Average Nursery Nurse Salary in Phoenix, United States for 2026

In this article, we will look at the average Nursery Nurse salary for 2026 in Phoenix and how that compares to other countries and professions. We'll also look at interesting salary data points like median salary, 25th and 75th percentile salaries, salary amounts based on experience, bonus ranges and more!

The data in this article has been compiled using official government salary data, salary surveys, and other sources such as job postings which contain salary information.

All salary information is in the local currency, which is the United States dollar. To keep things simple, we are using the USD currency code instead of the currency symbol $.

How Much Does a Nursery Nurse Make in Phoenix?

A Nursery Nurse working in Phoenix will typically earn around 45,600 USD per year, and this can range from the lowest average salary of about 23,600 USD to the highest average salary of 70,600 USD.

Average Annual Salary45,600 USD
Average Monthly Salary3,800 USD
Average Lowest Salary23,600 USD
Lowest Monthly Salary1,966 USD
Average Highest Salary70,600 USD
Highest Monthly Salary5,883 USD

These are average salaries for a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix and include benefits such as housing and transport. It's also possible for a Nursery Nurse to earn more or less than the average salaries shown above.

Nursery Nurse salaries will vary a lot based on your experience, location, skills, and gender. Keep reading below to research more data on each of these areas.

Distribution of Nursery Nurse Salaries in Phoenix

So we've looked at the average salaries a Nursery Nurse will earn in Phoenix. The next interesting data point is the distribution of salaries.

Salary ranges

We already know that a Nursery Nurse can earn between 23,600 USD and 70,600 USD on average in Phoenix. This is known as the range in statistics.

The difference between the maximum and minimum values is a good indicator of variability in salaries, and can be used by employers to figure out how much they can expect to pay, and for employees to know how much they can earn.

Median salary

The median salary for a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix is 45,000 USD. This is the middle value in the distribution of salaries.

What this means is that approximately 50% of the population earn less than 45,000 USD, and 50% of the population earn more than 45,000 USD.

If you are earning more than the median salary, that's a good indicator that you are being paid well.

If you're not earning more than the median salary, your objective should be to increase your earnings to be at least as high as the median salary (which you can do by asking for a pay rise, looking for a better paying job, etc).

Percentiles

Percentiles are similar to the median salary, but instead of looking at the middle value, they look at the values in the top and bottom half of the distribution.

For the average Nursery Nurse salary in Phoenix, 25% of the population are earning less than 30,200 USD while 75% of the population earn more than 30,200 USD.

75% of the population earn less than 55,700 USD, and 25% of the population earn more than 55,700 USD.

Like the median salary, the 25th and 75th percentile salaries can be used to determine which quartile you fall into so that you know whether you are being paid well enough compared to others in your profession and location.

The difference between a median and an average salary

The median and average salary are both indicators you can use to see if you are being paid fairly based on the overall population.

  • If your salary is higher than the average and the median salary, you are earning well compared to others.
  • If your salary is lower than the average and the median salary, it could indicate you are not being paid well enough.
  • If you are somewhere in between then it's tricky to determine if you are being paid well enough and you might need to research more closely.

Nursery Nurse Salary by Experience Level in Phoenix

The most important factor in determining your salary after the specific profession is the number of years experience you have. It stands to reason that more years of experience will result in a higher wage.

We have researched the average Nursery Nurse salary based on years of experience to give you an idea of how the average changes once you've worked for a certain amount of time.

  • 0 - 2 Years Experience. A Nursery Nurse in Phoenix that has less than two years of experience can expect to earn somewhere in the region of 27,700 USD.
  • 2 - 5 Years Experience. With two to five years of experience the average Nursery Nurse salary would increase to 37,200 USD.
  • 5 - 10 Years Experience. From five to ten years of experience as a Nursery Nurse, the average salary would be 50,700 USD.
  • 10 - 15 Years Experience. Once you have more than ten years of experience the average salary reaches around 58,200 USD.
  • 15 - 20 Years Experience. A Nursery Nurse with 15 to 20 years of experience can earn an average of 64,600 USD.
  • 20+ Years Experience. For a Nursery Nurse with more than 20 years, the expected average salary increases to 69,700 USD.

Average Salary by Experience Chart

0-2 Years-
27,700 USD
2-5 Years+23%
37,200 USD
5-10 Years+42%
50,700 USD
10-15 Years+17%
58,200 USD
15-20 Years+10%
64,600 USD
20+ Years+6%
69,700 USD

Nursery Nurse Salary by Education Level in Phoenix

As well as experience in a job, your education plays a big role in how much you can earn. A lot of higher paying positions require a high level of education, but how much can a degree increase your salary?

