Nurse Midwife and CRNA Salaries: Advanced Practice Nursing Pay
July 16, 2026
Advanced Practice Registered Nurses (APRNs) — including Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs), Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs), Nurse Practitioners (NPs), and Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs) — represent the highest-earning tier of the nursing profession. Their wages reflect the additional clinical training, independent practice authority, and scope of practice beyond the RN license.
Nurse Midwife Salaries
Nurse midwives provide prenatal care, attend births, and manage postpartum and gynecological care. Their wages sit well above RN wages and below physician wages — a position that reflects their master's or doctoral education and expanded scope of practice.
CRNA: The Highest-Paid Nursing Role
CRNAs — nurse anesthetists — are consistently the highest-paid nurses in BLS data. The 2–3 year master's/doctoral program beyond the RN, the critical nature of anesthesia work, and the physician shortage in anesthesiology that has expanded CRNA independent practice have all driven CRNA wages near or into the BLS top-code threshold in many states.
Geographic Variation
California, Oregon, and Washington typically rank highest for CNM wages. CRNA wages are high across most states due to the persistent shortage of anesthesia providers. Browse the Healthcare Practitioners group for full data.