Where is it easiest to open: Continuing Care Retirement Communities
50 states, side by side. Operator counts and wages from Census and BLS; licence records matched on “SOC 29-2061” (soc) for Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 504 | 73.4 | $42,808 | licence | Licensed Vocational Nurse |
| FL | 353 | 88.6 | $38,853 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| PA | 300 | 135.3 | $40,025 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| MN | 289 | 55.7 | $39,644 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| TX | 274 | 68.5 | $35,804 | licence | NURSE, LICENSED VOCATIONAL (LVN) |
| OH | 210 | 90.3 | $35,413 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN); State Tested Nurse Aide |
| IL | 205 | 99.4 | $40,007 | exam | NURSE, LICENSED PRACTICAL |
| WI | 204 | 56.1 | $34,309 | exam | LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSE; NURSES AIDE |
| WA | 193 | 57.2 | $43,411 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse; Practical Nurse |
| MD | 144 | 97.9 | $40,595 | not matched | — |
| OR | 120 | 68.3 | $41,517 | licence | Nurses, Licensed Practical |
| NJ | 117 | 105.7 | $41,713 | exam | LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSE (LPN); NURSE AIDE |
| NC | 112 | 115.0 | $36,654 | exam | Nurse Aide II; Practical Nurse |
| VA | 111 | 127.0 | $42,009 | exam | Nurse Aide, Certified; Nurse Aide, Certified Advanced |
| MA | 103 | 98.3 | $43,225 | exam | NURSE AIDE; NURSE, LICENSED PRACTICAL (LPN) |
| AZ | 98 | 85.3 | $39,826 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| IN | 93 | 89.1 | $37,890 | exam | Certified Nurse's Aide; Licensed Practical Nurse |
| MI | 93 | 125.4 | $28,327 | exam | Nurse Aide, Certified (C.N.A.); Nurse, Licensed Practical (L.P.N.) |
| SC | 91 | 90.9 | $34,567 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN); LPN Temporary License |
| KS | 90 | 89.1 | $36,471 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| MO | 87 | 81.3 | $41,543 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| NY | 76 | 86.7 | $44,099 | exam | Certified Nurse Aide; Licensed Practical Nurse |
| GA | 58 | 63.7 | $38,554 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| CO | 58 | 103.6 | $43,115 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse; Nurse Aide |
| TN | 55 | 72.7 | $40,515 | exam | LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSE |
| CT | 54 | 110.2 | $42,944 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse; Licensed Practical Nurse - Temporary |
| IA | 53 | 126.8 | $36,919 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| UT | 37 | 52.5 | $25,501 | licence | LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSE |
| ME | 30 | 54.0 | $38,562 | exam | Nurse, Licensed Practical |
| OK | 29 | 82.3 | $38,960 | exam | Multistate (MSL) Registered Nurse (RN); Nurse, Licensed Practical |
| MS | 25 | 19.7 | $29,059 | exam | Expanded Role LPN Intravenous Therapy; Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| NE | 24 | 58.8 | $33,240 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN); Nurse Aide |
| RI | 24 | 70.8 | $36,081 | exam | Nurse, Licensed Practical |
| AL | 24 | 80.3 | $38,852 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| KY | 22 | 93.1 | $38,881 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| ID | 21 | 45.2 | $36,021 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| NH | 20 | 103.5 | $38,474 | exam | Nurse, Licensed Practical (LPN) |
| DE | 19 | 100.1 | $44,659 | exam | Multistate License - RN or LPN; Nurse, Licensed Practical |
| NV | 18 | 34.9 | $40,908 | not matched | — |
| MT | 18 | 77.2 | $33,962 | exam | Nursing - Licensed Practical Nurse |
| SD | 16 | 61.1 | $43,942 | licence | Nurse, Licensed Practical; Nurses Aide |
| AK | 15 | 11.2 | $36,815 | licence | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN); Nurse Aide |
| VT | 14 | 54.1 | $43,676 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| NM | 13 | 78.0 | $38,465 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse |
| AR | 13 | 70.7 | $41,565 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) |
| ND | 12 | 131.7 | $42,770 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) |
| LA | 12 | 166.6 | $36,228 | exam | Nurse, Licensed Practical (LPN) |
| WV | 9 | 49.1 | $29,613 | not matched | — |
| HI | 9 | 171.7 | $46,977 | exam | Licensed Practical Nurse; Nurse Aide |
| DC | 6 | 116.3 | $55,924 | exam | NURSE, PRACTICAL |
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.