive for a total value that can be considerably higher than a staff nurse. That compensation may include the following:
In some cases, your stipends as a travel nurse will be just that — stipends, which means that you receive them no matter what. So, if you’re able to find cheaper housing or decide to make a diet of Ramen noodles your go-to, you have the potential to pocket the extra money as well.
Most of the time, these stipends are non-taxable, which means you don’t have to report them as additional income come April. You can also get tax breaks for maintaining your full-time home, which equates to extra money in your pocket overall.
It’s important to remember that although travel nursing offers a wide range of financial perks, there are so many incredible non-monetary benefits to bravely taking on a travel position!
For example, travel nursing can make you an even better nurse by exposing you to various new learning experiences in and out of the hospital. Not only are you moving to a new city or state, but you are also gaining exposure to diverse patient populations and unique hospital environments. While many career nurses work within the same unit and specialty throughout their careers, travel nurses gain exposure to as many different environments as they desire!
New clinical experiences allow travel nurses increased opportunities to learn new skills and techniques. Travel nursing may even help you better understand how to provide the highest-quality patient care more efficiently.
Here are other travel nursing perks you may not know about yet:
Travel nurses get to see the nursing profession through many lenses. Who knows — maybe after your next travel assignment, you’ll take your enhanced knowledge to other healthcare facilities and wow them with your nursing prowess!
Some of the highest-paying cities in the country for travel nursing include the “big” cities that might pop up in your mind immediately, such as San Jose and Oakland. But there are other high-paying cities that might surprise you! According to ZipRecruiter, the top 10 highest-paid cities for travel nursing in the U.S. are:
| City | Annual Salary | Monthly Pay | Weekly Pay | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Two Rivers, WI | $139,770 | $11,647 | $2,687 | $67.20 |
| New Lisbon, WI | $129,515 | $10,792 | $2,490 | $62.27 |
| San Jose, CA | $127,317 | $10,609 | $2,448 | $61.21 |
| Vallejo, CA | $124,775 | $10,397 | $2,399 | $59.99 |
| Oakland, CA | $124,532 | $10,377 | $2,394 | $59.87 |
| Truckee, CA | $124,431 | $10,369 | $2,392 | $59.82 |
| Hayward, CA | $124,321 | $10,360 | $2,390 | $59.77 |
| Ashland, CA | $124,308 | $10,359 | $2,390 | $59.76 |
| Antioch, CA | $124,166 | $10,347 | $2,387 | $59.70 |
| Lebanon, NH | $123,715 | $10,309 | $2,379 | $59.48 |
See what positions are available for your specialties.
You should also be aware that there are many high-paying travel nursing states as well. It is important to remember that travel nurse pay often depends on the current demand for nurses in that area, and that can change from year to year. According to ZipRecruiter, the top 10 highest-paid states for travel nursing in the U.S. this year are:
| State | Annual Salary | Monthly Pay | Weekly Pay | Hourly Wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York | $112,201 | $9,350 | $2,157 | $53.94 |
| Vermont | $110,269 | $9,189 | $2,120 | $53.01 |
| California | $108,303 | $9,025 | $2,082 | $52.07 |
| Maine | $105,174 | $8,764 | $2,022 | $50.56 |
| Idaho | $104,045 | $8,670 | $2,000 | $50.02 |
| Washington | $103,234 | $8,602 | $1,985 | $49.63 |
| Pennsylvania | $102,759 | $8,563 | $1,976 | $49.40 |
| Massachusetts | $101,503 | $8,458 | $1,951 | $48.80 |
| Alaska | $100,859 | $8,404 | $1,939 | $48.49 |
| New Jersey | $100,487 | $8,373 | $1,932 | $48.31 |
In addition to choosing an assignment in a high-paying location and signing with a travel agency that offers competitive rates and extra-compensation packages, there are other ways that you can earn even higher pay. For example, you could take any of the following strategies to earn an even higher travel nursing salary:
Your total travel nurse salary will include your base pay as a nurse (the hourly wage you receive for actually working as a nurse) as well as any additional stipend pay, which may be broken down hourly, daily, weekly, or even monthly for a grand total of a “blended” pay.
Here is an example of how the blended travel nurse salary pay might look.
The specific compensation that you’ll receive as a travel nurse will be unique to you and will vary from contract to contract. If you have any questions regarding the pay for your contract, then ask your recruiter — you should have a complete understanding of your compensation before committing to a contract.
The amount of money a travel nurse can make varies depending on several factors, including the specialty, location, part-time or full-time status, and years of experience. According to ZipRecruiter, as of FJuly 2024, travel nurses earn a median salary of $101,132 annually or $49 an hour. However, they also report that some of the highest-earning travel nurses make as much as $139,000 every year!
Travel nursing is worth the money if the travel situation aligns with your needs, desires, and priorities. There are many perks to travel nursing, including higher pay, the opportunity to learn and grow in diverse healthcare environments, and the freedom to travel to new locations.
However, some nurses may find travel nursing difficult. Travel nursing requires a level of bravery to move into the unknown, often alone. If you find that you have difficulty adapting to new environments or don’t want to live far from family and friends, travel nursing may not be the right choice for you.
Some nursing specialties, such as intensive care, emergency room, or operating room nursing, may have higher pay rates than others. ZipRecruiter reports that as of July 2024, some of the highest-paying travel nursing specialties include:
– ICU travel nurse: $126,164 annually or $61/hr
– Emergency room travel nurse: $86,737 annually or $42/hr
– Operating room travel nurse: $94,573 annually or $45/hr
Also, states and regions may offer higher paying rates if they have a greater demand for nurses at that time.
Yes! According to ZipRecruiter, the median annual salary for travel nurses in the US is $121,710 or $59 per hour. The highest-paying travel nurses earn as much as $184,000 per year!
Travel nurses typically receive a base salary along with other benefits, which may include:
– Stipends for housing, meals, and incidentals
– Travel expense reimbursement to your new location
– Reimbursement for scrubs, books, or nursing supplies
– Bonuses (signing, referral, stay-on, or longevity)
– Health, dental, vision, and medical insurance
– 401k or other retirement options
– Life insurance
Overall, travel nurse pay depends on the terms of their employment agreement. However, travel nurses can typically expect to receive various benefits and compensation packages, including housing accommodation, travel expenses, retirement benefits, medical insurance, and sometimes even certification and licensure reimbursements.
In some cases, travel nurses may have to cover some of their own expenses. Or they may receive a stipend to offset their living expenses.
Travel nurses often get paid more than staff nurses because they help healthcare facilities fill urgent staffing needs and maintain safe staffing levels to ensure the highest level of patient care. They’re also flexible and willing to work in a variety of locations and positions that staff nurses may not be willing to work. Hiring managers use higher pay rates, sign-on bonuses, and other incentives to attract more experienced nurses to travel to their locations for a specified period of time.
