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Intensive Care Nurse Salary in the United States

How much does an Intensive Care Nurse make in the United States?

As of September 01, 2026, the average salary for an Intensive Care Nurse in the United States is $87,828 per year, which breaks down to an hourly rate of $42.

However, an Intensive Care Nurse's salary can vary significantly. Here’s a look at the typical salary range:

  • Top Earners (90th percentile): $105,852
  • Majority Range (25th-75th percentile): $79,624 to $97,263
  • Entry-Level (10th percentile): $72,156
Salary Factors Salary-Boosting Skills Salary by Experience Related Job Salaries Top Paying Cities Explore Related Jobs

Key Factors That Influence Intensive Care Nurse Salaries

An Intensive Care Nurse's salary isn't a fixed number. It's shaped by several important factors. Below, we'll explore how your years of experience, geographic location, education and company size can directly affect your earning potential.

How Experience Level Affects Intensive Care Nurse Salaries?

Experience is a primary driver of an Intensive Care Nurse's salary. As you build your skills and take on more complex tasks, your compensation generally increases. Here's how the average salary grows at different career stages:

  • Entry-Level (less than 1 year): $85,891
  • Early Career (1-2 years): $86,119
  • Mid-Level (2-4 years): $89,162
  • Senior-Level (5-8 years): $93,441
  • Expert (over 8 years): $93,747
Levels Salary
Entry Level Intensive Care Nurse$85,891
Intermediate Level Intensive Care Nurse$86,119
Senior Level Intensive Care Nurse$89,162
Specialist Level Intensive Care Nurse$93,441
Expert Level Intensive Care Nurse$93,747
View as Graph

How Do Intensive Care Nurse Salaries Vary from State to State?

Your salary can change significantly depending on where you work. States with a higher cost of living and strong industrial sectors often pay more to attract Intensive Care Nurses. For example, consider the average annual salaries in these key locations:
  • District of Columbia: $97,243.
  • California: $96,874.
  • Massachusetts: $95,583.

Top Paying Cities for Intensive Care Nurses

Salaries can also vary between different cities. Major metropolitan areas or cities with a high demand for technicians often offer more competitive pay. Here are a few examples of average annual salaries in different U.S. cities:

  • San Jose: $110,777
  • San Francisco: $109,564
  • Oakland: $107,255

What Skills Can Increase an Intensive Care Nurse's Salary?

Demanded Skills for the Role:

  • Planning (Mentioned in 5.95% Job Postings): An act or process of making or carrying out plans. Establishment of goals, policies, and procedures for a social or economic unit city planning business planning.
  • Acute Care (Mentioned in 5.49% Job Postings): Acute care is a branch of secondary health care where a patient receives active but short-term treatment for a severe injury or episode of illness, an urgent medical condition, or during recovery from surgery. In medical terms, care for acute health conditions is the opposite from chronic care, or longer term care. Acute care services are generally delivered by teams of health care professionals from a range of medical and surgical specialties. Acute care may require a stay in a hospital emergency department, ambulatory surgery center, urgent care centre or other short-term stay facility, along with the assistance of diagnostic services, surgery, or follow-up outpatient care in the community. Hospital-based acute inpatient care typically has the goal of discharging patients as soon as they are deemed healthy and stable. Acute care settings include emergency department, intensive care, coronary care, cardiology, neonatal intensive care, and many general areas where the patient could become acutely unwell and require stabilization and transfer to another higher dependency unit for further treatment.
  • Nursing Practice (Mentioned in 2.93% Job Postings): Nursing practice may be work experience that is direct and/or indirect patient care in clinical practice, nursing administration, education, research, or consultation in the specialty represented by the credential.
Skills Demand Percentage
Planning 5.95%
Acute Care 5.49%
Nursing Practice 2.93%
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What skills can make your compensation higher?

Mastering certain specialized skills can lead to a significant increase in pay. Here are examples of skills and the potential impact they can have on an Intensive Care Nurse's salary.

  • Telecommunications: Can increase your salary by up to 10%.
  • Staff Development: Can increase your salary by up to 7%.
  • Written Communication: Can increase your salary by up to 6%.
Skill Salary Salary % Increase
Telecommunications $96,610
10%
Staff Development $93,976
7%
Written Communication $93,097
6%
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Intensive Care Nurse Salary by Industry: Top Paying Sectors

For Intensive Care Nurse roles, the industry you choose can impact your earning potential by as much as 40% (the gap between the highest and lowest paying industries). Data shows that the highest-paying industry, Healthcare, offers compensation 20% above the average. Conversely, Intensive Care Nurse positions in Edu., Gov't. & Nonprofit typically offer lower base pay, as this sector often view Intensive Care Nurse as a support function rather than a direct revenue driver.

The top paying industry for an Intensive Care Nurse

Industry Sector Average Annual Salary Average Hourly Rate Pay vs.Avg
Healthcare$105,393$51.020%

How Education impacts an Intensive Care Nurse's Salary?

Your level of education can impact your salary potential. While many Intensive Care Nurses enter the field with a Associate's Degree degree, higher education can lead to more specialized and higher-paying roles.

According to our 100% employer-reported salary data, the median salary for an Intensive Care Nurse with a Associate's Degree is between $82,257 and $86,847).

Intensive Care Nurse Salaries by Degree Level

Typical Education for Intensive Care Nurse
Degree Level % of user with this level of education
No Diploma 0.4%
High School 1.6%
Associates 32.0%
Bachelors 59.4%
Masters 6.5%
Doctorate 0.2%
View as Graph

Intensive Care Nurse Salary: Hourly Rate, Weekly Pay, and Monthly Pay

Understanding how an Intensive Care Nurse's annual salary breaks down can help with budgeting. Below, you can see the average hourly rate, weekly pay, and monthly pay for this role. Use the buttons to switch between different pay periods.

Last Updated on September 01, 2026
$79,624
Average $87,828/year
$97,263
$6,635
Average $7,319/month
$8,105
$1,531
Average $1,689/week
$1,870
$38
Average $42/hour
$47
Annual Salary Monthly Pay Weekly Pay Hourly Wage
75th Percentile $97,263 $8,105 $1,870 $47
Average $87,828 $7,319 $1,689 $42
25th Percentile $79,624 $6,635 $1,531 $38

Most common benefits for Intensive Care Nurse

  • Social Security
  • 401 (k)
  • Disability
  • Healthcare
  • Pension
  • Time Off (days)

Common company salaries for Intensive Care Nurse

Here are companies hiring for Intensive Care Nurse and their salaries, click below for more details.

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FAQ about Intensive Care Nurse

1. What industry pays the highest salary for Intensive Care Nurse?

The Healthcare industry offers the highest average compensation for Intensive Care Nurse roles, with salaries approximately 20% above the market median.

Where Does Our Salary Data Come From?

Salary.com provides salary estimates, histograms, trends, and comparisons using data from employer job postings and third-party sources.

We offer detailed salary information across multiple percentiles for your reference. (Click here to learn Why the Salary Midpoint Formula Is Crucial for Achieving Pay Equity.)

With the most extensive online, real-time compensation data available, Salary.com helps you pinpoint your exact pay target.

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