Georgia RN Salary 2026
Last reviewed: by Jayson Minagawa, BSN, RN
What RNs actually earn in Georgia
The mean registered nurse salary in Georgia is $95,080 a year, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. That puts Georgia 6% below the national RN mean of $101,420, and 21st of 51 states and DC.
That mean covers every RN in the state — new graduates and thirty-year charge nurses, day shift and nights, bedside and management. In practice new-graduate wages in Georgia land around $71,310, and experienced specialty or supervisory nurses reach roughly $133,112. If you are comparing a specific offer, the ladder below is more useful than the all-RN average.
Georgia pay across the nursing ladder
Six roles, all Georgia figures, each against its national anchor:
| Role | Mean annual | vs national | State rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nurse (all RNs) | $95,080 | 6% below national | 21st |
| ICU / critical care RN | $101,618 | 19% above national | 38th |
| Emergency department RN | $73,239 | — | 48th |
| Travel nurse (posted base) | $85,394 | 16% below national | 48th |
| Nurse practitioner | $125,490 | 9% below national | 33rd |
| CRNA | $198,229 | 20% below national | 49th |
RN, NP and CRNA figures are BLS May 2025 OEWS unless the state note says otherwise. ICU, ER and travel figures are 2026 aggregator data (ZipRecruiter, Vivian, TheCRNA) — those specialties have no separate federal SOC code, so no BLS series exists for them.
What that salary is actually worth
Georgia's regional price parity is 91.6 against a national average of 100, so goods and services here cost 8.4% less than the national norm. Run the $95,080 mean through that and it carries the purchasing power of $103,799 anywhere else in the country.
Adjusted for what things actually cost, Georgia moves up 11 places — from 21st on paper to 10th on purchasing power. Nurses here keep more of what they earn than the headline number suggests.
What is driving Georgia pay right now
Right-to-work state with rapid Atlanta metro growth; projected meaningful RN shortage by 2030; restrictive NP scope-of-practice rules.
Staffing-ratio law: Georgia has no statutory nurse-to-patient ratios, so how many patients you carry is set by hospital policy and unit budget rather than by law. That makes the ratio a question to settle in the interview, not after you start — ask what the unit actually runs on nights and weekends, not what the policy says.
Who you are competing with
As a Nurse Licensure Compact state, Georgia lets any nurse holding a multistate licence work here without applying for a separate one. That widens the pool of candidates for every posting, and it also means travel nurses can start assignments quickly — which keeps contract rates competitive but stops staff wages running away during a shortage. Full detail on requirements and timelines is in the Georgia licensure guide.
Where the jobs are in Georgia
The largest RN employment markets in Georgia are Atlanta, Augusta, Savannah. Metro wages generally run 5-15% above the state mean, and rural postings 5-10% below — though rural and critical-access hospitals often close part of that gap with sign-on bonuses and loan repayment, because they compete for a much smaller pool of applicants. ANCC Magnet-designated hospitals typically pay 8-12% more than non-Magnet facilities for the same role.
Tax and take-home in Georgia
Georgia state income tax: flat 5.39%. State income tax comes out before anything else, so compare cross-state offers on take-home rather than gross. Federal brackets and FICA (6.2% Social Security plus 1.45% Medicare) apply the same everywhere. The pay calculator models federal and Georgia state tax together, and the cost-of-living calculator compares two states on take-home rather than headline pay.
Differentials and premium pay
Base rate is rarely the whole story. Most Georgia hospitals pay a night differential of roughly $2-7/hr, weekends $1-3/hr, holidays at $1-3/hr or time-and-a-half, and charge-nurse pay of $2-5/hr on top. A nurse working a permanent night rotation with every third weekend can add several thousand a year over the base figures above. The shift differential calculator works out what a given rotation is actually worth.
Common questions
What is the average RN salary in Georgia?
The mean registered nurse salary in Georgia is $95,080 per year, per the BLS May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. That is 6% below the national RN mean of $101,420, and ranks 21st of 51 states and DC.
Is $95,080 a good RN salary in Georgia?
Adjusted for Georgia's cost of living (BEA regional price parity 91.6, where 100 is the national average), $95,080 has the purchasing power of about $103,799 nationally — 10th among the 51 states and DC. Compare offers on the adjusted figure, not the headline one.
Which Georgia nursing roles pay the most?
CRNAs lead at $198,229, followed by nurse practitioners at $125,490. Within bedside nursing, ICU and critical care ($101,618) typically pays above the all-RN mean.
Related Georgia guides
See nursing licensure in Georgia for Board of Nursing requirements and compact status, and travel nursing in Georgia for contract rates and stipend detail. National context: pay and data, highest-paying RN specialties.