What is the best state for new grad nurses?

On our two measures, starting-level pay and new nurses per new-grad program, California ranks first, followed by Alaska and Oregon. The best state for you also depends on rent, family and where you can be licensed.

Does this ranking include cost of living?

No. We use only figures we can source for every state: BLS pay, NCSBN exam counts and our own program counts. Compare offers against local rent yourself.

Best States for New Grad Nurses (2026): Pay vs Competition

"Best" depends on what you need, so we kept this to two numbers a new graduate can use, both sourced for every state the same way, and we show the work.

Starting-level pay: the 25th percentile of RN pay, hourly (BLS, May 2025). First-year offers tend to sit near it, since hospital pay scales rise with experience.
Competition for new-grad spots: how many people took the NCLEX-RN for the first time for that state in 2025 (NCSBN), divided by the new-grad programs we track there. Fewer new nurses per program is better for you.

Each state is ranked on both, and the two ranks are averaged; ties go to the higher-paying state. Licensing is shown alongside, not scored: whether the state is in the compact and whether you can work before you pass.

The top ten

California: $58.87 an hour at the 25th percentile (1st); about 61 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (5th). Also: not in the compact, graduate permits allowed.
Alaska: $46.97 an hour at the 25th percentile (6th); about 50 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (1st). Also: not in the compact, graduate permits allowed.
Oregon: $51.55 an hour at the 25th percentile (2nd); about 70 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (7th). Also: not in the compact, no graduate permit.
Washington: $49.57 an hour at the 25th percentile (3rd); about 73 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (8th). Also: in the compact, no graduate permit.
Delaware: $41.30 an hour at the 25th percentile (12th); about 54 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (3rd). Also: in the compact, graduate permits allowed.
Hawaii: $48.65 an hour at the 25th percentile (4th); about 85 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (13th). Also: not in the compact, no graduate permit.
Colorado: $40.67 an hour at the 25th percentile (14th); about 74 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (9th). Also: in the compact, no graduate permit.
New Jersey: $47.94 an hour at the 25th percentile (5th); about 101 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (20th). Also: in the compact, no graduate permit.
Washington, DC: $41.28 an hour at the 25th percentile (13th); about 92 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (15th). Also: not in the compact, graduate permit not confirmed.
Minnesota: $42.76 an hour at the 25th percentile (8th); about 104 first-time NCLEX candidates per new-grad program we track (22nd). Also: not in the compact, no graduate permit.

What this leaves out

Cost of living. A high hourly rate in an expensive city can leave you with less. No single source covers rent the same way in every state, so we left it out rather than guess. Compare offers against local rent yourself.
Hospitals not on our list. Our count is the new-grad programs we track: nurse residencies, and hospitals that hire new grads straight into RN jobs. Other hospitals hire new graduates too, so a state with few programs on our list may still hire plenty of new nurses.
Small markets swing. In a state where we track only a handful of programs, one program more or less moves the competition number a lot.

Every state

Rank	State	25th percentile pay, hourly	Programs we track	First-time NCLEX candidates	Candidates per program	In the compact	Work before passing
1	California	$58.87	266	16,255	61	No	Yes
2	Alaska	$46.97	5	248	50	No	Yes
3	Oregon	$51.55	27	1,888	70	No	No
4	Washington	$49.57	42	3,062	73	Yes	No
5	Delaware	$41.30	9	489	54	Yes	Yes
6	Hawaii	$48.65	6	507	85	No	No
7	Colorado	$40.67	30	2,214	74	Yes	No
8	New Jersey	$47.94	45	4,549	101	Yes	No
9	Washington, DC	$41.28	3	275	92	No	Ask the board
10	Minnesota	$42.76	33	3,435	104	No	No
11	Vermont	$39.53	4	390	98	Yes	Ask the board
12	New Mexico	$38.92	13	1,004	77	Yes	Yes
13	Maine	$38.41	14	936	67	Yes	No
14	Massachusetts	$42.05	31	3,740	121	Not yet in force	No
15	Connecticut	$41.40	19	2,275	120	Yes	Yes
16	Maryland	$40.26	26	2,856	110	Yes	Yes
17	Illinois	$38.47	84	6,351	76	No	No
18	Wyoming	$37.45	5	304	61	Yes	Yes
19	North Dakota	$33.47	13	647	50	Yes	Yes
20	New York	$45.60	60	11,418	190	No	Yes
21	Montana	$38.56	5	572	114	Yes	Yes
22	Georgia	$38.02	59	5,468	93	Yes	No
23	Nebraska	$38.09	12	1,238	103	Yes	No
24	Texas	$38.06	163	16,454	101	Yes	Yes
25	Rhode Island	$39.35	6	790	132	Yes	Yes
26	North Carolina	$37.87	52	5,236	101	Yes	No
27	Pennsylvania	$38.75	62	7,742	125	Yes	Yes
28	New Hampshire	$39.85	6	865	144	Yes	Ask the board
29	Arizona	$39.33	37	5,020	136	Yes	Ask the board
30	Nevada	$41.76	7	2,052	293	No	Yes
31	Wisconsin	$39.39	27	3,890	144	Yes	Yes
32	Iowa	$32.83	28	2,122	76	Yes	No
33	Louisiana	$33.19	30	2,593	86	Yes	Yes
34	Ohio	$38.08	67	8,529	127	Yes	No
35	Michigan	$39.46	18	4,844	269	No	Yes
36	Florida	$37.82	143	17,403	122	Yes	Yes
37	Missouri	$36.56	32	3,661	114	Yes	Yes
38	Virginia	$38.51	30	4,987	166	Yes	Yes
39	Idaho	$38.90	2	1,276	638	Yes	Yes
40	South Carolina	$37.17	23	3,216	140	Yes	Yes
41	Kansas	$35.24	14	1,804	129	Yes	Ask the board
42	Kentucky	$36.38	26	3,598	138	Yes	Yes
43	Utah	$38.49	12	4,368	364	Yes	Ask the board
44	Oklahoma	$37.19	18	2,755	153	Yes	Ask the board
45	Tennessee	$36.28	31	4,369	141	Yes	Ask the board
46	Indiana	$37.86	14	4,093	292	Yes	Yes
47	West Virginia	$32.77	7	1,657	237	Yes	Yes
48	South Dakota	$31.29	4	740	185	Yes	Yes
49	Arkansas	$32.04	8	2,402	300	Yes	Yes
50	Mississippi	$31.22	7	2,146	307	Yes	Yes
51	Alabama	$30.53	5	4,111	822	Yes	Yes

Pay: BLS OEWS, May 2025, all registered nurses. Candidates: NCSBN, 2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics, first-time U.S.-educated. Portions copyrighted by the National Council of State Boards of Nursing, Inc. All rights reserved. Programs: Vibe Nursing's count on Oct 29, 2026. Across the country there were about 114 first-time candidates per program we track.

The best states for new grad nurses, by the numbers