How much money does a nurse midwife make per year or per hour? Do nurse midwives earn a good living? In this article, let’s take a look at the latest salary data available for nurse midwives, courtesy of the Bureau of Labor Statistics [1,2].
Nurse Midwife Salary and Hourly Wage Average
Nurse midwives are advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) who have received additional training (including a master’s or doctorate degree) and licensing to care for women and their families. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nurse midwives working in the United States in 2020 earned an average salary of $115,540 per year and an average hourly wage of $55.55. [1,2]
Again, that’s just the average based on data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and you could earn more or less than the average, depending on your location, education, experience, industry, and many other factors.
Nurse Midwife Median Salary and Hourly Wage
The median salary for nurse midwives, which is the middle number in a sorted data set, was $111,130 per year or $53.43 per hour in 2020.
Nurse Midwife Percentile Earnings
Here are the percentile estimates for nurse midwives in 2020, provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics [1,2]:
- 10th percentile: $67,710 year / $32.55 hour
- 25th percentile: $91,590 year / $44.03 hour
- 50th percentile: $111,130 year / $53.43 hour
- 75th percentile: $136,960 year / $65.84 hour
- 90th percentile: $179,770 year / $86.43 hour
If you earned $179,770 or $86.43 per hour in 2020, you were in the 90th percentile, meaning only an estimated 10% of nurse midwives earned a higher salary than that.
Nurse Midwife Salary Growth
Now let’s take a look at how nurse midwife salary averages have grown over the last few years.
The biggest increase in salary came in 2016, which saw a 9.38% increase from 2015. The second highest jump was in 2020, which saw a 6.19% increase from 2019.
States with Highest and Lowest Nurse Midwife Salary
Now let’s take a look at the highest and lowest paying states for nurse midwives. As you look at this map, the areas of darker purple paid nurse midwives the highest salary, whereas the lighter shades paid a lower salary. The states in white did not have data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Although some estimates suggest that there are around 12,500 midwives in the U.S., the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates only 7,120 nurse midwives are estimated to be employed, not including those who might be self-employed.
The highest paying state was California, which paid nurse midwives an average salary of $159,590 and an hourly wage of $76.72. Utah was the second highest, paying midwives an average salary of $133,680 and an hourly wage of $64.27.
The lowest paying state was Florida, which paid nurse midwives an average salary of $67,530 and an hourly wage of $32.47. The second lowest paying state was Idaho, which paid nurse midwives an average salary of $72,150 and an hourly wage of $34.69.
Nurse Midwife Salary for all States Reported
Here is a list of all the average salary and hourly wages for all reported states via the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as well as the estimated employment number for each state. The cost of living can vary from state to state, so you’ve got to keep that in mind as you look at these different salary averages.
In addition, you can see right away that some states have a very low number of midwives estimated for employment, only 50 in the state of Alaska and 30 for Idaho. Unfortunately, not all states had salary or employment data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
| State | Employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
| Alaska | 50 | $44.75 | $93,080 |
| Arizona | 90 | $58.43 | $121,530 |
| California | 1,010 | $76.72 | $159,590 |
| Colorado | 170 | $51.10 | $106,280 |
| Connecticut | 150 | $50.10 | $104,200 |
| Delaware | 40 | $46.20 | $96,090 |
| District of Columbia | 70 | $41.22 | $85,740 |
| Florida | 340 | $32.47 | $67,530 |
| Georgia | 420 | $44.63 | $92,840 |
| Idaho | 30 | $34.69 | $72,150 |
| Illinois | 300 | $52.55 | $109,310 |
| Indiana | 70 | $54.09 | $112,510 |
| Iowa | 40 | $49.44 | $102,830 |
| Maine | 60 | $57.23 | $119,030 |
| Maryland | 220 | $51.77 | $107,670 |
| Massachusetts | 290 | $54.76 | $113,910 |
| Michigan | 350 | $49.94 | $103,870 |
| Minnesota | 230 | $59.42 | $123,600 |
| Mississippi | unavailable | $61.52 | $127,960 |
| Missouri | 60 | $54.48 | $113,320 |
| New Hampshire | 60 | $55.65 | $115,760 |
| New Jersey | 130 | $56.29 | $117,070 |
| New Mexico | 110 | $50.95 | $105,980 |
| New York | 460 | $60.47 | $125,780 |
| North Carolina | 170 | $49.05 | $102,020 |
| Ohio | 330 | $50.94 | $105,960 |
| Oregon | 170 | $50.77 | $105,600 |
| Pennsylvania | 340 | $49.63 | $103,230 |
| Rhode Island | 40 | $51.69 | $107,510 |
| Tennessee | 70 | $45.04 | $93,690 |
| Texas | 280 | $52.65 | $109,510 |
| Utah | 90 | $64.27 | $133,680 |
| Vermont | 50 | $46.75 | $97,240 |
| Virginia | 290 | unavailable | unavailable |
| Washington | 110 | $54.00 | $112,310 |
| West Virginia | 40 | $59.35 | $123,450 |
| Wisconsin | 120 | $53.07 | $110,380 |
Cities that Paid Nurse Midwives the Most Money
Which cities and surrounding metropolitan or non-metropolitan areas paid nurse midwives the most money? Here’s a quick map, and again, the darker shades of purple are the higher paying areas, whereas the lighter shades paid lower averages. Unfortunately, given the low number of nurse midwives in the U.S., there was unavailable data for many cities and surrounding metropolitan or non-metropolitan areas, which are represented in white.