In our research we have compared the salaries of employees in the same job and career level with different levels of education to see how much more you can earn at each education level.

The salary you can earn based on your education is very specific to both your location and the career path you choose.

In our research, we looked at the average salary for a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix based on the education level of the employees in order to find out whether a better education level would increase your salary.

  • Certificate or Diploma. A Nursery Nurse in Phoenix with a certificate or diploma education can earn an average salary of 36,500 USD.
  • Bachelor's Degree. A Nursery Nurse in Phoenix with a bachelor's degree education can earn an average salary of 55,200 USD.

Average Salary by Education Chart

Certificate or Diploma-
36,500 USD
Bachelor's Degree+47%
55,200 USD

How Much is a Master's Degree or MBA Program?

The approximate cost of a master's degree or post-graduate program like an MBA in United States is around 39,500 to 118,000 USD and takes two years to complete.

As you can see above, there are financial benefits from reaching master's degree level, but don't expect to see much of a salary increase until you have completed the degree.

It's common for people to pursue an MBA or other post-graduate program in order to switch to a a job that pays more. On average, you can expect to earn around 10% more when switching to a new company.

Whether you decide to pursue a master's degree depends on many factors. If you are able to afford it, the numbers suggest that the return on investment is worth it and you could recover the costs in a few years from the salary increase you would receive.

Nursery Nurse Salary Compared by Gender

In the modern age, we know that there should never be a pay gap between men and women. Unfortunately, in many professions, there is still a significant difference between the salaries earned by men when compared to the salary of women in the same job.

In Phoenix, a male nursery nurse will earn an average of 43,200 USD, while a female nursery nurse will earn around 45,000 USD.

This means that a male nursery nurse earns approximately 4% less than a female nursery nurse for performing the same job.

Average Salary by Gender Chart in Phoenix

Male-
43,200 USD
Female+4%
45,000 USD

Nursery Nurse Average Pay Raise in Phoenix

In many countries, an annual pay raise is often given to employees to reward their service with a salary increase.

From our research, we can see that the average pay raise for a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix is around 10% every 16 months.

The national average pay raise across all professions and industries in United States is around 8% every 16 months.

In this case, we can see that the number of months between the average pay raise is higher than the typical 12 months.

To make the data more meaningful, we can calculate what the approximate annual pay raise would be using a simple formula:

Annual Increase = ( Increase Rate ÷ Months ) × 12

So for this example, it would be:

Annual Increase = ( 10 ÷ 16 ) × 12  = 8%

What this means is that a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix can expect to receive an average pay raise of around 8% every 12 months.

Annual Pay Raise by Industry in Phoenix for 2026

In the chart below, you can see the average annual pay raise percentages for each of the major industries in United States.

You will see that companies in bigger and more lucrative industries tend to have the higher annual pay raises.

Banking-
4%
Energy-
8%
Information Technology-
3%
Healthcare-
7%
Travel-
2%
Construction-
6%
Education-
1%

Nursery Nurse Bonus and Incentive Rates in Phoenix

Another part of your overall compensation in a job is how much bonus you receive. Some job roles will be more likely to pay a bonus than others and also more likely to have higher bonus rates.

Generally speaking, jobs that are more involved with direct revenue generation will receive higher bonuses based on the performance towards revenue goals.

A Nursery Nurse is a low bonus based job, with 26% of employees reporting at least one bonus in the last 12 months.

74% reported that they had not received any bonuses in the previous 12 months.

For the employees that did receive a bonus in the previous 12 months, the reported bonuses ranged from 1% to 2%.

Received Bonus-
26%
No Bonus-
74%

What are the Types of Bonus?

There are a number of difference types of bonus you can receive in a job. Including:

  • Individual performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee for general performance in the job. It's the most common type of bonus.
  • Company performance bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to a company employees to share profit with the staff.
  • Goal based bonus - This is a bonus that is awarded to an individual employee (or a team) for achieving specific goals, objectives, or milestones.
  • Holiday bonus - This type of bonus is usually paid around the holidays, often the end of the year, and is a token of appreciation for the hard work throughout the year.

Government vs Private Sector Salaries

Another commonly asked question is whether you get paid a higher salary working in the public (government) sector or the private sector.

Public sector employees in United States earn approximately 6% more than private sector employees in the same role.

Public Sector-
98,800 USD
Private Sector-6%
93,100 USD

Salaries for Jobs Similar to a Nursery Nurse

In the table below, we have salary information for jobs that are similar to a Nursery Nurse in Phoenix.

