Registered Nurses salary in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD
Official BLS OEWS May 2025 pay for Registered Nurses in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area — and the estimated take-home pay on the median wage under 2026 Maryland tax rules.
The figures
The median Registered Nurses in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area earns $99,550 a year ($47.86 an hour), according to the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates (full citation in Sources). The middle half of Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD earn between $83,690 and $108,030 a year. At the ends of the distribution, the lowest-paid 10 percent earn $77,600 or less and the top 10 percent earn $125,020 or more. BLS estimates 30,930 Registered Nurses jobs in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD area — 22.799 of every 1,000 jobs in the area, a location quotient of 1.05 (about the same concentration as the nation). That is 0.9% of all Registered Nurses employment in the United States (3,379,720 jobs nationally). By employment, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD is the #19 largest of the 25 covered metro areas for Registered Nurses. In aggregate, Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD earn about $3.07 billion a year (BLS employment multiplied by the mean wage). At the mean wage, the engine's take-home is $74,203.18 a year, so the aggregate take-home of Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Registered Nurses is about $2.30 billion. BLS reports a relative standard error of 2.1% for this employment estimate. Ranked by median pay, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD stands #18 of the 25 metro areas covered on this site for Registered Nurses. By employment, Registered Nurses is the #3 largest of the 30 covered occupations in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD. Placed against the national distribution for Registered Nurses, the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD median of $99,550 falls between the national median ($97,550) and the national 75th percentile ($112,350). Across all occupations, the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD median is $59,070 a year — Registered Nurses pay is 68.5% above the area's overall median.
Wages in detail
| Wage level | Hourly | Annual |
|---|---|---|
| Mean | $47.64 | $99,100 |
| 10th percentile | $37.31 | $77,600 |
| 25th percentile | $40.24 | $83,690 |
| Median (50th percentile) | $47.86 | $99,550 |
| 75th percentile | $51.94 | $108,030 |
| 90th percentile | $60.11 | $125,020 |
What the wage distribution says
The top 10 percent of Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD earn 1.6 times what the bottom 10 percent earn ($125,020 against $77,600). The middle half spans $24,340 — from $83,690 to $108,030. Hourly, the 90th percentile ($60.11) is 1.61 times the 10th ($37.31). In the upper half of the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD distribution, the 75th percentile wage of $108,030 takes home $79,977.56 and the 90th percentile wage of $125,020 takes home $90,976.38 — $10,998.82 more net for $16,990 more gross. Against the median take-home of $74,498.48, the top decile keeps 1.22 times as much. The mean wage of $99,100 sits 0.5% below the median: the average is held down by the lower end of the distribution in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD. Among the 30 covered occupations in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD, Registered Nurses ranks #4 by median pay. In the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD wage ladder of covered occupations, Registered Nurses sits between Project Management Specialists at $103,720 and Business Operations Specialists, All Other at $98,060. Registered Nurses accounts for 2.3% of all employment in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area. The average covered metro employs 55,027 Registered Nurses; Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD employs 0.6 times that.
Take-home pay on the median wage in Maryland
Single filer, no dependents, no pre-tax contributions, paid biweekly, a full year of W-2 wages in Maryland; city and local taxes are not included:
| Gross pay (annual) | $99,550.00 |
|---|---|
| Federal income tax | $13,071.00 |
| Social Security (FICA) | $6,172.10 |
| Medicare (FICA) | $1,443.48 |
| Maryland income tax | $4,365.00 |
| Total deductions | $25,051.52 |
| Net pay (annual) | $74,498.48 |
| Net pay per biweekly paycheck | $2,865.33 |
| Total deduction rate | 25.16% of gross |
At the median, $74,498.48 of the $99,550 gross is kept ($2,865.33 per paycheck) — a deduction rate of 25.16%. The deduction rate moves with pay: 22.55% at the 10th percentile, 23.41% at the 25th percentile, 25.97% at the 75th percentile, 27.23% at the 90th percentile. Between the 25th and 75th percentile wages, annual take-home rises by $15,883.24 on a gross rise of $24,340.
