How much does an RN make in Washington?

BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,180 for RNs in Washington as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $98,570 and the 75th-percentile is $130,420.

What is the real (cost-adjusted) RN salary in Washington?

After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 108.4 for Washington), the real-wage equivalent is $103,516 — what the $112,180 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $90,957 to $120,347.

How are Washington 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.

Where does Washington rank for RN pay?

On nominal BLS wages alone, Washington ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.

How wide is the wage spread in Washington?

P10 to P90 spans $86,490 to $149,370. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.

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

No — Washington'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.

Washington Registered Nurse Salary: BLS $112K Median, Real $104K (2026)

TL;DR

Median RN salary in Washington: $112,180 nominal, $103,516 real (BEA RPP basis).
Cost of living tracks roughly with the national index, so nominal and real wages stay close.
Bottom quartile $98,570, top quartile $130,420. The P90 ($149,370) is roughly 1.7× the P10 ($86,490).
Washington stays outside the NLC compact, so cross-state moves require a separate endorsement application.
On a real-wage basis, this state sits at #6 of 51; nominal rank is #4.

Wage breakdown — Washington

Percentile	Nominal (BLS)	Real (BEA RPP-adjusted)
P10 (entry tier)	$86,490	$79,810
P25 (lower quartile)	$98,570	$90,957
P50 (median)	$112,180	$103,516
P75 (upper quartile)	$130,420	$120,347
P90 (top tier)	$149,370	$137,833
Mean	$115,740	$106,801
Employment	64,690 RNs in Washington

Cost of living — BEA Regional Price Parity

Component	Washington index (US = 100)
All-items RPP	108.4
Goods	106.9
Services	84.0
Rents	125.5

Washington is a high-cost state — RPP 108.4 above the national 100 baseline. Most of the cost premium routes through rents (125.5) and services (84.0).

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

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

Layer	Amount	Note
Gross BLS P50 (RN)	$112,180	nominal median
Federal income tax	−$15,927	14.2% effective; std deduction $15,750 applied
State income tax	$0	no state income tax (capital gains tax above $262K)
FICA (SS 6.2% + Medicare 1.45%)	−$8,582	SS capped at $183,600 wage base
Take-home (after-tax)	$87,672	78.2% of gross
Real take-home (RPP-adjusted)	$80,900	÷ (108.4 / 100) BEA cost-of-living

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

Washington levies no state income tax on wages, which is worth roughly $5,609 a year for a RN at the BLS median compared with the national-average state burden (≈5%). After cost of living, real take-home is $80,900 — lower than the nominal after-tax figure because RPP exceeds 100.

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. Washington sits at #4 on nominal pay and #6 on real (cost-adjusted) pay among the 51 states and DC. After cost adjustment, Washington falls 2 positions — the cost premium eats into the headline wage.

Licensure — Washington (NLC)

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

Legislative status (2026-05): Bill HB 1939 introduced 2023; failed in 2026 session, expected reintroduction 2026.

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 Washington?: BLS reports a median annual wage of $112,180 for RNs in Washington as of the latest OES release. That is the 50th-percentile figure — half earn more, half earn less. The 25th-percentile is $98,570 and the 75th-percentile is $130,420.
What is the real (cost-adjusted) RN salary in Washington?: After BEA RPP adjustment (regional price parity index 108.4 for Washington), the real-wage equivalent is $103,516 — what the $112,180 nominal salary actually buys. Quartiles in real terms: $90,957 to $120,347.
How are Washington 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.
Where does Washington rank for RN pay?: On nominal BLS wages alone, Washington ranks among the 51 states and DC by median pay. After the BEA cost-of-living adjustment the ordering changes — high-cost states fall, low-cost states rise. Both rankings are shown in the data table on this page.
How wide is the wage spread in Washington?: P10 to P90 spans $86,490 to $149,370. That spread captures entry-level to top-quartile pay, including specialty differentials and metro-area variance within the state.
Is Washington a 'real-wage arbitrage' state for RNs?: No — Washington'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.

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 Washington 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.