Registered Nurses in Illinois
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$71,752
after federal, FICA and Illinois tax
Tax takes
$24,238
25.3% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$72,583
Illinois costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Illinois — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$95,990
Kept after tax
$71,752
Worth in national money
$72,583
State rank
21
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Middling, nationally. Illinois pays registered nurses around $95,990 at the midpoint, 21 of 51 states. The interesting numbers on this page are the two below it.
- Locally, this pays well. Among 494 occupations Illinois reports, registered nurses comes in at 94 — comfortably in the upper quarter.
- No great distortion either way. Illinois costs about what the country costs, so from $95,990, take-home of $71,752 is worth roughly $72,583 in national money. The average lands at $94,360, below the middle of the range.
- For registered nurses the Illinois median is $95,990, ranking 21 of 51 states reporting. Mid-band nominal positions are the ones most frequently reordered by the adjustments, because no large wage premium exists to absorb a state's tax or price level.
- Registered nurses ranks 94 of 494 occupations by median in Illinois, in the top quartile. Within-state position is largely independent of national position, so this holds regardless of how the state compares to others for the same work.
- Price parity in Illinois is near the national base, so for registered nurses, whose median is $95,990, the adjusted figure of $72,583 differs little from $71,752 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $94,360 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Registered Nurses
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $69,170 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $95,990 |
| Top tenth earn over | $118,190 |
| This salary | $95,990 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Illinois | $71,752 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $76,359 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$5,995 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $89,442 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$8,282 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 99 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of registered nurses in Illinois earn under $95,990 and half over. The published range runs $69,170 at the tenth percentile to $118,190 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- In Illinois the take-home figure of $71,752, from $95,990, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 94 of 494 occupations here.
- One number stands for prices across all of Illinois, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $72,583, the adjusted value of that $95,990 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 94 of 494 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for registered nurses in Illinois, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $69,170 to $118,190; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Take-home for Illinois is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $71,752 from $95,990. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 94 of 494 locally.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Illinois, so $72,583 — the adjusted value of that $95,990 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 94 of 494 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Most of these jobs pay within a close range — $69,170 at the tenth percentile, $118,190 at the ninetieth.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Illinois sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $72,583 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Three of them are federal and one is not. After income tax, Social Security, Medicare and Illinois's own levy, $71,752 remains.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($69,170 to $118,190) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Illinois rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Illinois's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $72,583 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $71,752 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Illinois income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.