New York RN Salary 2026
Last reviewed: by Jayson Minagawa, BSN, RN
What RNs actually earn in New York
The mean registered nurse salary in New York is $113,440 a year, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. That puts New York 12% above the national RN mean of $101,420, and 7th 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 New York land around $85,080, and experienced specialty or supervisory nurses reach roughly $158,816. If you are comparing a specific offer, the ladder below is more useful than the all-RN average.
New York pay across the nursing ladder
Six roles, all New York figures, each against its national anchor:
| Role | Mean annual | vs national | State rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered Nurse (all RNs) | $113,440 | 12% above national | 7th |
| ICU / critical care RN | $133,481 | 57% above national | 2nd |
| Emergency department RN | $94,893 | — | 3rd |
| Travel nurse (posted base) | $110,642 | 9% above national | 3rd |
| Nurse practitioner | $148,410 | 8% above national | 2nd |
| CRNA | $257,603 | 4% above national | 14th |
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
New York's regional price parity is 117.4 against a national average of 100, so goods and services here cost 17.4% more than the national norm. Run the $113,440 mean through that and it carries the purchasing power of $96,627 anywhere else in the country.
Adjusted for what things actually cost, New York drops 19 places — from 7th on paper to 26th on purchasing power. This is the gap that catches nurses out when they relocate for a bigger number and find it does not go as far.
What is driving New York pay right now
Public staffing-ratio disclosure law; NYSNA union strength. 2026 update: Largest NYC nurses' strike in history began Jan 12, 2026 at NewYork-Presbyterian, Montefiore, Mount Sinai. Three new 3-year contracts ratified by Feb 20, 2026 — boosts NYC private-sector RN benchmarks. SB 2025-S4003 would expand 2021 ICU 1:2 law to all units, pending.
Staffing-ratio law: SB 2025-S4003 introduced Jan 2025, would expand the existing 2021 ICU 1:2 law to all units. Not yet enacted. Ratio legislation matters to pay because it changes how many nurses a hospital is required to have on the floor, which tightens the local labour market well before any raise is negotiated.
Who you are competing with
Because New York is not a Nurse Licensure Compact state, every nurse working here needs a New York licence specifically. That slows down out-of-state hiring and travel placements, and in a shortage it tends to push rates up faster than in compact states, because the supply of nurses who can legally take the shift is smaller. Full detail on requirements and timelines is in the New York licensure guide.
Where the jobs are in New York
The largest RN employment markets in New York are New York City, Buffalo, Albany. 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 New York
New York state income tax: graduated to 10.9%. 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 New York 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 New York 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 New York?
The mean registered nurse salary in New York is $113,440 per year, per the BLS May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics release. That is 12% above the national RN mean of $101,420, and ranks 7th of 51 states and DC.
Is $113,440 a good RN salary in New York?
Adjusted for New York's cost of living (BEA regional price parity 117.4, where 100 is the national average), $113,440 has the purchasing power of about $96,627 nationally — 26th among the 51 states and DC. Compare offers on the adjusted figure, not the headline one.
Which New York nursing roles pay the most?
CRNAs lead at $257,603, followed by nurse practitioners at $148,410. Within bedside nursing, ICU and critical care ($133,481) typically pays above the all-RN mean.
Related New York guides
See nursing licensure in New York for Board of Nursing requirements and compact status, and travel nursing in New York for contract rates and stipend detail. National context: pay and data, highest-paying RN specialties.