Insights / Hardest metros by occupation / California
10 metros where Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses are hardest to fill
Keep California San Jose near $95,320 so the comparison stays on the table.
Show California Portland wage $83,510 rather than a round number from memory.
Name California Seattle wage $85,690 before a national midpoint replaces it.
Put California Washington wage $75,860 ahead of the posting you want.
Each metro
1San Jose, CA
- Score
- 7.6
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.70
- Jobs per 1,000
- 2.898
- Metro median
- $95,320
- Pay ratio
- 1.48
2Portland, OR
- Score
- 7.5
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.45
- Jobs per 1,000
- 1.861
- Metro median
- $83,510
- Pay ratio
- 1.30
3Seattle, WA
- Score
- 7.5
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.40
- Jobs per 1,000
- 1.665
- Metro median
- $85,690
- Pay ratio
- 1.33
4Washington, DC
- Score
- 7.5
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.55
- Jobs per 1,000
- 2.285
- Metro median
- $75,860
- Pay ratio
- 1.18
5San Francisco, CA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.89
- Jobs per 1,000
- 3.706
- Metro median
- $94,310
- Pay ratio
- 1.46
6Boston, MA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.75
- Jobs per 1,000
- 3.111
- Metro median
- $82,190
- Pay ratio
- 1.28
7Phoenix, AZ
- Score
- 7.3
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.45
- Jobs per 1,000
- 1.875
- Metro median
- $78,080
- Pay ratio
- 1.21
8Providence, RI
- Score
- 7.2
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.85
- Jobs per 1,000
- 3.562
- Metro median
- $78,990
- Pay ratio
- 1.23
9New York, NY
- Score
- 7.2
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.82
- Jobs per 1,000
- 3.415
- Metro median
- $75,910
- Pay ratio
- 1.18
10Denver, CO
- Score
- 7.2
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.40
- Jobs per 1,000
- 1.678
- Metro median
- $75,810
- Pay ratio
- 1.18
Ranked table
Swipe the table sideways. The same figures are in the blocks above.
| Rank | Metro | Score | Band | Location quotient | Jobs per 1,000 | Metro median | Pay ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Jose, CA | 7.6 | Hard | 0.70 | 2.898 | $95,320 | 1.48 |
| 2 | Portland, OR | 7.5 | Hard | 0.45 | 1.861 | $83,510 | 1.30 |
| 3 | Seattle, WA | 7.5 | Hard | 0.40 | 1.665 | $85,690 | 1.33 |
| 4 | Washington, DC | 7.5 | Hard | 0.55 | 2.285 | $75,860 | 1.18 |
| 5 | San Francisco, CA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.89 | 3.706 | $94,310 | 1.46 |
| 6 | Boston, MA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.75 | 3.111 | $82,190 | 1.28 |
| 7 | Phoenix, AZ | 7.3 | Hard | 0.45 | 1.875 | $78,080 | 1.21 |
| 8 | Providence, RI | 7.2 | Hard | 0.85 | 3.562 | $78,990 | 1.23 |
| 9 | New York, NY | 7.2 | Hard | 0.82 | 3.415 | $75,910 | 1.18 |
| 10 | Denver, CO | 7.2 | Hard | 0.40 | 1.678 | $75,810 | 1.18 |
Takeaways
- State California San Francisco as $94,310 so local pay stays visible.
- Give California Boston figure $82,190 and the figure stays beside the title.
- Read California Phoenix as $78,080 ahead of the compensation review.
- Take California Providence at $78,990 so the offer letter names the figure.
For recruiters
- Leave California New York at $75,910 before the range goes out.
- Give California San Jose figure $95,320 inside the Hiring Pack on the req.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Related hiring pages
Methodology
Rows are the scored metro pages for Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses (29-2061) with the highest public market difficulty score, up to 10. Metros under 500 workers are not scored. A metro page is scored only when OEWS employment for that occupation is at least 500. Below that, the page stays up and is left off this ranking. Postsecondary teaching occupations and medical scientists are left off even when they are scored. Nominal weights, before a missing shortage match is rescaled, are projected openings divided by 2025 employment 18%, projected growth 22%, the metro median divided by the U.S. median 40%, how common the occupation is locally compared with the country 8% (the location-quotient column; a lower figure means a thinner local bench), a matching HRSA shortage designation 8%, and statewide all-industry JOLTS for December 2025 4%. Bands are Standard under 4, Elevated from 4 up to 7, and Hard at 7 and above. The California total-nonfarm job openings rate for December 2025 is 3.6. The U.S. rate is 4.0. Both are all-industry JOLTS rates. The article is tagged to California because that state holds the leading metro, so the publishing calendar does not stack it with another California article the same day. Rounded figures in the prose: $95,320 is stated as about $95.3K. a comparison of 1.48 is stated as 48 percent. $64,400 is stated as about $64.4K.
Sources
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics · May 2025
- BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, total nonfarm · December 2025
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