Average Pediatric Nurse Salary

Pediatric nurses – nurses specialize in caring for children – can work with anyone from a newborn to a teenager. This responsibility can include: providing physical assessments, administering medications, checking growth and development, creating care plans for children, and educating parents and caregivers about wellness practices.

While registered nurses overall in the United States receive $82,750 per year according to the United States Bureau of Labor and Statistics, pediatric nurses are among the highest-paid nurses. According to data from Incredible Health, the average salary for a pediatric nurse is $85,630 – an effective hourly rate of $41.

This hourly rate puts the average pediatric nurse salary at about 3% higher than a the average registered nurse’s median wage. Remember that this number is just the aggregate salary and does not take into account nursing salaries that consider unit position, experience level, and other factors.

In this article, we will review some of the key factors that affect a pediatric nurse’s salary, and how pediatric nurses can earn more. 

Pediatric nurse salaries by state

Pediatric nurse salaries vary depending on the state in which you practice. The cost of living in different states affects compensation scales.

For example, you may earn a larger paycheck as a staff pediatric nurse in Hawaii because the cost of living is about 93% higher than the country’s average.

Conversely, in Mississippi, pediatric nurses may earn less than other states because the cost of living is 16% less than the country’s average.

The top five highest-paying states for nurses, including pediatric nurses (without factoring in the cost of living) include the following:

The top five highest-paying states for nurses, including pediatric nurses (adjusted for cost of living) are the following:

Not all settings pay pediatric nurses the same

Pediatric nurses can be found in a wide variety of workplaces. Some of the most common include:

• Pediatrician’s offices
• Home care agencies
• Community health clinics
• Pediatric floors in a general hospital
• Pediatric intensive care units (PICUs)
• Neonatal intensive care units (NICUs)

Your selected area of practice will ultimately determine your pediatric nurse’s salary. In general, you can expect a higher salary for more intense workplaces. Nurses can expect slightly lower wages for lower intensity practice settings like a doctor’s office.

PICU nurses have one of the highest-paying nurse subspecialties. PICU nurses have an average annual salary of $76,215. School nurses fall to the lower end of the scale at $51,300.

How to improve your salary as a pediatric nurse

Not only do nurses typically have solid base pays, but they also have a lot of opportunity for salary growth. In this section, we’ll go over some ways to help improve your salary as a pediatric nurse.

Certifications can raise your pay

If you have experience working in pediatric nursing and you enjoy working with the population, you might consider becoming a Certified Pediatric Nurse (CPN), Critical Care Nurse (CCRN – Neonatal), or a Critical Care Registered Nurse – Knowledge Professional (CCRN-K – Neonatal).

According to the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board, in order to take the pediatric nursing certification exam, you must meet the following requirements:

“You will need a current, valid, unrestricted, and unencumbered Registered Nurse (RN) license in the U.S., Canada, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands or the U.S. Virgin Islands at the time of application, plus:

• A minimum of 1800 hours of pediatric clinical experience completed within the past 24 months as an RN, or
• A minimum of 5 years as an RN in pediatric nursing and 3,000 hours in pediatric nursing within the last 5 years with a minimum of 1,000 hours within the past 24 months (use only if unable to meet the above option)”

Additionally, some employers will pay or reimburse you for the cost of certification. Some may also offer a pay differential for earning a certification in a specialty.

Other factors that affect pediatric nurse salary amounts

In addition to where you work and whether you choose to earn a specialty certification, there are a number of other factors that influence how much you make as a pediatric nurse.

Education

While only an Associate’s (ADN) is required for initial licensure, it can be advantageous for you to pursue further education. Earning a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or other advanced degrees in nursing can help you qualify for jobs with expanded responsibilities and higher pay.

Experience

The number of years of experience you have as a nurse and in the pediatric specialty will affect the compensation rates offered by an employer. Nurses with less than 5 years of experience can expect salaries on the lower end of the pay range. So, nurses with 10-20 years will be at the top end.

Training

If you are a preceptor to a student nurse or new nurse graduate, you usually make more money. This raise may be about $1-$2 per hour which can really add up.

Location

Although we mentioned some average annual salaries at the beginning of the article, salaries for nurses can vary dramatically depending on the state in which you live and practice.

For example, pediatric nurses who practice in states in the northeast or California can expect higher-than-average salaries. In the center of the country, salaries are usually lower.

Explore pediatric nurse salaries across the U.S.

Wondering what kind of pediatric nurse salary you can expect in your area? Incredible Health offers a free nurse salary estimator that allows you to see the estimated pay ranges for a nurse across the United States. Find out how much you could be making now!

Sources

• “Steps to CPN Certification.” pncb.org. Accessed March 22, 2022.