Registered nurse salary in California: $162,084
31,558 registered nurses are licensed in California, the 2nd largest pool in the country and 10.1% of the 313,868 nationwide. The pay figure is a Kandidate estimate built from public salary sources.
Most staff RNs never enumerate an NPI, so the registry counts only those who bill independently. Read this as a floor, not a headcount.
Kandidate clinician registry (NPPES/CMS), as of 2026-08-10. Counts are providers with a practice address in the state.
Questions this page answers
How many registered nurses are licensed in California?
31,558 registered nurses hold a practice address in California on the Kandidate clinician registry (NPPES/CMS) as of 2026-08-10, 10.1% of the 313,868 nationally. Most staff RNs never enumerate an NPI, so the registry counts only those who bill independently. Read this as a floor, not a headcount.
What does a registered nurse earn in California?
The Kandidate market pay estimate is $162,084 a year, the midpoint of public salary sources (levels.fyi $200,000, glassdoor.com $124,168) researched on 2026-09-05. It is a synthesised figure, not an observed payroll.
How long does a registered nurse role take to fill in California?
About 25 days, modelled from the difficulty index, not an observed average. Roughly 7,000 similar roles were posted in the last 30 days, extrapolated from a job-board sample of title variants.
Registered nurses elsewhere: Texas.
Other roles in California: Nurse practitioners, Physical therapists, Physician assistants.
Every role and state on the Talent Graph. Machine-readable copy: hire-latest.json.