The columns in the table below are all sortable. So discover which states are best for LPN salary, RN salary, and where upgrading to an RN will have the biggest effect on your paycheck. So “what’s the Comfort Score“ you may ask? It takes into account median salaries of all occupations in a state, median salaries of nurses, cost of living, real estate, and a few other medical-centric and geographic statistics…and combines them to produce an indexed ranking of where you will be most comfortable being an LPN or RN.
| State Name | LPN avg. Salary | RN avg. Salary | LPN Comfort Rank | RN Comfort Rank | RN Value Rank | Overall Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | $38,770 | $71,210 | 45 | 11 | 1 | 23 |
| Georgia | $35,860 | $60,610 | 28 | 10 | 2 | 12 |
| Mississippi | $33,920 | $54,770 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Alabama | $33,110 | $55,070 | 38 | 23 | 4 | 27 |
| New York | $41,490 | $72,100 | 47 | 15 | 5 | 28 |
| Texas | $39,750 | $63,050 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 2 |
| Tennessee | $35,520 | $55,820 | 13 | 9 | 7 | 6 |
| Louisiana | $36,780 | $58,250 | 19 | 14 | 8 | 11 |
| Kentucky | $35,940 | $56,160 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 7 |
| Oklahoma | $32,250 | $52,380 | 41 | 36 | 10 | 34 |
| Arkansas | $33,280 | $52,210 | 27 | 22 | 11 | 22 |
| Oregon | $45,040 | $73,430 | 14 | 3 | 12 | 5 |
| West Virginia | $31,590 | $50,560 | 43 | 34 | 13 | 35 |
| California | $49,380 | $82,910 | 29 | 7 | 14 | 13 |
| Hawaii | $43,760 | $81,830 | 51 | 42 | 15 | 44 |
| Washington | $44,200 | $71,970 | 23 | 16 | 16 | 16 |
| Montana | $34,870 | $55,850 | 39 | 30 | 17 | 31 |
| Missouri | $35,150 | $55,510 | 34 | 32 | 18 | 30 |
| Delaware | $47,600 | $73,550 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 1 |
| Illinois | $40,790 | $63,850 | 20 | 21 | 20 | 19 |
| South Carolina | $37,210 | $57,210 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 18 |
| Idaho | $37,770 | $58,380 | 22 | 25 | 22 | 25 |
| Virginia | $37,210 | $61,210 | 50 | 43 | 23 | 46 |
| Michigan | $41,670 | $63,200 | 8 | 13 | 24 | 10 |
| Wisconsin | $40,150 | $61,840 | 17 | 24 | 25 | 21 |
| Nevada | $48,160 | $73,270 | 4 | 2 | 26 | 3 |
| Indiana | $37,410 | $56,400 | 21 | 28 | 27 | 26 |
| Colorado | $42,150 | $66,010 | 33 | 33 | 28 | 33 |
| Pennsylvania | $40,000 | $60,820 | 24 | 29 | 29 | 29 |
| Massachusetts | $49,520 | $77,770 | 16 | 17 | 30 | 17 |
| North Dakota | $34,420 | $53,180 | 46 | 46 | 31 | 48 |
| South Dakota | $33,130 | $50,630 | 48 | 49 | 32 | 50 |
| Florida | $39,440 | $59,950 | 30 | 31 | 33 | 31 |
| Ohio | $39,520 | $58,220 | 10 | 26 | 34 | 20 |
| North Carolina | $39,490 | $57,170 | 7 | 19 | 35 | 14 |
| Alaska | $46,450 | $73,480 | 44 | 38 | 36 | 43 |
| Maine | $39,330 | $59,580 | 40 | 40 | 37 | 41 |
| Arizona | $45,790 | $66,100 | 3 | 8 | 38 | 8 |
| Nebraska | $35,630 | $52,730 | 35 | 45 | 39 | 42 |
| Vermont | $40,960 | $61,870 | 42 | 41 | 40 | 45 |
| Kansas | $36,530 | $53,070 | 26 | 39 | 41 | 38 |
| Maryland | $49,540 | $75,670 | 32 | 35 | 42 | 39 |
| Utah | $39,080 | $58,070 | 36 | 48 | 43 | 47 |
| Washington DC | $48,180 | $69,570 | 5 | 18 | 44 | 15 |
| Wyoming | $39,310 | $56,460 | 31 | 44 | 45 | 40 |
| New Jersey | $50,400 | $74,560 | 25 | 37 | 46 | 37 |
| Rhode Island | $49,890 | $69,470 | 6 | 27 | 47 | 23 |
| Iowa | $36,100 | $50,220 | 37 | 50 | 48 | 49 |
| New Mexico | $47,610 | $62,780 | 1 | 5 | 49 | 9 |
| New Hampshire | $43,560 | $60,370 | 49 | 51 | 50 | 51 |
| Connecticut | $52,710 | $71,000 | 11 | 47 | 51 | 35 |