Registered Nurses salary in Fort Wayne, IN
Median pay for registered nurses in Fort Wayne, IN: $74,730/yr
Typical range (10th–90th percentile): $61,790 – $102,380 · about 6,630 employed locally
Below the typical metro median ($80,810) by −$6,080 (-8%).
What it's really worth in Fort Wayne
With Fort Wayne's cost of living at 90 (US=100), that $74,730 has the buying power of about $83,266 in an average-cost US metro.
Local context: median household income $66,758 · median home $259,816 · median rent $1,264/mo.
How Fort Wayne ranks for this job
On raw pay, Fort Wayne, IN is 158th of the 187 metros we hold registered nurses wages for. Once Fort Wayne's cost of living is applied, it ranks 135th.
Pay here goes further than the headline number suggests — Fort Wayne is one of the places where registered nurses gain ground in real terms, because local costs are low relative to what the job pays.
What that salary buys in Fort Wayne
A median home in Fort Wayne, IN costs $259,816 — about 3.5× this salary, against a typical US metro figure of 4.7×. Buying is more attainable here than in the average metro on this income.
Median rent of $1,264/mo works out at 20% of gross pay — inside the conventional 30% affordability ceiling.
Where registered nurses earn more
Pay on its own is only half the picture, so each row shows what rent costs there relative to Fort Wayne.
| Metro | Median pay | vs Fort Wayne | Rent vs Fort Wayne |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vallejo, CA | $187,080 | +150% | 1.9× |
| San Francisco, CA | $181,240 | +143% | 2.6× |
| San Jose, CA | $179,210 | +140% | 2.9× |
| Sacramento, CA | $157,810 | +111% | 1.8× |
Same job elsewhere in IN
| Metro | Median pay | vs Fort Wayne | Rent vs Fort Wayne |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Bend, IN | $90,140 | +21% | 1.1× |
| Indianapolis, IN | $80,290 | +7% | 1.2× |
| Evansville, IN | $78,190 | +5% | 0.9× |
Staying in IN keeps state income tax and licensing the same, which makes these the most directly comparable moves.
Who hires registered nurses around Fort Wayne
Large local employers in sectors that typically employ this role.
- Parkview Health · Healthcare
Other jobs in Fort Wayne
Source: US BLS OEWS (May 2023) median annual wage; cost of living from BEA; home price and rent from Zillow; household income from US Census ACS. Rankings are across the 187 metros we hold wage data for in this occupation. Estimates for guidance only. See methodology.