Registered Nurses pay in Kentucky
Half of Registered Nurses in Kentucky earned more than $81,040 a year and half earned less, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (May 2025). Use the calculator to see where any salary or hourly wage ranks in plain Top % language.
Check pay for Registered Nurses in Kentucky on the calculator →
Pay distribution: Registered Nurses in Kentucky (May 2025)
Annual wages, before tax. Figures are for Registered Nurses employed in Kentucky.
| Measure | Annual pay |
|---|---|
| 10th percentile — about 1 in 10 earned less | $64,170 |
| 25th percentile — about 1 in 4 earned less | $75,670 |
| Median (50th percentile) — half earned more, half less | $81,040 |
| 75th percentile — about 3 in 4 earned less | $97,200 |
| 90th percentile — about 9 in 10 earned less | $111,750 |
| Mean (average) | $86,140 |
| Estimated employment in Kentucky | 50,300 |
What does Top % mean here?
Earning the median ($81,040) means earning more than about half of Registered Nurses in Kentucky — the Top 50%. Earning more than the 75th percentile ($97,200) means the Top 25%. Earning more than the 90th percentile ($111,750) means the Top 10%.
How the figures are read: the 10th percentile is the pay below which about 1 in 10 workers in this occupation and state fell; the 25th is about 1 in 4; the median (50th) splits workers in half; the 75th is about 3 in 4; the 90th is about 9 in 10. BLS does not publish a 95th or 99th percentile in this table, so any “Top 5%” or “Top 1%” figure is a modeled estimate, not a published BLS figure — the calculator labels modeled ranks as estimates.
State-level only. This page shows state-level pay only. On the calculator, metro dots show the state-level rank for a wage — not a metro-specific Registered Nurses rank — and county lists show typical earnings for all jobs, not Registered Nurses pay by county. No metro- or county-level Registered Nurses percentiles are shown here, because the BLS OEWS state tables used for this site do not break this occupation down to metro or county level.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median pay for Registered Nurses in Kentucky?
The median annual pay for Registered Nurses in Kentucky was $81,040 in May 2025. Half of workers in this occupation in Kentucky earned more than that, and half earned less.
What pay is in the top 25% or top 10% for Registered Nurses in Kentucky?
A pay above $97,200 was in the top 25% for Registered Nurses in Kentucky, and a pay above $111,750 was in the top 10%. Those are the published 75th- and 90th-percentile wages; BLS does not publish higher percentiles in this table, so finer top-end ranks are modeled estimates.
How many Registered Nurses work in Kentucky?
BLS estimated 50,300 people employed as Registered Nurses in Kentucky in May 2025. That is a state total; this page does not break employment down by city or county.
Registered Nurses pay in other states
Other occupations in Kentucky
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 release, via WageDex state-level wage tables (36,168 occupation–state rows). BLS figures are public domain; the WageDex compilation is CC BY 4.0, attributed to WageDex and BLS. See BLS OEWS and WageDex data.