Thursday, November 24, 2022

20 Best Metro Markets for Nurse Practitioner Pay

In a commentary in October, we reviewed Nurse Practitioner Pay in the Top 20 Metropolitan Markets.  As is the case with most healthcare professions, the major metropolitan areas in the U.S. are big centers for nurse practitioner employment.  However, it is in smaller metro markets, not the large ones, where nurse practitioners oftentimes find better average compensation levels. This is readily evident in May 2021 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which reveals that only three of the 20 largest metro areas in the nation were among the 20 best metro markets for nurse practitioner pay:

20 Best Metro Markets for Nurse Practitioner Pay

Metropolitan Area # Employed Annual Mean Wages
1 San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA 1,220 $197,870
2 Napa, CA 90 $184,700
3 Vallejo-Fairfield, CA 130 $180,380
4 San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward (#) 2,550 $177,160
5 Yuba City, CA 30 $159,260
6 San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA 140 $153,300
7 Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade 900 $153,050
8 Santa Rosa, CA 180 $152,150
9 Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA 150 $150,280
10 Fresno, CA 440 $147,760
11 Modesto, CA 270 $147,190
12 El Centro, CA 70 $147,080
13 Duluth, MN-WI 300 $146,740
14 Redding, CA 90 $146,040
15 Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario (#) 1,300 $145,250
16 Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim (#) 5,490 $144,930
17 Bakersfield, CA 320 $144,770
18 Madera, CA 90 $142,400
19 Salinas, CA 130 $142,130
20 Visalia-Porterville, CA 190 $141,650
National 234,690 $118,040

(#) a top 20 U.S metro population area

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OES. Data extracted on November 19, 2022