Insights / Hardest metros by occupation / California
10 metros where Registered Nurses are hardest to fill
Registered Nurses is tightest in San Francisco, CA: score 7.6, pay about $186.6K.
The scored market where Registered Nurses looks hardest is San Francisco, CA, at 7.6 in the hard band. Pay there is about $186.6K, 91% above the national median.
Do not read San Francisco as a rarity trick for Registered Nurses: the metro has roughly a fifth fewer of these workers than a typical metro, mix figure 0.81.
This Registered Nurses list runs out at New York, NY, score 7.2, hard band.
In December 2025, all-industry openings in California were 3.6 for Registered Nurses.
Nationally the rate was 4.0.
For Registered Nurses, California sat under that.
Each metro
1San Francisco, CA
- Score
- 7.6
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.81
- Jobs per 1,000
- 17.587
- Metro median
- $186,610
- Pay ratio
- 1.91
2Los Angeles, CA
- Score
- 7.5
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.80
- Jobs per 1,000
- 17.437
- Metro median
- $135,560
- Pay ratio
- 1.39
3San Diego, CA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.86
- Jobs per 1,000
- 18.645
- Metro median
- $139,520
- Pay ratio
- 1.43
4San Jose, CA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.93
- Jobs per 1,000
- 20.205
- Metro median
- $216,740
- Pay ratio
- 2.22
5Bakersfield, CA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.76
- Jobs per 1,000
- 16.607
- Metro median
- $128,810
- Pay ratio
- 1.32
6Oxnard, CA
- Score
- 7.4
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.81
- Jobs per 1,000
- 17.625
- Metro median
- $131,160
- Pay ratio
- 1.34
7Sacramento, CA
- Score
- 7.3
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 1.00
- Jobs per 1,000
- 21.831
- Metro median
- $171,460
- Pay ratio
- 1.76
8Riverside, CA
- Score
- 7.3
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.95
- Jobs per 1,000
- 20.557
- Metro median
- $133,940
- Pay ratio
- 1.37
9Portland, OR
- Score
- 7.2
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.92
- Jobs per 1,000
- 20.045
- Metro median
- $130,310
- Pay ratio
- 1.34
10New York, NY
- Score
- 7.2
- Band
- Hard
- Location quotient
- 0.96
- Jobs per 1,000
- 20.833
- Metro median
- $119,720
- Pay ratio
- 1.23
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 Francisco, CA | 7.6 | Hard | 0.81 | 17.587 | $186,610 | 1.91 |
| 2 | Los Angeles, CA | 7.5 | Hard | 0.80 | 17.437 | $135,560 | 1.39 |
| 3 | San Diego, CA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.86 | 18.645 | $139,520 | 1.43 |
| 4 | San Jose, CA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.93 | 20.205 | $216,740 | 2.22 |
| 5 | Bakersfield, CA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.76 | 16.607 | $128,810 | 1.32 |
| 6 | Oxnard, CA | 7.4 | Hard | 0.81 | 17.625 | $131,160 | 1.34 |
| 7 | Sacramento, CA | 7.3 | Hard | 1.00 | 21.831 | $171,460 | 1.76 |
| 8 | Riverside, CA | 7.3 | Hard | 0.95 | 20.557 | $133,940 | 1.37 |
| 9 | Portland, OR | 7.2 | Hard | 0.92 | 20.045 | $130,310 | 1.34 |
| 10 | New York, NY | 7.2 | Hard | 0.96 | 20.833 | $119,720 | 1.23 |
Takeaways
- Staff Registered Nurses in San Francisco, CA when the score is 7.6.
- Pay there is about $186.6K. The national median is about $97.6K.
- Jobs per 1,000 in San Francisco are 17.587.
- New York, NY closes the Registered Nurses list at 7.2.
For recruiters
- Start in San Francisco, CA.
- Do not copy a national midpoint into San Francisco, CA.
Source: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025.
Related hiring pages
Methodology
Rows are the scored metro pages for Registered Nurses (29-1141) 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: $186,610 is stated as about $186.6K. a comparison of 1.91 is stated as 91 percent. $97,550 is stated as about $97.6K.
Sources
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics · May 2025
- BLS Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, total nonfarm · December 2025
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