2023 LPNs Salary Report

2023 Salary Report for LPNs

The average salary for LPNs is $51,850. The three states that pay LPNs the most are California ($65,140), Alaska ($63,650) and Washington ($63,250).

When adjusted for cost-of-living, the states that pay LPNs the highest average annual salary are Nevada ($62,322), Alaska ($61,652) and New Mexico ($61,199).

When adjusted for cost-of-living the three states that pay LPNs the least are South Dakota ($45,706), Alabama ($46,543) and West Virginia ($46,965).

The following table shows the average yearly salary for LPNs in each state and the average yearly salary after being adjusted for the cost-of-living (COLA) in that state.

The three states with the highest positive cost-of-living gap are Mississippi ($5,781), West Virginia ($5,655) and Kentucky ($5,366).

State	Salary	COLA	Gap
California	$65,140	$59,014	-$6,126
Alaska	$63,650	$61,652	-$1,998
Washington	$63,250	$58,914	-$4,336
Massachusetts	$61,820	$57,539	-$4,281
Nevada	$60,490	$62,322	$1,832
Oregon	$60,090	$58,556	-$1,534
Rhode Island	$59,800	$58,714	-$1,086
Connecticut	$59,440	$57,463	-$1,977
New Hampshire	$59,140	$57,024	-$2,116
New Jersey	$58,590	$52,708	-$5,882
Arizona	$57,800	$58,343	$543
District of Columbia	$57,250	$51,364	-$5,886
Maryland	$56,380	$52,954	-$3,426
New Mexico	$56,040	$61,199	$5,159
Colorado	$55,360	$53,815	-$1,545
Vermont	$54,180	$54,534	$354
Michigan	$54,090	$57,518	$3,428
Illinois	$54,080	$53,822	-$258
New York	$53,750	$48,771	-$4,979
Hawaii	$53,320	$47,611	-$5,709
Delaware	$53,040	$54,194	$1,154
Indiana	$51,500	$55,676	$4,176
Minnesota	$51,160	$51,876	$716
Pennsylvania	$51,090	$52,368	$1,278
Wyoming	$50,970	$55,246	$4,276
Maine	$50,790	$52,480	$1,690
Utah	$50,740	$53,231	$2,491
Texas	$50,220	$50,452	$232
North Dakota	$50,130	$54,465	$4,335
Wisconsin	$49,850	$53,493	$3,643
Idaho	$49,440	$54,211	$4,771
North Carolina	$49,210	$53,582	$4,372
Virginia	$48,430	$47,960	-$470
Montana	$48,300	$52,250	$3,950
Nebraska	$48,040	$51,717	$3,677
Ohio	$48,030	$52,383	$4,353
Iowa	$48,010	$52,729	$4,719
Florida	$47,860	$47,523	-$337
Georgia	$47,370	$50,106	$2,736
Kentucky	$47,140	$52,506	$5,366
Kansas	$46,550	$50,401	$3,851
South Carolina	$46,470	$50,704	$4,234
Missouri	$46,010	$49,746	$3,736
Oklahoma	$44,910	$49,179	$4,269
Louisiana	$43,900	$47,347	$3,447
Tennessee	$43,620	$47,336	$3,716
Arkansas	$43,040	$48,262	$5,222
South Dakota	$41,830	$45,706	$3,876
Alabama	$41,540	$46,543	$5,003
Mississippi	$41,530	$47,311	$5,781
West Virginia	$41,310	$46,965	$5,655

Salary Range by Education and Experience

About 50% of LPNs in the United States earn between $46,410 and $59,770 with an experience level that ranges between 5 to 14 years.

About 10% of LPNs in the U.S. earn more than $63,790, a rate for highly educated and experienced LPNs.

Approximately 10% of LPNs in the United States earn under $37,150, a rate generally reserved for less experienced or entry level LPNs.

%	Years	Employed	Annual Salary
10%	Less than a Year	64,124	Under $37,150
15%	2 – 4 years	96,186	$37,150 – $46,410
25%	5 – 9 years	160,310	$46,410 – $48,070
25%	10 – 14 years	160,310	$48,070 – $59,770
15%	15 – 20 years	96,186	$59,770 – $63,790
10%	20+ years	64,124	Above $63,790

Salary Compared to Related Professions

With an average annual salary of $51,850, LPNs in the United States tend to earn less than Nurse Anesthetists ($202,470), Nurse Practitioners ($118,040), Nurse Midwives ($114,210), Registered Nurses ($82,750), and Nursing Instructors ($82,040).

However, LPNs tend to earn more than Nursing Assistants ($33,250).

Title	Annual Salary
Nurse Anesthetists	$202,470
Nurse Practitioners	$118,040
Nurse Midwives	$114,210
Registered Nurses	$82,750
Nursing Instructors	$82,040
LPNs	$51,850
Nursing Assistants	$33,250

State-by-State Demand for LPNs in 2030

The U.S. Department of Labor projects that by the year 2030, the total demand for LPNs will be 751,900 with an average yearly openings of 60,700.

The three states needing the most LPNs are California (83,500), Texas (81,350) and New York (57,740).

The three states needing the highest percentage of new LPNs are Nevada (41.5%), Arizona (38.8%) and Colorado (21.5%).

In the table below, find the states, sorted from highest to lowest, with the highest demand for LPNs in 2030.

