Highest Paying Nurse Practitioner Jobs – Which NPs Make the Most in 2023?

Emergency Room NP

Emergency room NPs work in emergency rooms across the country. They are responsible for assessing and diagnosing patients, providing treatments, ordering tests, and managing the resources to properly care for patients. 

ERNPs provide direct care, including taking vital signs, administering medications, conducting wound and fracture evaluations, treating lacerations with sutures, and performing intravenous (IV) line insertion. They can also help coordinate patients’ care from admission to discharge, including communication with specialists like surgeons or cardiologists when needed.

• 10th percentile: $106,311
• 25th percentile: $115,879
• 50th  percentile (median): $126,388
• 75th percentile: $140,557
• 90th percentile: $153,457

Cardiology NP

Cardiology NPs are experts in heart and cardiovascular disease. They evaluate, diagnose, and manage cardiac conditions such as hypertension, coronary artery disease, arrhythmias, heart failure, and vascular disorders. Cardiology NPs often perform stress tests, Holter monitoring, and electrocardiograms (EKGs). Providing pre-operative and post-operative care for heart surgery patients is also within their scope of practice. They also educate patients on lifestyle changes to improve heart health and reduce their risk of cardiac events.

• 10th percentile: $107,784
• 25th percentile: $114,330
• 50th  percentile (median): $121,520
• 75th percentile: $129,660
• 90th percentile: $137,071

Orthopedic NP

Orthopedic NPs specialize in musculoskeletal care and can assess, diagnose and treat orthopedic injuries and conditions. They collaborate with orthopedic surgeons to care for those who have musculoskeletal problems, ranging from sports injuries and fractures to degenerative joint disease. 

Orthopedic NPs are trained in patient education, wound care management, medical imaging interpretation, and rehabilitation techniques. They may also assist in surgical procedures or provide perioperative nursing support during an operation.

• 10th percentile: $105,089
• 25th percentile: $112,299
• 50th  percentile (median): $120,218
• 75th percentile: $127,830
• 90th percentile: $134,760

Oncology NP

Oncology NPs work with cancer patients, including diagnosing and treating cancer-related illnesses. They are trained to recognize signs of cancer and to treat their patients both physically and emotionally. They often collaborate with oncologists and surgeons to develop comprehensive treatment plans for their patients and provide patient education about the disease process, possible side effects of treatments, and ways to manage them. Counseling on lifestyle changes to improve general health is critical to this job. Oncology NPs may also administer chemotherapy drugs, referring patients for further testing or surgery if needed.

• 10th percentile: $106,828
• 25th percentile: $113,201
• 50th  percentile (median): $120,201
• 75th percentile: $124,601
• 90th percentile: $128,607

Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP)

Family nurse practitioners (FNPs) are the ultimate primary care providers. They work with individuals, families, and communities to assess, diagnose and manage acute and chronic health issues while promoting healthy lifestyle choices. They order tests, interpret results, and prescribe medications when necessary. 

A large component of their jobs is to provide preventive care services such as immunizations, physicals, health screenings, and patient education. FNPs also act as care coordinators for their patients and will collaborate with physicians and other healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive care.

• 10th percentile: $102,960
• 25th percentile: $110,790
• 50th  percentile (median): $119,390
• 75th percentile: $129,700
• 90th percentile: $139,087

Acute Care NP

Acute care nurse practitioners care for acute or critically ill patients. They manage the diagnosing and treating injuries or sudden illnesses, such as heart attacks, stroke, and sepsis. Acute care NPs work in various settings, including emergency departments, urgent care, and intensive care units. Typical duties include physical assessments, psychological evaluations, ordering tests, interpreting results, prescribing medications, and developing treatment plans. 

