Travel Long Term Care Nurse Salary Guide

Long-term care RNs specialize in patient care when the patient needs extended medical services, often due to disabilities, serious injuries or chronic illnesses. This specialty usually involves working with the same patients every day because they need ongoing care. Patients in long-term care are often elderly, but younger patients with a disability or long-term health condition also may require long-term care. LTC nurses typically coordinate care, monitor patients, perform different therapies or treatments, provide emotional support and help with tasks such as bathing and transferring.

How do you become a long-term care RN?

Becoming a long-term care RN starts with earning your general nursing degree. To become a licensed RN, you must graduate from an accredited nursing program and pass the National Council Licensure Examination for Registered Nurses (NCLEX-RN) exam. State boards of nursing usually have additional requirements, such as fingerprinting for background checks and an application fee, that you must complete before applying for your state RN licensure.

You might take additional classes or gain clinical experience in gerontology or long-term care while you earn your nursing degree to prepare you for this field. However, working as a long-term care RN is possible as soon as you become a licensed nurse. Working with older patients or those with chronic conditions in any nursing position can help you gain experience to improve your chances of landing a travel or staff long-term care RN job.

What credentials/licensing does a long-term care RN require?

The primary required credential to become a long-term care RN is your state RN license. You must keep this license current by completing any continuing education and other requirements established by your state's licensing board. Like all RNs, you must earn Basic Life Support (BLS) certification. Some facilities may also require the completion of Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support (ACLS) certification.

Additional credentials can deepen your knowledge within the specialty and increase your pay potential. One option is the Gerontological Nursing Board Certification (GERO-BC) offered by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. To earn this certification, you need at least 2 years of RN experience plus 2,000 hours of clinical practice in gerontology and 30 continuing education credits related to gerontology within the last 3 years.

Average Travel Long Term Care Nurse Salary

$1,953/week

The average salary for a Travel Long Term Care Nurse is $1,953 per week. This is 10% lower than the nursing US average of $2,144.

Last updated on November 4, 2024. Based on 4,755 active jobs on Vivian.com in the last 7 days.

Salaries for Travel Long Term Care Nurse compared to Registered Nurse National Averages

$1,953/week

10% lower than the nursing US average.

$2,144/week

United States

Where do Travel Long Term Care Nurses get paid the most?
StateAverage Weekly SalaryMax Weekly Salary
California$2,552$4,340
New York$2,496$4,657
Alaska$2,469$3,572
Idaho$2,346$3,557
New Jersey$2,310$2,817
Oregon$2,295$3,929
Vermont$2,221$3,450
Massachusetts$2,178$2,949
Nevada$2,118$2,836
Michigan$2,088$2,849
Wisconsin$2,075$3,592
Washington$2,043$3,028
Rhode Island$2,025$2,301
Kansas$2,021$2,650
Wyoming$1,992$2,584
Delaware$1,987$2,500
Montana$1,973$2,832
New Hampshire$1,955$3,000
What cities pay the most for Travel Long Term Care Nurses?
CityAverage Weekly SalaryMax Weekly Salary
Salem, Massachusetts$3,761$3,761
La Crosse, Wisconsin$3,465$3,592
Sitka, Alaska$2,872$3,294
Seward, Alaska$2,740$3,355
Buffalo, New York$2,719$2,719
Newark, New Jersey$2,680$2,680
Sheboygan, Wisconsin$2,600$2,600
What are the highest paying Employers and Agencies for Travel Long Term Care Nurse jobs?

Last updated on November 4, 2024. Information based on active jobs on Vivian.com.

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Travel Long Term Care Nurse Career Guide

Use our exclusive Career Guides to research the education, qualifications, skills and responsibilities for a variety of healthcare disciplines and specialties employers are hiring now.

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How can you increase your pay as a travel long-term care RN

How much does a travel long-term care registered nurse make?

According to Vivian Health's salary data from May 10, 2023, long-term care nurses working on travel contracts made $2,006 weekly. However, specific pay rates largely depend on where you work and what qualifications you bring to the position.

Do travel long-term care RNs earn more than staff long-term care RNs?

