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Job Growth & Pay For LVNs In 2019

As 2019 comes to an end, the pay for Licensed Vocational Nurses continues to climb! While it's true that LVNs don't make as much as Registered Nurses and some other allied healthcare professionals, vocational nursing is still very rewarding, with lots of room for advancement with more education or specialty certifications.

The BLS (Bureau of Labor Statistics) last updated their OOH (Occupational Outlook Handbook) nearly 1 year ago, at the end of 2018. The average annual salary was $46,240. The true pay varies widely depending upon location, experience, nursing specialty, and more.

What's The Earning Potential For LVNs?

We're always hearing, "Location, Location, Location" aren't we? Well, just like many other professions, the pay of a Licensed Vocational Nurse has a lot to do with where they are employed. Nursing positions in larger metropolitan areas will often pay more than smaller cities. Almost without exception, nurses working in hospitals make more than those working in assisted living or skilled nursing facilities.

As with most other professions, experience counts for a LOT! Generally, the more years of experience, the higher the salary.

Many LVNs, both experienced and those who are relatively new to the job, make the decision to return to school to earn their Registered Nurse license. Most LVN to RN programs only take a couple of semesters to complete. Of course, there are many of us who enjoy working as LVNs and focus more on specialty certifications to increase our pay.

The bottom line is, 2020 is a great year for becoming an LVN!

Other Healthcare Professions that don't Require a Bachelor's Degree:

Healthcare Occupation
Average Annual Salary
Diagnostic Medical Sonographer
$67,000
Surgical Technologist
$47,300
Dental Hygienist
$74,820
Nuclear Medicine Technologist
$76,820
Ultrasound Technician
$67,080
Radiologic Technician
$61,240


Metro Area Annual Salary Hourly Rate TOP 10% HOURLY
Abilene $46,546 $22.37 $28.75
Amarillo $48,908 $23.51 $29.45
Austin-San Marcos-Round Rock $48,166 $23.13 $29.05
Port Arthur-Beaumont $47,500 $22.83 $28.85
Brownsville $48,196 $25.75 $29.71
Bryan-College Station $43,254 $23.10 $29.57
GET INFORMATION ON LVN PROGRAMS NEAR YOU
Metro Area Annual Salary Hourly Rate TOP 10% HOURLY
Corpus Christi $50,883 $27.18 $30.43
Arlington-Dallas-Fort Worth $47,721 $25.49 $32.10
Dallas-Irving-Plano Metropolitan Area $49,496 $26.44 $32.74
El Paso Metropolitan Area $47,990 $25.63 $28.57
Arlington-Fort Worth Metropolitan Area $48,652 $25.98 $32.10
Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land $49,024 $26.18 $33.87

Further LVN/LPN Information

Metro Area Annual Salary Hourly Rate TOP 10% HOURLY
Fort Hood-Killeen-Temple $49,777 $26.59 $30.94
Laredo $50,102 $26.76 $28.57
Longview $45,430 $24.26 $29.38
Lubbock $47,772 $25.51 $29.12
McAllen-Mission-Edinburg $45,836 $24.48 $26.14
Midland Area $50,608 $27.03 $32.66


OTHER HEALTHCARE CAREERS

Metro Area Annual Salary Hourly Rate TOP 10% HOURLY
Odessa Area $49,935 $26.67 $33.22
San Angelo Area $46,558 $24.87 $29.66
San Antonio-New Braunfels Area $46,144 $24.64 $30.30
Denison-Sherman $47,196 $25.21 $30.37
Tyler Area $44,545 $23.79 $28.65
Victoria Area $46,925 $25.06 $30.06


Metro Area Annual Salary Hourly Rate TOP 10% HOURLY
Waco Area $44,282 $23.65 $28.50
Wichita Falls Area $44,831 $23.94 $28.89
Nonmetro Area of Northwestern Texas $44,280 $23.65 $26.95
Nonmetro Area of North Central Texas $49,000 $26.17 $29.25
Nonmetro Area of Eastern Texas $44,048 $23.53 $28.05
Nonmetro Area of Central Texas $47,615 $25.43 $29.10
Nonmetro Area of Southern Texas $46,819 $25.01 $28.85
Nonmetro Area of Gulf Coast Texas $48,700 $26.08 $29.95

OTHER HEALTHCARE CAREERS