When it comes to pay, travel nurses haven’t caught a break in recent months, and July 2024 was no exception. Travel nursing salaries in the U.S. fell another 1% in July, from an average of $2,298 per week in June to $2,275 in July. This decline follows a 0.8% drop in wages in June, a 0.7% dip in May pay and a 1.1% decline in April’s travel nursing salaries. 

In our June report, we noted that the decline in wages to that point had brought the inflation-adjusted average travel nursing pay back down to its pre-pandemic level. We used January 2020 wages — $2,308 in today’s dollars — as our point of comparison. 

The July decrease further erodes the real value of travel nursing salaries below that level. In fact, over the past 12 months, travel nurse salaries have been down a cumulative 5.3% since July 2023, when they were $2,402 per week on average.

Month-over-month change in travel nurse wages for all 50 states, based on salary data from all jobs posted to Vivian Health during the month of July 2024. The area shaded in gray represents states where wages shifted less than 1% up or down, which we consider to be relatively minor and unchanged.

States Where Travel Nursing Pay Increased

Only three states recorded travel nurse pay gains of 1% or more in July. Kansas posted the largest increase of 2%, with an average wage growth from $2,110 in June to $2,153. Alabama wasn’t far behind with a 1.8% increase, causing wages to climb from $1,896 to $1,929, and Louisana saw a jump of 1.5%, with travel nurse salaries rising from $2,037 to $2,068.

Notably, all three states have below-average travel RN pay, which has been the case for at least the past year. Although the July increase does little to make these states competitive on pay, it does bring them closer to the national average. The table below shows the wage increase data for these three states.

States Where Travel Nurse Salaries Decreased

Roughly half of states — 24 to be exact — saw travel nurse wages fall at least 1% in July. Washington recorded the biggest travel RN salary decrease. The Evergreen State saw wages decline 3.4% from $2,437 to $2,355. Despite the decrease, Washington’s average wage remains $80 per week above the national average. On the other hand, Montana's 3.1% pay decline from $2,334 in June to $2,262 in July moved the Treasure State to a wage position just below the national average. 

California and Alaska also stood out among states with significant salary drops, with both posting wage declines of 3%. California and Alaska typically have among the highest travel nurse wages in the nation, and they maintained those positions with the highest and second-highest pay, respectively, despite having another decline in July. California’s average pay was $2,896 in July, while Alaska’s was $2,821.

The table below records the salary in the 24 states where wages fell by 1% or more.

States Where Travel Nurse Salaries Stayed the Same

In July, wages in 23 out of the 50 states experienced minor fluctuations within a relatively small band of less than 1% up or down. However, with the overall decrease in wages, just 6 of those 23 states recorded a slight increase or no change in wages, while 17 saw wages decline slightly. The table below records the salary changes for those 23 states.

Schedule a Demo to Learn How Vivian Can Support Your Hiring

With travel nurse wages having fallen further below their January 2020 levels in real inflation-adjusted dollars, the job of travel nursing is in a bit of a transition. What may entice nurses to such roles today has less to do with pay premiums and more to do with other opportunities, such as seeing other parts of the country while still earning a paycheck, meeting new colleagues and exploring how other health systems operate. Vivian is here to provide guidance on how to hire travel nurses in this environment as well as how to fill staff roles. Schedule a demo today to learn more.

Average salary data based on travel RN jobs posted on Vivian Health during the complete month of June 2024 compared to the jobs posted during the complete month of July 2024.