Incremental improvements in nurse compensation and turnover rates during the first half of 2025 signal that the labor market for nurses is entering a period of greater stabilization, according to a new SullivanCotter report.
The report, published Dec. 16, is based on survey data from January through July 1. More than 1,100 healthcare organizations participated in the survey, including hospitals and health systems.
Three key findings:
1. Organizations made targeted investments in nurses’ base pay, prioritizing leadership roles: Registered nurses working at medium-sized organizations saw the greatest growth in median base pay at 3.2%. Medium-sized organizations were defined as systems with between $250 million and $750 million in annual net revenue.
At larger organizations — defined as those with revenue between $751 million and $1.5 billion — nurses’ median base pay grew 2.9%.
Nurse leaders and managers saw the largest pay increases at 3% and 2.7%, respectively.
2. Pay increases varied by specialty and region: Critical care nurses saw the highest median increase in base pay at 3.2%, followed closely by nurses working in anesthesiology, oncology and the emergency department. When looking at non-acute care roles, RN case managers and RN patient navigators saw the biggest increases at 3% and 2.3%, respectively. Licensed practical nurses saw the smallest growth in median base pay at 1.1%.
“Organizations are making targeted, strategic investments in nursing pay, prioritizing leaders, critical specialties and hard-to-fill roles as they work to remain competitive in a market that is always evolving,” Steve Meyers, consulting principal at SullivanCotter, said in a news release. “It’s important to elevate pay where pressures are greatest and prepare for continued evaluation in the months ahead.”
The findings also highlighted regional differences in pay, with nurses working in the West seeing the highest median hourly rates: Clinical nurse specialists earned around $96 per hour, staff RNs earned around $61 and licensed nurse practitioners earned around $36. Specialty nurses also earned higher rates in the West.
3. Turnover and vacancy rates improve: Turnover rates among registered nurses decreased in the first half of 2025, compared to 2024. Sixty-two percent of organizations reported turnover rates between 11% and 20%. The national RN turnover rate is 16.4%, according to the latest data from NSI Nursing Solutions.
However, turnover rates for LPNs increased, with more than one-third of respondents experiencing turnover rates higher than 20%.
Hospitals and health systems also reported year-over-year declines in vacancy rates and time-to-fill metrics. Compared to 2024, 10% fewer organizations had vacancy rates above 11% and nearly 6% fewer organizations had days-to-fill over 90 days.
“Taken together, these shifts signal that the nursing labor market may be entering a period of greater stability,” Mr. Meyers said. “Organizations are not only seeing fewer extended vacancies, they’re also experiencing more predictable hiring activity, an important step toward rebuilding workforce sustainability.”
