We get the question all the time about PA vs NP salary comparison. So we decided to answer in some detail.
It’s a great question, but it’s hard to find good data on NP salaries because the Bureau of Labor Statistics, where NP salaries are tracked, lumps them in with the salaries of regular nurses. This is because NPs are Advanced Practice Nurses, meaning they are nurses who have had extra training to allow them to do more. So we did some digging and the result is our new PA vs NP salary comparison page. Think of us as the Consumer Reports of PA vs NP salary information.
We hope that seeing accurate numbers for the PA vs NP salary comparison will leave you with a better understanding of both professions.
PA vs NP Salary Comparison – All Specialties
According to the National Salary Report 2010 (a survey of 4,256 PAs and NPs by Advanceweb for PAs and NPs), PAs consistently earn a little more than NPs. Here are the numbers. (Click the table to enlarge):
PAs have always in made slightly more than NPs.
Why do PAs earn more? No one is certain, it likely relates to gender bias. NPs start as nurses, and traditionally nursing has been a largely female profession (it still is by a factor of 4 to 1).
Even within each discipline, women earn less.
The first PAs, on the other hand, were armed forces medics who returned from the Vietnam war and found themselves overqualified for nursing and medical assisting, but unqualified to be physicians. To utilize their war-honed skills, they were trained to provide an expanded scope of practice closer to what they had known in battle. Being soldiers, the first PAs were all male. Today there are plenty of male nurses and female PAs, but the ratio for PAs vs NPs is quite different. How much does this relate? Just look at the numbers:
You’re probably aware that there are other factors that affect NP vs PA salary. Here are the numbers by specialty, ranked from highest to lowest in each discipline: 
We were a little surprised. Mental health is a money specialty? Maybe because it gets fewer takers than the “sexier” specialties, like ER. We will definitely be doing a piece on and mental health as a PA specialty in the near future. We also found it interesting that Emergency Medicine is the highest paying specialty for NPs, but not for PAs (mental health, schools, cardiology, and dermatology come first for PAs).
You can also see that PAs generally make a little more than NPs in all specialties – even women’s health, and at the top end this difference becomes more dramatic (116K for men in mental health, 100K for women). We think it relates to gender bias — according to psychologist Matt Wallaert of GetRaised, “Not only are women less likely to make it to those upper ranges [of a profession] because of promotion gaps, “when they do get there they are less likely to be paid fairly.”**
So here’s our PA vs NP Salary Comparison Summary, which tells us a little more about both fields than just what they earn:
- There are more women than men in both professions, but the ratio of women to men is much higher for NPs than for PAs (80% vs 45%).
- Overall PA vs NP salary comparisons show differences of 5%-7% more for PAs than NPs.
- Though there are more women than men in both fields, on average, men are paid 11-13% more than their female counterparts.
- PA vs NP salary comparison shows that differences are highly influenced by a clinician’s specialty and work setting — possibly more than any other factor. We didn’t research how the geographic location where the clinician practices influences the PA vs NP salary comparison here, but plain to in the future.
So there you have it. Drop us a comment – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
Quote “You can also see that PAs in the ER definitely make more than NPs. This salary difference is considerable, and may again reflect a gender bias toward men.”
I see PA’s making ~103k and NP’s making ~104k according to your data, did I overlook something?
VERY in depth and interesting article. I am very interested in the salary comparison data. I have a brother in law that is starting NP school about the same time I plan to start my PA Program and we have talked about the possibility of opening a rural health clinic together, I think I’ll be sharing this with him
.
Jeff
Yes, thanks for catching that – it was from an earlier draft. We’ve made the change. Please let us know how your program goes…
Finally found a website that provides a salary comparison chart & with specialties. Thank You!
Glad we had what you needed. Keep reading – maybe we’ll come up with something else that you find helpful!
Paul,
I have never been into blogs or forums much, but ever since I started having the internal debate of PA/MD school, I’ve done a lot of research. This might be my first post at any blog ever, but I would just like to give credit where it’s due. Your website and content has been MOST helpful! (a little Bill and Ted’s grammar there). The interviews are very informative, and the information is very helpful to students looking to decide which route they want to take. Keep up your good work!
great post! i write about MD Salaries on my site and received a tweet asking about NP Salaries. i will direct them here. cheers.
Great site. Would like to see all specialties such as Orthopaedics!
Thanks, Sam. Yes, I’m working on more specialties. Hopefully I’ll have an orthopod for you in the near future.
