Tool · free, no account
Where is it easiest to open: Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals
39 states, side by side. Operator counts and wages from Census and BLS; licence records matched on “SOC 29-1141” (soc) for Registered Nurses. A blank gate means NO RECORD MATCHED, which is not the same as no licence.
| State | Operators | Avg staff | Pay / employee | Gate | Licence titles matched |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TX | 123 | 390.5 | $97,010 | licence | NURSE, REGISTERED (RN) |
| LA | 54 | 156.5 | $64,072 | exam | Nurse, Registered; Nurse, School |
| CA | 40 | 359.3 | $95,251 | licence | Certified Nurse Assistant; Clinical Nurse Specialist |
| FL | 39 | 459.5 | $71,273 | exam | Advanced Practice Registered Nurse; Registered Nurse (RN) |
| OH | 30 | 308.0 | $66,224 | licence | Registered Nurse |
| MA | 29 | 559.6 | $86,956 | exam | CLINICAL NURSE SPECIALIST (CNS); NURSE, REGISTERED (RN) |
| AZ | 23 | 141.9 | $66,003 | licence | Clinical Nurse Specialist; Registered Nurse |
| PA | 23 | 252.9 | $70,684 | exam | Registered Professional Nurse |
| IL | 18 | 325.6 | $74,460 | exam | ECRN - EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION REGISTE; NURSE, ADVANCED PRACTICE REGISTERED |
| TN | 15 | 522.3 | $92,538 | exam | REGISTERED NURSE; REGISTERED NURSE FIRST ASSISTANT |
| OK | 15 | 300.5 | $63,436 | exam | Multistate (MSL) Registered Nurse (RN); Nurse, Registered |
| NV | 14 | 148.4 | $74,992 | not matched | — |
| IN | 12 | 240.5 | $70,519 | exam | Registered Nurse; Temporary RN Permit |
| MO | 11 | 338.7 | $74,409 | exam | Acute Care Nurse; Adult Health Care Nurse |
| AR | 11 | 231.4 | $62,614 | exam | Advanced Practice Registered Nurse: C; Licensed Psychiatric Technician Nurse |
| NJ | 11 | 325.0 | $62,227 | exam | ADVANCED PRACTICE NURSE (NURSE PRACTIT; REGISTERED PROFESSIONAL NURSE (RN) |
| KS | 10 | 168.6 | $60,176 | exam | Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioner; Registered Nurse (RN) |
| NM | 10 | 189.1 | $86,747 | exam | Clinical Nurse Specialist; Registered Nurse |
| CO | 9 | 214.0 | $76,881 | exam | Clinical Nurse Specialists; Registered Nurse |
| WI | 9 | 151.0 | $51,576 | exam | REGISTERED NURSE; SCHOOL NURSE |
| AL | 8 | 132.4 | $68,900 | exam | Registered Nurse (RN) |
| NY | 8 | 3765.4 | $84,691 | exam | Clinical Nurse Specialist; Registered Professional Nurse |
| MI | 7 | 258.1 | $61,931 | exam | Medical Doctor, Educational Limited (M; Nurse Practitioner |
| GA | 7 | 118.1 | $83,814 | exam | Advanced Practice - CNS; Advanced Practice - CNS/PMH |
| KY | 7 | 175.1 | $95,773 | exam | Nurse, Clinical Specialist (APRN); Registered Nurse |
| NC | 6 | 216.0 | $76,974 | exam | Clinical Nurse Specialist; Registered Nurse |
| MS | 6 | 197.8 | $57,074 | exam | Registered Nurse |
| SC | 5 | 163.8 | $64,668 | licence | Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (AP; APRN Temporary Permit |
| HI | 4 | 535.5 | $83,807 | exam | Advanced Practice Registered Nurse; Registered Nurse |
| AK | 4 | 7.0 | $227,143 | licence | Advanced Practice Registered Nurses; Registered Nurse (RN) |
| ID | 4 | 158.0 | $67,756 | exam | Registered Nurse (RN) |
| NE | 4 | 324.5 | $66,163 | licence | Clinical Nurse Specialist (APRN-CNS); Registered Nurse (RN) |
| SD | 4 | 249.0 | $53,009 | licence | Clinical Nurse Specialist; Nurse, Registered |
| DC | 4 | 687.0 | $69,895 | exam | Clinical Nurse Specialists; NURSE, REGISTERED |
| UT | 4 | 175.2 | $45,641 | licence | ADVANCED PRACTICE REGISTERED NURSE; REGISTERED NURSE |
| CT | 3 | 588.7 | $69,314 | exam | Advanced Practice Registered Nurse; Registered Nurse |
| NH | 3 | 189.7 | $67,580 | exam | Nurse, Advanced Practice Registered (A; Nurse, Registered (RN) |
| MN | 3 | 413.3 | $122,489 | licence | Border State Registry; Public Health Nurse Registration Certi |
| WA | 3 | 2046.0 | $93,497 | exam | Educational staff associate; Nurse |
Axes are shown side by side and deliberately NOT collapsed into a ranking. A composite would be a score with no measured interval, and an unmeasured score is the thing this product exists to argue against. A high licence gate is a cost to enter and a moat once cleared — which of those matters more is the operator's call, not ours.
Licence data courtesy of CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor. Free to read, no account, always — a condition of the data licence as well as our own position.