Job TitleCategorySalary
Activity AssistantCare Giving and Child Care31,800 USD
Advice WorkerCare Giving and Child Care36,700 USD
Care ManagerCare Giving and Child Care112,700 USD
Care WorkerCare Giving and Child Care33,000 USD
Child Care Assistant DirectorCare Giving and Child Care80,500 USD
Child Care SpecialistCare Giving and Child Care128,400 USD
Child Care TeacherCare Giving and Child Care41,900 USD
Child Development Center AssistantCare Giving and Child Care52,300 USD
Child Development SpecialistCare Giving and Child Care134,100 USD
Child Life SpecialistCare Giving and Child Care139,100 USD
Child Protection OfficerCare Giving and Child Care44,500 USD
Child PsychotherapistCare Giving and Child Care148,300 USD
Child Support OfficerCare Giving and Child Care39,800 USD
Clinical Care CoordinatorCare Giving and Child Care46,400 USD
Clinical OfficerCare Giving and Child Care42,400 USD
CustodianCare Giving and Child Care59,100 USD
Day Care DirectorCare Giving and Child Care152,700 USD
Elderly Care GiverCare Giving and Child Care34,000 USD
Group Home ManagerCare Giving and Child Care160,700 USD
Kids Activity AssistantCare Giving and Child Care31,800 USD
Live In CarerCare Giving and Child Care36,400 USD
NannyCare Giving and Child Care39,000 USD
Nursery TeacherCare Giving and Child Care35,100 USD
Nursing Home AdministratorCare Giving and Child Care55,100 USD
Personal AssistantCare Giving and Child Care32,900 USD
Physical Health and Wellness SpecialistCare Giving and Child Care139,100 USD
Preschool Education CoordinatorCare Giving and Child Care62,500 USD
Primary TherapistCare Giving and Child Care107,700 USD
Psychiatric AideCare Giving and Child Care43,800 USD
Rehabilitation CounselorCare Giving and Child Care128,400 USD
Support WorkerCare Giving and Child Care30,200 USD

Salary Comparison by City

If you want to compare salaries with different cities in United States, you can use the links below to explore the data for each specific city we have researched.

CityAverage Salary
Atlanta40,700 USD
Austin43,800 USD
Baltimore43,200 USD
Boston42,800 USD
Bristol33,600 USD
Chicago45,800 USD
Cincinnati34,400 USD
Cleveland36,900 USD
Dallas46,900 USD
Denver40,600 USD
Detroit42,800 USD
Honolulu35,100 USD
Houston50,000 USD
Indianapolis45,100 USD
Iowa City34,000 USD
Jacksonville46,200 USD
Kansas City39,300 USD
Kent35,300 USD
Las Vegas42,500 USD
Long Beach40,900 USD
Los Angeles49,800 USD
Memphis42,400 USD
Miami39,400 USD
Minneapolis39,100 USD
New Orleans36,900 USD
New York49,700 USD
Oakland36,800 USD
Oklahoma City39,800 USD
Orlando37,100 USD
Philadelphia48,600 USD
Sacramento36,800 USD
San Antonio45,300 USD
San Diego50,500 USD
San Francisco45,800 USD
San Jose46,100 USD
Seattle44,800 USD
Tampa36,200 USD
Vancouver34,900 USD
Washington D.C.42,800 USD

Salary Comparison by State

The table below includes links to the average salary for each state in United States.

StateAverage Salary
Alabama40,300 USD
Alaska39,100 USD
Arizona45,100 USD
Arkansas42,700 USD
California45,600 USD
Colorado44,900 USD
Connecticut41,700 USD
Delaware40,900 USD
District of Columbia36,800 USD
Florida47,400 USD
Georgia43,100 USD
Hawaii40,300 USD
Idaho37,800 USD
Illinois46,700 USD
Indiana44,500 USD
Iowa42,700 USD
Kansas41,700 USD
Kentucky44,300 USD
Louisiana41,000 USD
Maine41,700 USD
Maryland45,100 USD
Massachusetts45,200 USD
Michigan46,400 USD
Minnesota45,600 USD
Mississippi41,100 USD
Missouri46,300 USD
Montana36,500 USD
Nebraska42,400 USD
Nevada39,000 USD
New Hampshire42,000 USD
New Jersey46,400 USD
New Mexico40,600 USD
New York48,600 USD
North Carolina44,800 USD
North Dakota36,700 USD
Ohio43,500 USD
Oklahoma43,200 USD
Oregon39,300 USD
Pennsylvania45,900 USD
Rhode Island36,400 USD
South Carolina42,300 USD
South Dakota34,800 USD
Tennessee45,600 USD
Texas46,300 USD
Utah39,500 USD
Vermont36,500 USD
Virginia45,400 USD
Washington45,000 USD
West Virginia39,000 USD
Wisconsin40,600 USD
Wyoming38,700 USD

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