Thank you so very much for this comparison. I have been comtemplating between going into either an NP or PA program, even though I was thinking more PA anyways, but this gives me a greater understanding of what the differences are, and has also given me some ideas of what department I would like to work in as well! Keep up the good work, I will look into some other topics that you have covered as well.
Thanks for the compliment, pickles! Getting clear on which direction is right for you will reassure you that you made the right decision once you’ve made it. Nice to have you here. -P
I am 59 years with masters degree in health sciences. I specialised in international health but now I want to train as a physician assistant. How do I proceed?
Thanks
Benjamin Offoha.
Hi, Benjamin!
First, I would suggest you order written information from one or more of the PA programs that interest you. This will give you some specific ideas about what PA programs look for in their candidates.
Second, you might want to sign up for our free forum. You can find it at http://www.mypatraining.com/forum. There’s plenty of information on specific topics there, and you can even add questions of your own.
Glad to have you,
Paul
i just want to say i am in nursing school but i love your site and have signed up for future postings it really is interesting. My goal is eventually to be an NP but this is definitely shows me that I whats in me to become a PA and maybe changing my mind for grad school lol
That’s great, Kenneth! There’s plenty of carryover from PA to NP, so you won’t be wasting your time. Who knows – maybe we’ll cater to the NPs someday!
P – Thank you so much for all of your wonderful information. I graduate with my BSN in December (2012) and am looking forward to applying to BCM in Houston for the PA program. I would love to know if you know anything about the program there. Thanks for all of the vids and articles, I look forward to keeping in touch.
The Veterans Administration pays NP’s over $15,000 more than PA’s for the same job.
A similar situation existed in the past at Santa Clara County,CA
This was challanged by a lawsuit and won by the PA’s involved.
From that time on PA’s and NP were paid the same.
Is there any such action on the Federal level?
Hi Paul,
I just wanted to say how much I appreciate this website – it is everything I was looking for to help me pursue my PA career.
I was just curious about the specialty “primary or secondary schools”. What is the scope of practice for this specialty? I haven’t been able to find much information online and it being so highly compensated, I’m surprised I haven’t heard much about it.
Thank you!
Thanks, Lauren! I think that’s referring to one of the settings where PAs sometimes work – elementary, middle, and high schools. I’m not sure what capacity PAs work in in schools, but there must be a few out there – maybe in large, well funded schools?
Thanks for the timely response Paul! I am surprised that the salary would be so high for these schools, there must be some other sort of funding. Interesting nonetheless!
Good luck in your upcoming rotation!
Hi I am a school teacher and I am interested in switching careers. I was wondering what are the pre-requsites for the PA program. I met a wonderful PA at a chiropractic center and was interested in wanting to know the steps that I should take.
Hi, Patrice! Thanks for your question.
Yes, there are academic prerequisites. They generally include a bachelor’s degree, and the following science as part of it, or in addition, in the case that you didn’t get them as part of your BA/BS:
Human anatomy (1 semester, or one year if combined with physiology)
Human physiology (1 semester, or one year if combined with anatomy)
Organic chemistry (some programs don’t require it) (one year)
Microbiology (one semester)
The other courses are often part of a bachelors, such as 1 semester of human anthropology or evolution, english comp, basic math, etc.
The OTHER big requirement, and possibly the harder (but not impossible) one for you to obtain as a teacher: health car experience. Program requirements vary between 500 and 4000 hours in contact with patients. This can be done as an EMT, phlebotomist, nurse, paramedic, physical therapist, respiratory tech, medical assistant, etc, and some are better than others. To learn more about it, I suggest you check out our forum: http://www.mypatraining.com/forum, where there are many threads on the topic of this “HCE.”
You should know that the field was intended to be a fast track for people who already have health care experience, so starting from square one can be challenging. But people definitely do it.
What are your thoughts on PA for orthopaedic? And do you know what there salary is like? In addition what is your view on a school that requires only an Associates degree versus the Bachelors degree? I’ve done my research and both programs offer the same classes for P.A. school.
Hi, Daniel! My opinion: go where ever you can get in. The only crucial thing is that you get your PA-C after you graduate, and to do that, any accredited PA program will do. If you have more than one to choose from, then you can consider other factors. If that becomes the case, I urge you to read the guest contribution by Buffchick on choosing the best physician assistant program for you. She is one of our readers and will be starting PA school this fall.
Most orthopedic PAs make very good money, particularly if they work for a an orthopedic surgeon. For details, refer to our article on physician assistant salary.
And welcome! -P