Based on the data from Vivian Health on May 10, 2023, travel long-term care RNs made a little more than staff nurses. The weekly rate for travel long-term care nurses was $2,006 on this date, while staff long-term care RNs earned around $1,747 weekly when multiplying their average hourly rate of $43.68 by a 40-hour workweek. However, the facility type and location significantly impact those rates, as does each candidate's experience.

What states employ the most long-term care RNs?

Certain states tend to hire a larger number of RNs. This can be due to a higher demand for healthcare in the state based on population. BLS data from May 2022 lists the following states as having the highest RN employment levels for all RN specialties combined:

  • California

  • Texas

  • Florida

  • New York

  • Pennsylvania

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Travel Long Term Care Nurse FAQs

What is a Long Term Care RN?

Between 2019 and 2029, employment of registered nurses is expected to grow 7%, primarily due to an aging population. Because long-term care nurses play a significant role in caring for older patients, demand in this specialty is also expected to grow. LTC nurses work in facilities that care for patients who are elderly, disabled, or impacted by chronic conditions. These facilities include skilled nursing facilities, continuing care retirement communities, and assisted living communities. LTC RNs may also be employed by home health agencies, hospices, long-term acute care hospitals, and rehabilitation centers. Work setting along with other factors impact a long-term care RN's salary.

Long-term care nurses are registered nurses who specialize in working with patients needing care for an extended period due to a long-term disability, injury, illness, or medical condition. Patients tend to be elderly but can be of varying ages. LTC nurses help develop and implement long-term care plans for patients by working with other members of an interdisciplinary team. They perform various nursing tasks as they provide direct patient care and respond to changes in each patient’s status.


To become a long-term care nurse, you must earn an associate or bachelor’s degree from a nursing program accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) or the Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN). Upon graduation, you must pass the NCLEX-RN licensing exam and complete training to earn Basic Life Support certification.

How a Long Term Care RN salary is based

A long-term care RN's salary may be based on several factors, but education and license aren’t necessarily among them. Nurses can enter this field with just an ADN and though a BSN could increase employability, it may not affect salary much. The only license required is your RN license, so it’s a given not a salary basis. What can impact starting salaries are years of nursing experience, relevant skills obtained, and employment location.


Years of experience can impact salary for any professional, including nurses. However, it also helps increase relevant skills so it potentially affects salary twice. Experienced LTC nurses may earn higher starting salaries because they’ve developed strong analytical and critical thinking skills over the years, providing them with a better perspective on how to make a difference in their patients’ lives. Over time, LTC nurses also master multitasking and time management skills to help them more effectively manage substantial caseloads of patients with various comorbidities. These along with other additional skills developed through experience can impact an LTC RN’s base salary.


Location of employment is also two-fold because it includes the type of facility that employs you and the physical location of this facility. LTC nurses can work in various healthcare facilities and some pay more than others. Large long-term acute care hospitals generally have more funding for salaries than small skilled nursing facilities and facilities in metro areas usually have higher base salaries than those in rural areas. Certain cities and even states also have higher starting salaries, but this is often due to a higher cost of living.

How to increase your Long Term Care RN salary

LTC nurses aren’t usually required to earn an advanced degree but pursuing certain coursework can potentially boost your salary. Elective courses in gerontology may be particularly helpful. To advance in your career and get a bigger pay bump, consider pursuing a Director of Nursing role.


DONs oversee and coordinate the duties of a long-term care facility’s nursing staff. However, the position combines nursing and administrative skills and a dual degree in nursing and healthcare or business administration may be necessary. While an ADN prepares you to enter the nursing field, earning a BSN makes you more employable as a DON and some facilities even prefer DONs with a master’s degree in nursing or nursing or healthcare administration.


If you don’t have any desire to become a DON, you can still increase your salary by pursuing a professional certification. There aren’t any professional certifications specifically for LTC nursing, but it may be financially beneficial to earn Gerontological Nursing Certification through the American Nurses Credentialing Center. To sit for the exam, you must have practiced an equivalent of two years full-time as an RN with at least 2,000 hours of clinical practice and 30 hours of continuing education in gerontological nursing within the last three years.

Where can I learn more about working as a Travel Long Term Care Nurse?

Take a look at Vivian's Travel Long Term Care Nurse Career Guide for more information, including required education, responsibilities, pros and cons and more.