RN contract pay in Illinois — advertised weekly rates
Median $2,307 a week across 6,432 live RN listings in Illinois with posted pay, as of September 16, 2026 — +5.2% against the national median of $2,194.
- $2,307median per week+5.2% vs national
- $2,130–$2,57725th–75th percentilemiddle half of listings
- $2,373mean per week+5.6% vs national
- $63.31median hourly equivalentfrom 6,021 listings with posted hours
- 6,432listings with posted paylive listings, updated every 6 hours
What these figures are
Advertised contract rates, not earned wages. Every number on this page comes from a live RN listing in Illinois that posted a rate — 6,432 of them as of September 16, 2026. 90% are travel contracts, so the figures describe what agencies and employers are offering for contract work this week, usually including housing and meal stipends — not staff salaries and not what any nurse took home. A further 163 listings in Illinois post no rate and are excluded. Weekly figures use the top of each advertised range; hourly equivalents divide by the posted hours where a listing gives them. These figures are complementary to BLS wage data, which reports earned staff wages annually — they are not a substitute for it. Full methodology.
| Group | Listings | 25th pct / wk | Median / wk | 75th pct / wk | Mean / wk | Median hourly equiv. | vs national median |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | 6,432 | $2,130 | $2,307 | $2,577 | $2,373 | $63.31 (n=6,021) | +5.2% |
| National | 155,180 | $1,965 | $2,194 | $2,485 | $2,248 | $59.33 (n=147,568) | — |
By work type
| Work type | Listings | Median / wk | 25th–75th pct / wk | Mean / wk | Median hourly equiv. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travel | 5,784 | $2,327 | $2,176–$2,619 | $2,428 | $63.69 (n=5,569) | +6.1% |
| Contract | 477 | $2,016 | $1,692–$2,124 | $1,951 | $56.00 (n=405) | −8.1% |
| Full-time | 169 | $1,728 | $1,440–$1,764 | $1,694 | $51.00 (n=46) | −21.2% |
| Part-time | 1 | too few listings to report (under 30) | ||||
| Not stated | 1 | too few listings to report (under 30) | ||||
By shift
| Shift | Listings | Median / wk | 25th–75th pct / wk | Mean / wk | Median hourly equiv. | vs national |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nights | 3,189 | $2,268 | $2,101–$2,440 | $2,290 | $62.61 (n=3,148) | +3.4% |
| Days | 2,570 | $2,366 | $2,164–$2,754 | $2,456 | $64.17 (n=2,466) | +7.8% |
| Not stated | 477 | $2,394 | $2,192–$2,799 | $2,450 | $64.25 (n=216) | +9.1% |
| Evenings | 119 | $2,304 | $2,066–$2,488 | $2,356 | $63.18 (n=118) | +5.0% |
| Rotating | 77 | $2,637 | $2,259–$3,006 | $2,609 | $69.73 (n=73) | +20.2% |
Specialties in Illinois, ranked by median
| # | Specialty | Listings | Median / wk | 25th–75th pct / wk | Median hourly equiv. | vs national | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cath Lab | 316 | $3,046 | $2,733–$3,366 | $78.15 | +38.8% | 316 jobs |
| 2 | CVOR | 284 | $2,916 | $2,709–$3,135 | $74.58 | +32.9% | 284 jobs |
| 3 | Interventional Radiology | 59 | $2,886 | $2,591–$3,122 | $70.58 | +31.5% | 59 jobs |
| 4 | CVICU | 246 | $2,722 | $2,490–$2,842 | $74.72 | +24.1% | 246 jobs |
| 5 | NICU | 34 | $2,685 | $2,566–$2,769 | $74.58 | +22.4% | 34 jobs |
| 6 | OR | 402 | $2,506 | $2,236–$2,822 | $65.18 | +14.2% | 402 jobs |
| 7 | L&D | 458 | $2,406 | $2,200–$2,596 | $66.17 | +9.7% | 458 jobs |
| 8 | PICU | 46 | $2,388 | $2,245–$2,564 | $65.31 | +8.8% | 46 jobs |
| 9 | PCU | 518 | $2,320 | $2,164–$2,524 | $64.03 | +5.7% | 518 jobs |
| 10 | ICU | 667 | $2,291 | $2,156–$2,442 | $63.25 | +4.4% | 667 jobs |
| 11 | Coronary Care | 35 | $2,290 | $2,043–$2,349 | $61.17 | +4.4% | 35 jobs |
| 12 | Oncology | 66 | $2,272 | $2,126–$2,385 | $62.81 | +3.6% | 66 jobs |
| 13 | ER | 890 | $2,269 | $2,124–$2,401 | $62.58 | +3.4% | 890 jobs |
| 14 | Telemetry | 375 | $2,229 | $2,063–$2,372 | $61.00 | +1.6% | 375 jobs |
| 15 | Med-Surg | 1,553 | $2,208 | $2,079–$2,327 | $61.11 | +0.6% | 1,553 jobs |
| 16 | Rehab | 52 | $2,096 | $1,655–$2,290 | $58.47 | −4.5% | 52 jobs |
| 17 | PACU | 61 | $1,860 | $1,652–$2,352 | $49.86 | −15.2% | 61 jobs |
| 18 | Pediatrics | 34 | $1,440 | $1,368–$2,116 | $63.89 | −34.4% | 34 jobs |
Too few listings to rank (under 30): Long Term Acute (27), OB/GYN (19), Orthopedics (19), Psych (17), LTC (16), Post Partum (14), Endoscopy (13), Wound Care (11), Case Management (9), Dialysis (9), Home Health (4).
Cite this page
RN Jobs Near Me. (2026). RN contract pay in Illinois — advertised weekly rates. Retrieved September 16, 2026 from https://rnjobsnearme.com/rn-salary/illinois. Data as of September 16, 2026.
Licence: CC BY 4.0. Reproduce the figures, tables and charts freely — in print or online — with attribution to RN Jobs Near Me and a link. Figures are advertised contract rates from live listings, not earned wages; the methodology explains what is and is not counted. The numbers on this page are also available as CSV, with the citation and licence on its first line.