How much does an RN make in Hawaii?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $136,320 for RNs in Hawaii as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $103,480 and the 75th-percentile is $139,310.

How are Hawaii RN salaries calculated on this page?

Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.

What does the top of the RN pay scale look like in Hawaii?

The 90th percentile lands at $146,480. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $139,310.

Why is the BEA RPP for Hawaii different from a single CPI number?

BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Hawaii's overall index of 109.7 reflects rents 128.7, services 191.7, and goods 110.3.

Is Hawaii a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for RNs?

No — Hawaii's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.

When does this data update?

BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.

How does specialty (ICU, OR, NICU, ER, L&D) affect RN pay in Hawaii?

BLS reports a single 'Registered Nurses' SOC code (29-1141), so the figures on this page are not specialty-segmented. In practice, ICU, NICU, and OR roles in Hawaii typically pay 8-15% above the all-RN median; L&D and ER vary by hospital system. Travel-RN contracts can substantially exceed staff rates during demand spikes.

Hawaii Registered Nurse Salary: BLS $136K Median, Real $124K (2026)

TL;DR

Hawaii pays RNs a BLS median of $136,320 — the more useful number is $124,263, what that paycheck buys after rent and services.
Nominal: #2/51 · Real: #2/51 — ranking shifts by 0 positions after RPP.
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
Wage envelope: $82,380 (P10) to $146,480 (P90), with quartiles at $103,480 and $139,310.
Non-compact: Hawaii requires its own RN license; an NLC multistate license alone is not enough to practice.

Wage breakdown — Hawaii

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$82,380	$75,094
P25 (lower quartile)	$103,480	$94,327
P50 (median)	$136,320	$124,263
P75 (upper quartile)	$139,310	$126,988
P90 (top tier)	$146,480	$133,524
Mean	$123,720	$112,777
Employment	13,100 RNs in Hawaii

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Hawaii index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	109.7
Goods	110.3
Services	191.7
Rents	128.7

Hawaii is a high-cost state — RPP 109.7 above the national 100 baseline. Most of the cost premium routes through rents (128.7) and services (191.7).

After-tax take-home — Hawaii (2024 BLS · 2024 tax year, single filer)

Layer-by-layer take-home math at the BLS median

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (RN)	$136,320	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$21,535	15.8% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	−$10,319	1.4–11% (12 brackets)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$10,428	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$94,038	69.0% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$85,721	÷ (109.7 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

What the Hawaii state-tax burden means for RN take-home

Hawaii carries one of the heavier state-tax loads in the country at this income tier (7.6% effective on the BLS median). Combined with federal and FICA, gross-to-take-home spread is 31.0%, leaving $94,038 pre-RPP and $85,721 after the 109.7 cost-of-living index — a $50,599 gap from the headline gross.

Computed from 2026 IRS federal brackets (Rev. Proc. 2025-32), 2026 state DOR brackets, and 2026 FICA rates. Single filer, standard deduction, no other adjustments. See methodology · tax for limitations (married filers, ITM/SALT itemizers, retirement deferrals, HSA, dependent credits, etc.).

National context

Across the United States, BLS reports a national median of $93,600 for RNs with mean pay of $98,430 and total employment of 3,282,010. Hawaii sits at #2 on nominal pay and #2 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. Nominal and real ranking are the same — cost of living and pay scale together.

Licensure — Hawaii (NLC)

Hawaii is not currently a NLC member. RNs moving to Hawaii must apply for a Hawaii-issued license through endorsement; a multistate license from a Compact state alone is not sufficient. Endorsement timelines and fees are set by the Hawaii Board of Nursing.

Legislative status (2026-05): No active legislation; remoteness creates limited cross-state pressure.

Source: NCSBN compact implementation tracker — re-synced quarterly. See NLC reciprocity hub for the cross-state matrix and changelog for status changes.

Frequently asked questions

How much does an RN make in Hawaii?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $136,320 for RNs in Hawaii as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $103,480 and the 75th-percentile is $139,310.
How are Hawaii RN salaries calculated on this page?: Nominal wages come from BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES) — annual employer surveys, May 2026 reference period. Real-wage figures use BEA Regional Price Parities (2023 vintage) to adjust for state-level cost of living. No self-report or jobs-board data is mixed in.
What does the top of the RN pay scale look like in Hawaii?: The 90th percentile lands at $146,480. That tier typically reflects senior roles, specialty certifications, high-cost-of-living metros within the state, or union-negotiated rate cards. Below that, the P75 quartile is $139,310.
Why is the BEA RPP for Hawaii different from a single CPI number?: BEA splits regional price parity into three components — goods, services, and rents — reweighted to the BEA's national consumption basket. Hawaii's overall index of 109.7 reflects rents 128.7, services 191.7, and goods 110.3.
Is Hawaii a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for RNs?: No — Hawaii's RPP is close to the national 100 baseline, so nominal and real wages move roughly together. Neither an arbitrage nor a penalty state.
When does this data update?: BLS OES releases a new May reference set roughly each spring; we re-run the ETL pipeline within two weeks of release. BEA RPP refreshes annually. The last-synced timestamp at the top of this page reflects the most recent build.
How does specialty (ICU, OR, NICU, ER, L&D) affect RN pay in Hawaii?: BLS reports a single 'Registered Nurses' SOC code (29-1141), so the figures on this page are not specialty-segmented. In practice, ICU, NICU, and OR roles in Hawaii typically pay 8-15% above the all-RN median; L&D and ER vary by hospital system. Travel-RN contracts can substantially exceed staff rates during demand spikes.

Sources & methodology

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OES), SOC 29-1141, 2024 reference period.
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Regional Price Parities, 2023 vintage (all-items, goods, services, rents).
Real-wage figures = nominal BLS wage ÷ (state RPP / 100).
See the methodology page for full computation details and limitations.

By Marcus Liang · Founder & Editor · Last synced 2026-05-05.

Cross-comparison: see how Hawaii RN pay ranks against the other 254 state × occupation pages on the Real Wage Atlas → — four-way ranking by real wage, after-tax take-home, state-tax savings, and cost-of-living arbitrage.