The same engine at the other published points of the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD wage distribution:
| Wage point | Net per year | Net per paycheck | Deduction rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile ($77,600) | $60,099.14 | $2,311.51 | 22.55% |
| 25th percentile ($83,690) | $64,094.32 | $2,465.17 | 23.41% |
| Median ($99,550) | $74,498.48 | $2,865.33 | 25.16% |
| 75th percentile ($108,030) | $79,977.56 | $3,076.06 | 25.97% |
| 90th percentile ($125,020) | $90,976.38 | $3,499.09 | 27.23% |
Across the published distribution, take-home pay runs from $60,099.14 a year at the 10th percentile to $90,976.38 at the 90th — a spread of $30,877.24 of net pay inside one occupation and one metro area.
For scale: across all occupations, the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD median wage of $59,070 takes home $47,200.74 a year ($1,815.41 per paycheck, deduction rate 20.09%). The Registered Nurses median take-home of $74,498.48 sits $27,297.74 (above that area-wide figure.
Run your own numbers
Your own withholding depends on your Form W-4, your benefits and your other income — run your exact figures through the calculator:
Against the national median
Nationally, the median Registered Nurses earns $97,550 a year ($46.90 an hour). The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD median of $99,550 is $2,000 (2.1%) above the national median.
The means rank the area differently: $99,100 a year in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD against $101,420 nationally, a gap of $2,320 (2.3%).
Set against the whole local market, the Registered Nurses 90th percentile of $125,020 is 90% of the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD all-occupations 90th percentile ($138,650), and its 10th percentile of $77,600 is 227% of the area-wide 10th ($34,230).
| Median annual | Median hourly | Mean annual | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | $99,550 | $47.86 | $99,100 |
| United States | $97,550 | $46.90 | $101,420 |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
$99,550 a year ($47.86 an hour), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates. The mean is $99,100 a year. Ranked by median pay, Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD stands #18 of the 25 covered metro areas for this occupation.
What is the take-home pay on $99,550 in Maryland?
About $74,498.48 a year ($2,865.33 per biweekly paycheck) for a single filer with no dependents and no pre-tax contributions, under 2026 rules — a total deduction rate of 25.16% of gross. At the 75th percentile wage of $108,030, take-home is $79,977.56.
How does pay in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD compare with the national median for Registered Nurses?
The Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD median of $99,550 is $2,000 (2.1%) above the national median of $97,550 a year. At the top of the distribution, the local 90th percentile is $125,020, against a national 90th percentile of $137,470.
How much do the top 10% of Registered Nurses earn in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
$125,020 a year or more ($60.11 an hour or more), per the BLS OEWS May 2025 estimates.
What is the take-home pay at the 90th percentile for Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
On $125,020 a year, the engine gives a take-home of $90,976.38 a year ($3,499.09 per biweekly paycheck) in Maryland under the same assumptions — a deduction rate of 27.23%.
How many Registered Nurses jobs are there in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
BLS estimates 30,930 Registered Nurses jobs in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD metro area — 22.799 of every 1,000 jobs in the area.
How concentrated are Registered Nurses jobs in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
The location quotient is 1.05 — about the same concentration as the nation. A quotient of 1.0 means the occupation's share of local employment equals its national share.
How much does take-home pay vary for Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
From $60,099.14 a year at the 10th percentile wage ($77,600) to $90,976.38 at the 90th ($125,020), under the same single-filer assumptions in Maryland.
What is the total wage bill for Registered Nurses in Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD?
About $3.07 billion a year — the BLS employment estimate of 30,930 multiplied by the mean wage of $99,100.
Sources and method
Wage data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025 estimates (released May 15, 2026), retrieved October 27, 2026 — bls.gov/oes. OEWS figures are survey estimates for May 2025, not job offers. Take-home pay is computed by this site's paycheck engine with 2026 federal and state rules; the method, and what the engine does not model, is documented in the paycheck methodology guide. Estimates only — not tax advice.