CRNA Salary Houston

CRNA Salary in Houston (1)As a CRNA, Houston was my #1 destination tied with New York City.  However, it was for completely different reasons.  The State of Texas, which Houston is based, ranks #1 in the number of CRNA jobs.  Sometime nurse anesthetists joke around and call Houston the ‘CRNA Capital of the United States‘ because of the number of CRNA jobs in the city.  As a whole, Texas ranked much lower in terms of CRNA Salary, coming in at #33.  As a newbie SRNA nurse in school, I’ve always been wondering why the CRNA salary Houston seemed much lower than other cities due to the fact that no official data available exists on this subject.

Before graduating, I conducted my own research applying to CRNA jobs in different States I was considering relocating.  Houston was my tied for my #1 choice for where I was thinking of moving to.  I’ll share my personal learnings on CRNA Salary Houston that I discovered while searching and applying for a CRNA job in Texas.

Background Information

First, before we begin, here are some official reference points on Nurse Anesthetist Salary Houston from official sources:

  • Salary.com states the median CRNA Salary Houston is US$191,381 and ranges from US$161,779 at the lowest 10% and US$224,617 at the highest 90% quartile.
  • In the official AANA career survey of over 5,000 CRNAs, the median CRNA salary in Texas is US$180,000 and the median CRNA total income is US$200,000.
  • The US government Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the average CRNA salary in Texas is US$167,020.

My Perspective on CRNA Salary Houston

My Perspective on CRNA Salary HoustonIn my opinion, real world results always beat average statistical data hands down.  What I found applying to CRNA jobs in Houston is that the starting CRNA Salary Houston is a standard package.  All the CRNA job offers I received from hospitals in Houston had starting salary CRNA Salary in the range of US$165,000 to US$170,000 and equally weighted towards both salaries.  I have listed out the Houston CRNA Salary from each hospital job offer below.  For confidentiality reasons, I have kept the hospitals anonymous.

  1. CRNA Offer #1: US$170,000 (Houston)
  2. Nurse Anesthetist Job Offer #2: US$165,000 (Houston)
  3. CRNA Job Offer #3: US$165,000 (Houston)
  4. CRNA Offer #4: US$170,000 (Houston)

Similar to CRNA jobs in other cities, benefits were quite standard from all the hospitals.  They included standard malpractice, health insurance, life insurance, dental, disability, matching contribution to retirement plans.

Does CRNA School Rank Matter?

I spoke with a CRNA recruiter about CRNA Salary Houston that told me Houston hospitals generally have a salary range that they are able to offer to CRNAs.  It depends on the CRNA school the candidate graduated from in addition to previous job experiences.  Candidates who graduate from the best CRNA programs or an Ivy League like UPenn CRNA and Yale CRNA will generally be able to demand about 10% more Salary.  However, at the end of the day it really depends on the experience you’ve gotten and how passionate you are about providing the best anesthesia care to patients. For anyone looking to earn more money, there’s always OT and additional hours available to more than make up for the difference in base salary.

CRNA Salary Houston After Taxes

CRNA Salary Houston After TaxesIn my personal opinion, the key factor that differentiates CRNA Salary Houston from CRNA Salary in other cities and States is that there is no personal income tax in Texas.  This started in 2019.  This is a huge saving from NYC where there is not only a state income tax of 6.5% at the CRNA average salary there is also an additional New York City income tax of approximately 3.9%.  This adds up to be a noticeably big difference.  I believe this was the top reason why CRNA Salaries are lower in Houston than other cities.  However, when you take into account take home pay and cost of living, Houston would rank higher than Chicago and NYC.

Sign-on Bonus for CRNA Salary in Houston

Sign-on Bonus for CRNA Salary in HoustonSigning bonuses, sometimes referred to as relocation bonuses, are sometimes offered by hospitals to attract new talent.  In Houston, I received the same US$10,000 signing bonus offer from all four hospitals.  (That’s also why I felt the CRNA Salary in Houston was very standard).  This was considerably lower than the CRNA Salary in NYC but mostly on par with CRNA Salary Chicago.

Indirectly, these sign-on bonuses are retention bonuses because they can have strings attached.  I’ve seen CRNA sign-on bonuses paid out prior to graduation in addition to ones paid out half and half.  To clarify, the hospital paid half prior to graduation and the other half after 6 months of employment.  To emphasize, sign on bonuses always have a commitment in terms of years you need to work at that hospital.  Remember – There ain’t no such thing as a free lunch!

If you leave prior to the agreement, the hospital will ask for the entire signing bonus to be returned.  As a side note, it’s important that you speak with other CRNAs to get feedback on the hospital’s reputation.  The reason is because an unknown hospital may be mismanaged and offering high sign-on bonuses as the only way to attract staff.  It’s always important to do your research before you join a hospital in Houston because taking on a sign-on bonus is a significant commitment, like being in a long-term relationship!

Best CRNA Programs

best crna schoolsWe spent hundreds of hours studying all CRNA schools and interviewing over 125 nurse anesthetists to create our exclusive list of Best CRNA Schools.  If you’re a nurse anesthetist researching CRNA Salary in Houston, please visit the Best CRNA programs and let us know feedback and comments on your CRNA School program to help prospective nurse anesthetist students.

Nurse Anesthetist Salary Map

How does CRNA Salary in Houston compare to other cities in the United States?   Check out the nurse anesthetist salary map below to find out.

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY DC

Notes:
The darker the green color equivocates to a higher the average CRNA salary.
Tier 1 = Top 25% CRNA Salary in the US
2nd Tier = Top 50% CRNA Salary in the US
Tier 3 = Top 75% CRNA Salary in the US
Tier 4 = Bottom 25% CRNA Salary in the US
Data source: AANA Career Survey

Other Texas CRNA Information

Conclusion

In conclusion, the CRNA Salary Houston was slightly lower than comparable cities at US$165,000 to US$170,000.  However, because there are no State and City taxes, the take home CRNA Salary Houston is better than other cities.  What I’ve learned is the CRNA profession is different from other occupations, so the salary metric is difficult to generalize.  Many CRNA’s work multiple jobs, some do a lot of call shifts, while others run their own practice.  My purpose on this article on CRNA Salary Houston is not to give one concrete final number but to give a range of figures for you to think about, to help negotiate your job offer or to help you decide on which city you want to live and work as a CRNA.

Do you work in Houston as a CRNA?  How do your job offers for CRNA salary compare to those that I received in Houston?  Please help share your salary information to help the community.  We can all grow stronger by sharing together. Click on the image gallery below for more information on Nurse Anesthetist Salary in Houston.

 

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