Top 10 Highest Paying Nursing Jobs

if you're going into nursing for the money, you are probably not choosing a career for the right reasons. still, knowing what salary to expect can definitely help you plan your career. across the field of medicine and across the country, salaries can vary based on location and experience factors, but scrubsmag has rounded up the available data for you to consider.

according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics, the top pay group for nurses includes nurse anesthetists, nurse midwives, and nurse practitioners (median salary $96,460, and the top 10% of earners can receive as much as $161,030). payscale.com reports the following stats and averages:  

1. nurse anesthetist

median total annual salary*: $133,115 total salary annual range*: $83,449–$185,065 median hourly rate: $69 hourly range: $30.09–$95.05  

2. psychiatric nurse practitioner

median total annual salary: $90,376 total salary annual range: $71,109–$127,386 median hourly rate: $50 hourly range: $35.66–$80.21  

3. adult nurse practitioner

median total annual salary: $88,199 total annual salary range: $75,016–$114,185 median hourly rate: $46 hourly range: $35.86–$60.23  

4. certified nurse midwife

median total annual salary: $86,013 total annual salary range: $69,564–$109,650 median hourly rate: $45 hourly range: $36.21–$54.63  

5. family nurse practitioner

median total annual salary: $84,239 total annual salary range: $69,705–$110,359 median hourly rate: $44 hourly range: $34.86–$58.26  

6. nursing director

median total annual salary: $83,029 total annual salary range: $56,340–$122,462 median hourly rate: $37 hourly range: $24–$55.30  

7. clinical nurse specialist

median total annual salary: $81,305 total annual salary range: $61,674–$117,969 median hourly rate: $40 hourly range: $29.94–$63.96  

8. clinical nurse manager

median total annual salary: $75,965 total annual salary range: $53,845–$100,567 median hourly rate: $33 hourly range: $22.88–$45.26  

9. registered nurse supervisor

median total annual salary: $65,854 total annual salary range: $48,761–$89,544 median hourly rate: $29.87 hourly range: $22.94–$40.66  

10. charge nurse

median total annual salary: $65,265 total annual salary range: $47,670–$85,918 median hourly rate: $29.04 hourly range: $22.40–$39.06