Average Salary

• The mean annual wage for a nursing aid in the United States was $24,980 as of May 2009, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The bottom 10 percent of aides earned an average of $17,510, while the top 10 percent of aides earned $33,970.
  
  

Employment Sectors

• The majority of nursing aides are employed by nursing care facilities, which pay an annual mean wage of $24,080. Those aides working at general medical and surgical hospitals earn slightly higher than average at $26,540, while those at community care facilities for the elderly earn less than average at $23,320. The highest-paying employment sector for nursing aides is that of scheduled air transportation, which pays an annual mean wage of $41,720, followed by scheduled air transportation at $35,000.
  
  

Location

• Cost of living and demand for nursing aides will play a large role in setting salaries. The San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California, area is the highest-paying in the country for nursing aides at an annual mean wage of $36,900. Overall, Alaska is the top-paying state at $32,390, followed by Nevada at $30,970. North Dakota has the highest concentration of nursing aides in the U.S., but offers a lower-than-average mean wage of $23,790.
  
  

Outlook and Advancement

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that the employment of nursing aides will increase by 18 percent between 2008 and 2018, which is faster than the average for all occupations. In order to advance in the field of nursing, aides will typically have to commit to additional formal training, after which they may earn higher wages as a medical assistant, licensed practical nurse or registered nurse.