Travel PCU Nurse Pay
The median advertised pay for a travel PCU (progressive care unit) contract is
$2,268 per week. The middle half of contracts fall
between $2,153 and $2,439.
Measured across 382 active travel contracts at 196 facilities, as of 2026-09-15.
These are advertised weekly totals, a taxable hourly base plus tax-free housing and meal
stipends. They are not take-home, and the tax-free half depends on maintaining a tax home.
How to read a pay package
explains the split.
Travel PCU pay by state
| State | Open contracts | Median weekly |
|---|
| Arizona | 42 | $2,235 |
| Georgia | 38 | $2,138 |
| Virginia | 26 | $2,287 |
| Ohio | 20 | $2,302 |
| Nebraska | 19 | $2,287 |
| Illinois | 19 | $2,269 |
| West Virginia | 15 | $2,190 |
| Missouri | 15 | $2,337 |
| North Carolina | 14 | $2,250 |
| Colorado | 14 | $2,011 |
| California | 12 | $2,466 |
| Texas | 10 | $2,296 |
| New York | 9 | $2,344 |
| Wisconsin | 9 | $2,380 |
| Indiana | 9 | $2,086 |
| Kansas | 9 | $2,240 |
| Kentucky | 7 | $2,255 |
| New Hampshire | 7 | $2,343 |
| Washington | 7 | $2,168 |
| Tennessee | 6 | $2,326 |
| Florida | 6 | $1,955 |
| Massachusetts | 6 | $2,539 |
| Alabama | 6 | $2,172 |
| South Carolina | 5 | $1,984 |
| Delaware | 5 | $2,597 |
The 25 states with the most open PCU contracts, of 42 with any.
Pay varies by market, facility and shift, and a state with few contracts moves more
than one with many, so treat a median drawn from a handful of postings as an
indication rather than a rate.
The highest medians, among states carrying at least 10 open
PCU contracts, are California at $2,466, Missouri at $2,337 and Ohio at $2,302. The table
above is ordered by how many contracts are open, not by pay.
Where every open PCU contract falls
| Weekly rate | Open contracts |
|---|
| Under $1,900 | 28 |
| $1,900 to $2,050 | 32 |
| $2,050 to $2,200 | 62 |
| $2,200 to $2,350 | 123 |
| $2,350 to $2,500 | 54 |
| $2,500 to $2,650 | 28 |
| $2,650 to $2,800 | 12 |
| $2,800 and up | 43 |
All 382 open contracts, banded by advertised weekly rate. The
outer bands are open-ended so nothing falls outside the chart.
Open PCU contracts
- Registered Nurse - PCU — Spokane, WA — $2,497/week
- Registered Nurse - PCU — Spokane, WA — $2,497/week
- Registered Nurse - PCU — Spokane, WA — $2,497/week
- Registered Nurse - Stepdown Neuro — Seattle, WA — $2,168/week
- Registered Nurse - PCU — Seattle, WA — $2,160/week
- Registered Nurse - Stepdown Cardiac — Seattle, WA — $2,160/week
- Registered Nurse - PCU — Seattle, WA — $2,160/week
See every open PCU assignment, including
those from partner agencies.
What PCU travel roles ask for
- 13 weeks is the most common contract length, on 288 of the 382 postings that state one.
- 2 years of experience is the most common requirement, among the 99 postings that state one.
- Certifications named most often, among the 102 postings that list any: BLS (102), ACLS (97), NIHSS (23), COMPLIANCE EKG EXAM (1).
Drawn from the postings that state a requirement, which is not all of them, so each
figure carries the number it was measured from. Your recruiter confirms the specifics
for a given contract before submission.
Related
Common questions
- How much does a travel PCU nurse make?
- The median advertised pay for a travel PCU contract is $2,268 a week, with the middle half of contracts between $2,153 and $2,439. Measured across 382 active travel contracts at 196 facilities, as of 2026-09-15. These are advertised weekly totals, taxable base plus tax-free stipends, not take-home.
- Where does this PCU pay figure come from?
- From the travel contracts currently posted on CircleRN, not from an industry survey or an estimate. No federal source publishes pay by nursing specialty: the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports registered nurses as a single occupation, so there is no official median for an ICU or a labor and delivery nurse. We publish the median rather than the average because one crisis-rate assignment moves an average enough to misrepresent the market.
- Which states pay travel PCU nurses the most?
- California at $2,466, Missouri at $2,337 and Ohio at $2,302, by median advertised weekly pay. Only states carrying at least 10 open PCU contracts are ranked, because a median drawn from a handful of postings moves on one contract closing. These are advertised weekly totals, taxable base plus tax-free stipends, not take-home, and a higher median does not survive a higher cost of living on its own.