Hello reader, Welcome to this informative article about the Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Salary!
You will learn how several factors like skill level, location, and years of experience can either increase or in some cases slightly reduce how much you make as a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner.
After you finish reading this article, you will understand how much a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner makes in different cities, how to boost your salary as a PCNP, and the factors that influence the varying salaries.
Here are the topics we will cover in this article:
- Factors Impacting Primary Care Practitioner Salary
- Best Paying Related Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Jobs
Here it begins!
Introduction
Primary Care Nurse Practitioners work in less stressful environments than other Nursing professionals.
They hardly deal with emergencies and have predictable schedules with office hours, and this is why their salaries are also different from the other Nurse Practitioners.
The national average salary for Primary Care Nurse Practitioners is $103,614 annually or $50 hourly, according to 2021 statistics by ZipRecruiter.
The highest-earning Primary Care Nurse Practitioners can earn up to $209,500.
The 75th percentile of Primary Care Nurse Practitioners earns $127,500, while the 25th Percentile of these Nurses earns $66,500.
Still, the average pay for Primary Care Nurse Practitioners varies a lot which means various advancement opportunities are determined by years of experience, location, level of skill, and other factors.
Factors Impacting Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Salary
Various factors impact Primary Care Nurse Salaries in the United States, and they are as follows:
Skill Level
PCNPs with a wide array of skills will definitely earn more compared to those with basic skills only.
The skill level will go hand in hand with the level of education because skill comes with education, which also features hands-on experience to complete any Nursing Program successfully.
A Primary Care Nurse Practitioner needs to acquire additional skills to aid in the day-to-day operations in the Healthcare facilities and remain an important asset.
Employers value Primary Care Nurses with these additional skills and offer more compensation packages, especially for Nurses with skills such as Telemetry, Women’s Health, Triage, Acute Care, Patient Education, Gerontology, and Medicine/Surgery.
Acquiring additional certifications is important because it increases your skill level and improves employers’ salary packages once you are short-listed for those Nurse Practitioner jobs.
Consider enrolling in the appropriate Nurse Practitioner Programs and following the right career path to earn additional skills.
Location Where You Work
Your location matters a lot.
Some states pay higher Nurse salaries than others.
This is mainly because of a higher standard of living in some states.
If you are considering taking a job in a higher-paying state, consider shouldering the higher living costs too.
A PCNP might earn higher in Washington, DC, but when they move to a state like Mississippi, their salary might reduce to almost half of what they earned in Washington.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics survey data, Nurses working in a hospital in California will earn an hourly pay of $43.68.
When the same Nurses move to Dallas, their pay is reduced, and they can earn $39.93 hourly.
The top-paying states for Primary Care Nurse Practitioners are Washington, California, New York, Texas, Ohio, and Illinois.
Most of them offer additional health benefits such as Dental, Medical, and Vision, beating the national average.
Here are the rates that different cities pay their Primary Care Nurse Practitioners according to an Indeed survey:
City/State | Average Annual Salary |
Bronx, New York | $136,507 |
Seattle, Washington | $101,417 |
San Francisco, California | $103,501 |
Cleveland, Ohio | $98,344 |
Vancouver, Washington | $93,060 |
Chicago, Illinois | $74,913 |
San Antonio, Texas | $73,026 |
The above cities have average salaries that are higher compared to the national average.
Moving to these cities offers great opportunities for economic advancement as a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner.
Still, it is wise that even as you consider moving to these cities with higher pay for PCNPs, let your forefront factor be a lower cost of living in the state or city of your choice.
Your employer mainly determines the amount of salary you receive.
Most of these employers have been in the industry for a long time and are reputed for the best Healthcare.
If your employer is a hospital, you are bound to make more hourly than your counterparts who work in Outpatient Facilities, Long-Term Care, Home Care Settings, or Physician Offices.
Here are some of the top employers for Primary Care Nurse Practitioners in the U.S and how much they pay:
Employer | Annual Salary |
WakeMed (29 salary reports) | $216,210 |
Oscar Health (9 salary reports) | $169,290 |
KPG HealthCare (16 salary reports) | $149, 429 |
Sutter Health (14 salary reports) | $148,603 |
Florence (19 salary reports) | $144,633 |
Years Of Experience
The years that you have worked as a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner will determine a lot how much your salary will be.
If you work in the same place for many years, your salary and benefits are bound to be higher.
Employers will also consider candidates with more years of experience and offer them higher salary rates than entry-level candidates.
Registered Nurses with an Advanced Practice experience of more than 10 years will have a higher salary and more benefits, no doubt.
Best Paying Related Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Jobs
There are various jobs related to the Primary Care Nursing Specialty that pay more annually than most Primary Care Nurse Salaries.
You can consider pursuing these related jobs if you have the relevant skills on top of your Primary Care Nurse Practioner skills.