Nevertheless, the highest paying city and surrounding area was the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA area, which paid nurse midwives and average salary of $191,440 and an hourly wage of $92.04. [1,2] The Riverside-San Bernadino-Ontario, CA area was the second highest, offering an average salary of $171,000 and an hourly wage of $82.21.
The lowest paying area was the Miami-Fort Lauderdale –West Palm Beach, FL area, which paid nurse midwives an average salary of $45,040 and an hourly wage of $21.65. The Durham-Chapel Hill, NC area was the second lowest, paying nurse midwives an average salary of $92,190 and an hourly wage of $44.32.
City Salary Averages for Nurse Midwives
Below is a list of all available cities and their surrounding metropolitan or non-metropolitan areas for nurse midwives, as well as the estimated employment number for each area (excluding self-employed nurse midwives).
| City/Area | Employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 260 | $92.04 | $191,440 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 40 | $82.21 | $171,000 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | 50 | $80.71 | $167,870 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA | 210 | $77.94 | $162,110 |
| Sacramento–Roseville–Arden-Arcade, CA | 90 | $75.53 | $157,100 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | – | $69.02 | $143,570 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | 170 | $60.00 | $124,790 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA | 400 | $58.20 | $121,050 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 50 | $56.18 | $116,850 |
| Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX | 50 | $56.13 | $116,750 |
| St. Louis, MO-IL | 60 | $55.39 | $115,200 |
| Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO | 80 | $55.28 | $114,980 |
| Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN | 40 | $55.23 | $114,870 |
| Columbus, OH | – | $55.07 | $114,540 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | 130 | $54.73 | $113,840 |
| Richmond, VA | – | $54.70 | $113,780 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad, CA | 110 | $54.69 | $113,750 |
| Grand Rapids-Wyoming, MI | 40 | $54.10 | $112,530 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH | 250 | $53.78 | $111,870 |
| Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis, WI | 40 | $53.73 | $111,760 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA | – | $53.18 | $110,610 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ | 60 | $52.86 | $109,950 |
| Santa Rosa, CA | 90 | $52.04 | $108,250 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT | 50 | $51.75 | $107,630 |
| Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD | 110 | $51.61 | $107,340 |
| Providence-Warwick, RI-MA | 50 | $51.48 | $107,070 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 50 | $50.55 | $105,150 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI | 170 | $50.33 | $104,680 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT | – | $49.69 | $103,350 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD | 160 | $49.36 | $102,680 |
| Albuquerque, NM | 60 | $49.35 | $102,640 |
| Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, MI | 110 | $49.15 | $102,230 |
| Cleveland-Elyria, OH | – | $48.96 | $101,850 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX | 130 | $48.83 | $101,560 |
| Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN | – | $47.61 | $99,040 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 40 | $44.32 | $92,190 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL | 170 | $21.65 | $45,040 |
Top Paying Industries for Nurse Midwives
What was the top paying industries for nurse midwives? “Local Government” was the top paying industry, offering an average salary of $158,210 and an hourly wage of $76.06. “Outpatient Care Centers” was the second highest, offering an average salary of $142,010 and an hourly wage of $68.28.
| Industry | Employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals | 80 | $ 76.06 | $ 158,210 |
| Outpatient Care Centers | 1,170 | $ 68.28 | $ 142,010 |
| Offices of Physicians | 3,050 | $ 55.98 | $ 116,440 |
| General Medical and Surgical Hospitals | – | $ 53.57 | $ 111,420 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools | 110 | $ 51.51 | $ 107,130 |
Nurse Midwife Industries with the Highest Employment Level
Finally, let’s take a look at where most nurse midwives actually worked in the U.S. The industry with the highest employment level was the “Offices of Physicians” industry. This industry employed an estimated 3,050, which is over 40% of all estimated nurse midwives employed in the U.S. (7,120), and it paid an average salary of $116,440 and an hourly wage of $55.98.
| Industry | Employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual mean wage |
| Offices of Physicians | 3,050 | $ 55.98 | $ 116,440 |
| Outpatient Care Centers | 1,170 | $ 68.28 | $ 142,010 |
| Offices of Other Health Practitioners | 580 | $ 34.36 | $ 71,460 |
| Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools | 110 | $ 51.51 | $ 107,130 |
| Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals | 80 | $ 76.06 | $ 158,210 |
“Outpatient Care Centers” was the industry with the second highest employment level. This industry employed a little over 1,100 nurse midwives and paid an average salary of $142,010 and an hourly wage of $68.28.
Works Cited:
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, Nurse Midwives, May 2020 [www.bls.gov/]
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2020 OEWS Maps, Employment, Salary of Nurse Midwives, by state and area, May 2020, accessed 08/25/2021, [https://www.bls.gov/]