U.S. Nursing Workforce Data
Current, citable figures on registered-nurse employment, demand, pay, education, and the pipeline entering practice. Last updated October 22, 2026.
A Practical Reference
The transition from nursing school to clinical practice sits inside a much larger workforce picture. Job demand, nursing-school capacity, education pathways, and retirement all shape the conditions new graduate nurses are entering.
This page brings together the latest national figures available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and national nursing organizations. Each statistic includes its source and publication date so readers can check the original data before using it.
At A Glance
3.47 million
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 3,465,400 RN jobs in 2025. This is employment, not the number of active nursing licenses.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Registered Nurses, August 27, 20266%
BLS projects RN employment will rise from 3,465,400 jobs in 2025 to 3,660,100 jobs in 2035.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Registered Nurses, August 27, 2026180,800
These projected openings include growth and the need to replace nurses who move to other occupations or leave the labor force.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Registered Nurses, August 27, 2026$97,550
Pay varies substantially by state, setting, shift, experience, and specialty. This is the national median reported by BLS.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Registered Nurses, August 27, 2026More than 5 million
AACN reports that 88% of licensed RNs are employed in nursing. Licensure and employment totals measure different things, so they should not be used interchangeably.
Source: American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Nursing Workforce Fact Sheet, September 2026375,750
AACN also reported 145,454 baccalaureate nursing graduates for the August 2024 to July 2025 reporting period.
Source: American Association of Colleges of Nursing, National Snapshot, March 202672.9%
Registered nurses enter practice through multiple approved education pathways. This figure describes the education profile of the RN workforce, not a requirement for every entry route.
Source: American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Nursing Workforce Fact Sheet, September 202692,672
AACN attributes the capacity limit to factors including faculty, clinical sites, classroom space, clinical preceptors, and budget constraints. This count is applications, not individual applicants.
Source: American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet, October 2026About 40%
This is a reported intention, not a forecast of how many nurses will actually leave. It adds important context to workforce planning and to the support needed for nurses who are early in practice.
Source: American Association of Colleges of Nursing, Nursing Workforce Fact Sheet, September 2026267,330
HRSA’s projection is expressed in full-time equivalent registered nurses. It is a modeled national estimate, not a count of unfilled job postings or individual nurses.
Source: Health Resources and Services Administration, Nursing Workforce Projections, December 2025How To Read These Figures
BLS annual openings account for both new positions and positions that open when nurses retire or change careers. That distinction matters when discussing opportunity for new graduates.
Enrollment, graduations, qualified applications, and individual students are different measures. The nursing-school capacity figure above is reported as applications, not as a count of unique people.
Local wages, job availability, orientation length, and specialty requirements vary. New graduate nurses should use national data for context, then confirm local expectations with prospective employers and state resources.
For The First Year
New graduate nurses are entering a profession with real opportunity and real pressure. A clear orientation plan, thoughtful precepting, safe escalation habits, and practical clinical-judgment tools can make the learning curve more manageable.
Explore transition-to-practice resourcesMethodology And Sources
This is a curated reference page, not an original survey. RN employment, projected openings, and median pay come from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Education and nursing workforce figures come from the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, which cites national nursing workforce research and its annual school survey. The national full-time-equivalent shortage projection comes from the Health Resources and Services Administration.
Statistics are updated when a primary source releases a newer comparable figure. Dates shown on this page refer to the source publication or the period measured, as stated with each statistic. Last reviewed October 22, 2026.
RN Transition to Practice. “Nursing Workforce and New Graduate Nurse Statistics: 2026.” Updated October 22, 2026. Accessed [date].