• 10th percentile: $104,949
• 25th percentile: $111,059
• 50th  percentile (median): $117,770
• 75th percentile: $126,235
• 90th percentile: $133,941

Surgical NP

Preoperative and postoperative care to patients undergoing surgery can be delivered by surgical nurse practitioners (NPs). They assess the patient before surgery, develop a plan of care based on their assessment, evaluate the patient during and after surgery, monitor the progress of surgical procedures, and provide follow-up care to ensure that recovery goes smoothly. 

While they cannot perform surgery independently, they can assist a physician who is performing surgery. Educating patients about their condition and the potential risks involved with undergoing surgery is also a big part of the job for surgical NPs.

• 10th percentile: $92,010
• 25th percentile: $103,300
• 50th  percentile (median): $115,700
• 75th percentile: $124,700
• 90th percentile: $132,894

Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner (PMHNP)

Psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) can diagnose, treat, and help prevent mental health disorders. They provide comprehensive care to patients experiencing emotional difficulties, psychiatric issues, and family or relationship problems. PMHNPs conduct physical and mental assessments, diagnose medical conditions, create individualized treatment plans, prescribe medications, administer psychotherapy and other counseling services, provide patient education, and collaborate with other healthcare providers to coordinate patient care.

• 10th percentile: $91,004
• 25th percentile: $102,030
• 50th  percentile (median): $114,140
• 75th percentile: $125,190
• 90th percentile: $135,250

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner (PNP)

Infants, children, and adolescents can receive primary health care services from pediatric nurse practitioners (PNPs). Duties can include diagnosing and treating common childhood illnesses, providing preventive care through vaccinations, performing physical assessments and developmental screenings, counseling patients and families on health promotion and disease prevention techniques, managing chronic health conditions like asthma or allergies, ordering diagnostic tests such as X-rays or lab work, interpreting test results and prescribing medications when appropriate. 

• 10th percentile: $99,488
• 25th percentile: $106,333
• 50th  percentile (median): $113,852
• 75th percentile: $119,484
• 90th percentile: $124,611

Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner (WHNP)

Women’s health nurse practitioners (WHNPs) care for women throughout their lifespans, from adolescence through menopause. WHNPs provide comprehensive healthcare services, including diagnosing and treating common conditions such as urinary tract infections (UTI), pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), and hypertension. 

They can also perform breast exams, Pap smears, prescribe medications to treat various ailments, counsel patients about contraception methods, provide prenatal and postpartum care for pregnant patients, manage chronic conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure, and order diagnostic tests, ultrasounds, and mammograms. 

• 10th percentile: $99,315
• 25th percentile: $105,544
• 50th  percentile (median): $112,385
• 75th percentile: $120,556
• 90th percentile: $127,996

Pain Management NP

Many chronic pain sufferers need ongoing care from specialists such as pain management NPs. While much of the work in this field is to diagnose, treat and manage acute and chronic pain, pain management NPs provide a wide range of other healthcare services such as ordering tests, interpreting results, prescribing medicine other than pain medication, regulating opioid use if needed, working together with other healthcare professionals to ensure coordinated care,  referring to specialists, and leading interdisciplinary teams in intervention. 

A large part of the job can also include educating patients on alternative management strategies such as relaxation tactics, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and exercise. 

• 10th percentile: $91,290
• 25th percentile: $98,239
• 50th  percentile (median): $105,871
• 75th percentile: $115,014
• 90th percentile: $123,339

Adult-Gerontology Nurse Practitioner (AGNP)

Adult-gerontology nurse practitioners (AGNPs) serve as primary care providers for patients from adolescence through late adulthood. From monitoring chronic conditions and managing medications to educating patients about their health and well-being and providing emotional support during times of illness or transition, AGNPs specialize in caring for the whole patient. 

They collaborate with other healthcare professionals to ensure a holistic and comprehensive approach to patient treatment and rely on evidence-based practice and experience to deliver high-quality care.

• 10th percentile: $88,657
• 25th percentile: $95,405
• 50th  percentile (median): $102,817
• 75th percentile: $111,697
• 90th percentile: $119,781