SALARY · REGISTERED NURSES · CALIFORNIA

Registered Nurses salary in California

Salary talk gets noisy fast, so I try to keep it plain. In California, registered nurses earned a median of $140,270 a year. From there, this page walks through the range, the hourly rate, how many people do the job here, and what stays in your pocket after federal tax and FICA.

MEDIAN ANNUAL SALARY

$140,270

$67 per hour at the median · That is $42,720 (43.8 percent) above the national median of $97,550 for this occupation.

$150,280Mean annual salary
$72Mean hourly wage
$338,940People employed in this job in California

Salary range

25th: $122,440Median: $140,27075th: $173,170
MeasureAnnual
25th percentile$122,440
Median (50th percentile)$140,270
75th percentile$173,170
Mean$150,280

The middle half of workers earned from $122,440 to $173,170 a year. Employment size matters too. A field with many workers in a state usually means more openings and more room to move employers without moving states. A small field can pay well but offer fewer ways in.

What stays in your pocket on the median salary

ESTIMATED TAKE-HOME PAY

$98,485 a year
$8,207 a month
Federal tax $22,399 · FICA $10,731 · State tax $8,656
Read this before you use the take-home figure. It is a single-filer estimate using the 2026 standard deduction. It leaves out credits, other deductions, local taxes, and retirement or health deductions. Your actual paycheck can differ, and for states without a verified 2026 table in this build, state tax is still to be added once its table is verified.

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