Wisconsin Nurses May Find Better Opportunities Across State Lines: Ranking

WISCONSIN — Wisconsin landed in the middle of the pack in a new ranking of the best states for nurses, trailing Minnesota, Iowa, and several other Midwestern states.

WalletHub ranked Wisconsin No. 29 overall in its 2026 list of the "Best & Worst States for Nurses." The personal finance website compared all 50 states across 20 metrics, including nursing salaries adjusted for cost of living, job openings per capita, health care facilities per capita, mandatory overtime restrictions, nursing home quality and commute times.

Wisconsin ranked No. 25 for "Opportunity & Competition" and No. 29 for "Work Environment," according to WalletHub.

The ranking placed Wisconsin behind Minnesota, which ranked No. 7 overall, and Iowa, which ranked No. 18. Wisconsin still finished ahead of several nearby states, including Michigan at No. 37, North Dakota at No. 49 and South Dakota at No. 46.

"Nurses are among the most essential workers in the country, as we’ve seen all too well over the past few years," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report. "Since they work in such a demanding profession, nurses deserve to work in places that will compensate them appropriately and offer them reasonable working conditions."

Maine ranked No. 1 overall, followed by New Hampshire, Washington, Oregon and Arizona.

Oklahoma ranked last overall.

WalletHub said its ranking was based on data collected as of March 31 from sources including the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, HRSA Data Warehouse, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, U.S. News & World Report and WalletHub research.