In Georgia, nurses made an average of $90,000 last year. That comes out to around $43.27 an hour, based on a 40 hour work week, or 146% of the Peach State’s average wage of $29.45, according to data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That average wage, however, doesn’t tell the whole story nurses’ salaries.
While the average was $90,000, the bottom 10% made $63,450 — much closer to Georgia’s mean wage of $61,250 for the same period. Meanwhile, the 10% highest paid local nurses took home $124,330.
It’s that wide skew that caused the state’s average nursing wage to be significantly higher than their median pay of $83,620. Georgia was dwarfed by many other states last year, however, including California ($137,690) and New York ($106,620).
California nurses made the most in 2023, followed by those who worked in Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Alaska. However, it’s important to note that — according to U.S. News and World Report — Hawaii has the highest cost of living in the country, followed by California. All five of the highest paying states for 2023 ranked among the priciest places to live in the United States.
Georgia’s cost of living is much closer to the median, ranked 27th. Compared to Pennsylvania, which ranked 28th, Georgia nurses made an additional $2,470. In Nevada (ranked 26th), however, nurses made nearly $8,000 more than in the Peach State.
Overall, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics averaged U.S. nurse pay at $94,480 last year. That means Georgia’s health care pros made 4.74% less than the average nurse.
But, Georgia nurses also enjoyed a cost of living roughly 4% better than the median standard. That puts the Peach State’s nurses at just about average.
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