Arkansas RN Salary - How Much Do RNs Make in AR?

Arkansas employs less than 1% of the registered nurses in the United States. Though there are more than 2,711,500 registered nurses employed in the U.S. in 2012, Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data states that only 23,480 worked in Arkansas as of May 2018. The median annual RN salary in this state was $55,240, or about $26.56 per hour, as of May 2018. Though this is significantly lower than the national average for the occupation, it is in line with the cost of living for the state. The cost of living in Arkansas is the ninth lowest in the country.

In Arkansas, RNs with earning in the top tenth percentile made $74,540 per year or more in 2018, which corresponds with $35.84 per hour. One quarter of Arkansas RNs earned $65,590 or more during this year. Registered nurses with earnings in the lower 25th percentile made $45,690 or less, and those below the 10th percentile made less than $39,650 per year.

In May 2018, the metropolitan area with the highest RN salary in Arkansas was the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway area. Here, the median annual wage for a registered nurse was $59,210. At the time of this report, This area employed 9,550, or approximately 41 percent, of the state’s RNs. The city with the lowest median salary for this occupation was Hot Springs.

For the best RN salary in Arkansas, it is generally best to try to find a job near large metropolitan areas. The cost of living remains low throughout the state, but salaries for registered nurses are higher in larger cities. Medical and surgical hospitals are typically the largest employers of RNs. The salary of a registered nurse is influenced both experience and education. Thus, in addition to working in a higher-paying area, pursuing higher education and career experience is another way to earn more money.

Resources

• https://www.bls.gov/ooh/Healthcare/Registered-nurses.htm
• https://meric.mo.gov/data/cost-living-data-series
• https://www.bls.gov/lau/