Great examples of these job titles are:
- Direct Primary Care Physician
- Physical Therapist
- Medical Assistant
- Advantage Care Physician
- Primary Care Physician
- Adult-Gerontology Primary Care NP
The above jobs have a salary range of between $50,919 and $103,390, which exceeds the average Primary Care NP Salary.
Once you attain the qualifications for these positions, you can get hired in any of these Primary Care Nurse positions, guaranteeing you more pay than the average Primary Care Nurse Practitioner job.
Boosting Your Primary Care Nurse Practioner Salary
You can also decide to earn more because you can improve your salary.
Here are some helpful things you can do:
Improve Your Skill Level
You can further your education and learn the most sought-after skills to make you competitive in the job market or qualify for promotions that come with higher pay.
Here are some of the skills you might want to improve:
- Diagnosis
- Proper treatment
- Patient assessment
- Medication prescription, and side effect monitoring
- Patient education
- Patient care coordination
This is a very effective way to inspire a pay raise.
Be that consistent, top-notch performer, and keep improving your work delivery.
Stay at par with the current Healthcare trends, and collaborate and inspire new ideas in your coworkers.
Your supervisor or employer is bound to note such high levels of professionalism, and they are highly likely to raise your salary, or when you ask for a rise, they will grant you your request.
Embrace New Challenges And Responsibilities
This is another excellent way to increase your PCNP Salary.
You can shoulder additional responsibilities by taking on a larger patient load, training new Primary Care Nurse Practitioners, or taking on leadership roles such as becoming Committee Head.
Your diligence will speak for you, and you can then confidently talk about a salary increase with your employer.
Conclusion
As you negotiate your salary, you can now understand the economics behind the Nurse Practitioner’s salary ranges in different cities or related specialties.
We have looked at the important factors that determine the salary rates, the top-paying employers, Primary Care Nurse related jobs, and cities.
We have looked at the various ways to boost your PCNP Salary.
We have noted that you can add your skills by acquiring the relevant certifications or education to earn more than the average Nurse Practitioner’s salary.
A Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practioner’s Salary is different from the Adult-Gerontology Primary Care NP Salary or the Home Care Nurse Practitioner’s salary because of the factors discussed above.
Sometimes the bureaucracy and the lack of straightforwardness among some healthcare employers can be frustrating.
However, with a better understanding of healthcare economics, you will achieve more satisfaction with your current position as you prepare to negotiate a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Salary when looking for new Primary Care Nurse Practitioner jobs.
FAQs
How much do Primary Care Nurse Practitioners make?
The national average salary of these Nurse Practitioners is $103,614 annually or $50 hourly as per a 2021 survey conducted by ZipRecruiter. The highest-paid PCNP earns around $209,500, and such Nurses are usually the ones who work for top employers in major cities in the U.S.
How much does a Pediatric PCNP make?
Most Pediatric Nurse Practitioners earn an average salary of $7,830 monthly or $93,960 annually. This Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Salary amount applies to Pediatric PCNPs with one to four years of experience. Factors like years of experience and state of residence, among others, will be major determiners.
Is Primary Care NP stressful?
Not really because these Practitioners hardly work under pressure and never deal with emergencies but work as normal office workers. Still, possibilities of stress happening exist because the Primary Care Nurse still works with sick and injured patients regularly, which is a great responsibility.
How do Primary Care Registered Nurses rate their jobs?
According to a survey conducted by PayScale and the 490 responses garnered, the Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Specialty has a rating of 3.71 out of 5 pertaining to job satisfaction. The Payscale survey concludes that Primary Care Registered Nurses feel very content with their career choice.
Is a Primary Care Nurse Practitioner a Good Nursing Career?
A major advantage of being a Nurse Practitioner is that it is one of the careers with great job security. Job security comes about because of the shortage of Physicians, which means more PCNPs are getting hired in most states and earning attractive incomes.
Which States have the Highest-paid Primary Care Nurse Practitioners?
According to the data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, California leads the pack as the state with the highest-earning Nurse Practitioners. Other states like New York, Massachusetts, Washington, New Jersey, Minnesota, and Wyoming also have high-earning PCNPs with an average salary of more than $90,000 annually.
How much does a Psychiatric PCNP in San Francisco, CA earn?
The average Psychiatric PCNP in San Francisco earns $103,501, which is 32% more than the National Average Psychiatric Primary Care NP Salary of $78,410. This salary is also way more than the average salary in other cities like Denver, Salt Lake City, and Portland.
Does Nursing Education Determine the Primary Care NP Salary?
Education qualifications are what employers look at and base their salary allocations on. You must acquire a BSN, then a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), or a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP). Acquire relevant certifications to earn an American Association Of Nurse Practitioners membership for access to networking opportunities.