State	2020	2030	% Change	Yearly Openings
California	72,400	83,500	15.3%	6,980
Texas	69,680	81,350	16.7%	6,870
New York	48,730	57,740	18.5%	4,920
Florida	41,780	46,530	11.4%	3,810
Ohio	40,690	42,410	4.2%	3,310
Pennsylvania	37,620	41,950	11.5%	3,440
Tennessee	25,620	29,860	16.5%	2,520
Georgia	21,860	26,060	19.2%	2,230
Virginia	20,800	23,100	11.1%	1,890
Illinois	19,590	20,120	2.7%	1,550
Louisiana	18,970	19,320	1.8%	1,480
North Carolina	16,740	18,280	9.2%	1,480
New Jersey	15,850	17,200	8.5%	1,380
Indiana	14,420	15,600	8.2%	1,250
Minnesota	14,410	15,360	6.6%	1,220
Missouri	14,830	15,340	3.4%	1,190
Oklahoma	13,620	15,290	12.3%	1,260
Maryland	12,450	14,460	16.1%	1,220
Michigan	13,180	14,070	6.8%	1,120
Massachusetts	15,610	13,780	-11.7%	930
Alabama	12,060	13,210	9.5%	1,070
Arkansas	11,960	12,870	7.6%	1,030
Mississippi	9,520	11,040	16%	930
South Carolina	9,860	11,010	11.7%	900
Arizona	7,480	10,380	38.8%	960
Kentucky	9,420	10,270	9%	830
Washington	8,210	8,730	6.3%	740
Connecticut	7,920	8,000	1%	610
Wisconsin	8,080	7,990	-1.1%	600
Iowa	6,430	7,330	14%	610
Kansas	6,940	7,320	5.5%	580
West Virginia	6,160	7,080	14.9%	590
Colorado	5,360	6,510	21.5%	520
Nebraska	5,840	6,290	7.7%	500
Puerto Rico	4,510	4,780	6%	380
Oregon	3,830	4,330	13.1%	330
Nevada	2,750	3,890	41.5%	360
Idaho	2,770	3,260	17.7%	260
North Dakota	2,550	2,860	12.2%	240
Delaware	2,250	2,610	16%	220
Montana	2,280	2,550	11.8%	210
New Hampshire	2,100	2,260	7.6%	180
South Dakota	2,050	2,190	6.8%	180
New Mexico	1,930	2,130	10.4%	170
District of Columbia	1,430	1,550	8.4%	120
Utah	1,180	1,300	10.2%	110
Rhode Island	1,210	1,300	7.4%	100
Maine	1,100	1,160	5.5%	90
Vermont	1,010	1,110	9.9%	90
Hawaii	970	1,070	10.3%	90
Alaska	510	590	15.7%	50
Wyoming	450	490	8.9%	40
Virgin Islands	160	170	6.3%	10
Guam	100	110	10%	10

Projected Demand for Nursing Professions to 2030

The U.S. Department of Labor projects that the three professions needing the most new nurses in the United States by 2030 are Registered Nurses (3,356,800), Nursing Assistants (1,512,000) and LPNs (751,900).

The three professions needing the highest percentage of new nurses in the United States by 2030 are Nurse Practitioners (52.2%), Nursing Instructors (22.5%) and Nurse Anesthetists (12.7%).

Title	2020	2030	Change	% Change	Avg. Yearly Openings
Registered Nurses	3,080,100	3,356,800	276,700	9%	194,500
Nursing Assistants	1,396,700	1,512,000	115,300	8.3%	187,000
LPNs	688,100	751,900	63,800	9.3%	60,700
Nurse Practitioners	220,300	335,200	114,900	52.2%	26,000
Nursing Instructors	72,600	88,900	16,300	22.5%	9,000
Nurse Anesthetists	44,200	49,800	5,600	12.7%	2,900
Nurse Midwives	7,300	8,200	900	12.3%	500

10 Highest-Paying Cities

The top ten cities where LPNs are paid the highest average yearly salary in the United States are shown in the table below.

The top three cities with the highest LPNs salary in the United States are are Napa ($76,890), San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara ($75,880) and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward ($75,410).

When adjusted for the cost-of-living (COLA) the three cities that pay nurses the most in the United States are are Prescott ($73,804), Napa ($69,003) and Carson City ($68,102).

City / Metro	Average Yearly Salary	Cost-of-Living Adjusted
Napa	$76,890	$69,003
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara	$75,880	$67,677
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward	$75,410	$64,250
Santa Rosa	$71,180	$64,803
Vallejo-Fairfield	$70,720	$65,228
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles-Arroyo Grande	$68,940	$62,942
Santa Cruz-Watsonville	$66,800	$61,049
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue	$66,380	$59,294
Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade	$66,090	$62,290
Carson City	$65,460	$68,102

10 Highest-Paying Rural Areas

The top ten nonmetropolitan areas where LPNs are paid the highest average annual salary in the United States are shown in the table below.

The three rural areas in the United States with the highest LPNs salary are Alaska ($65,230), Western Washington ($60,880) and Massachusetts ($60,690).

When adjusted for the cost-of-living (COL) the three rural areas in the United States with the highest annual salary are Arizona ($67,711), Eastern New Mexico ($67,280) and Alaska ($64,578).

Rural Areas	Yearly Salary	COL Adjusted
Alaska	$65,230	$64,578
Western Washington	$60,880	$62,763
Massachusetts	$60,690	$55,827
Central Oregon	$60,470	$62,806
Eastern New Mexico	$58,830	$67,280
Northern New Hampshire	$58,180	$57,764
Nevada	$58,160	$62,720
Coast Oregon	$57,810	$60,044
Central New Hampshire	$57,790	$57,377
Eastern Oregon	$57,450	$59,670

State-by-State LPNs Salary Summaries

See state-by-state summaries for the average annual salary, average hourly salary, cost-of-living adjusted salaries, current employment, 2030 projected employment, and the state’s current cost of living index.

Find links to the highest paid city reports and state salary reports.

Frequently Asked Questions About LPNs Salaries

Official Data Sources for LPNs: Salary Data | Projected Employment | Cost of Living Data