Nurse Salary in Canada: CAD 43.27 an Hour Median
Cross-agency · employment
Quick answer
The Government of Canada's Job Bank puts the national wage for a registered nurse at CAD 30.00 low, CAD 43.27 median and CAD 54.37 high per hour, updated 19 November 2025. Provincial medians run from CAD 40.00 in Quebec to CAD 58.00 in the Northwest Territories.
Every figure on this page is from Government of Canada, Job Bank's own published documents.
Last verified 1 source, listed below
Registered Nurse (R.N.) in Canada, Wages1. PHGuides is independent and not affiliated with any agency.
The Government of Canada’s Job Bank publishes prevailing wages by occupation and region. For a registered nurse, the national median is CAD 43.27 an hour, on data updated 19 November 2025.
This is one of the few occupational wage figures for an overseas destination that comes from a government rather than from a salary website, which is why this page carries it and not an “average nurse salary abroad”.
The national figure
| Per hour | |
|---|---|
| Low | CAD 30.00 |
| Median | CAD 43.27 |
| High | CAD 54.37 |
By province and territory
| Province or territory | Low | Median | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | CAD 30.00 | CAD 43.27 | CAD 54.37 |
| Alberta | CAD 30.00 | CAD 47.50 | CAD 54.49 |
| British Columbia | CAD 35.00 | CAD 47.58 | CAD 57.00 |
| Manitoba | CAD 34.00 | CAD 45.00 | CAD 52.40 |
| New Brunswick | CAD 31.00 | CAD 44.77 | CAD 49.00 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | CAD 33.65 | CAD 44.00 | CAD 52.00 |
| Northwest Territories | CAD 45.00 | CAD 58.00 | CAD 69.23 |
| Nova Scotia | CAD 30.20 | CAD 41.50 | CAD 50.00 |
| Nunavut | CAD 45.00 | CAD 57.99 | CAD 71.57 |
| Ontario | CAD 29.00 | CAD 42.00 | CAD 55.00 |
| Prince Edward Island | CAD 31.50 | CAD 42.00 | CAD 49.98 |
| Quebec | CAD 27.00 | CAD 40.00 | CAD 50.00 |
| Saskatchewan | CAD 38.00 | CAD 47.13 | CAD 52.20 |
| Yukon Territory | CAD 33.00 | CAD 48.50 | CAD 60.88 |
What the spread tells you
| Comparison | Difference per hour |
|---|---|
| Northwest Territories median against Quebec median | CAD 18.00 |
| Northwest Territories median against the national median | CAD 14.73 |
| Nunavut high against Quebec high | CAD 21.57 |
| Lowest low, Quebec, against highest low, NWT and Nunavut | CAD 18.00 |
Those subtractions are arithmetic on the published figures, not values Job Bank prints.
The three territories sit well above every province. That is a real published difference in wages and nothing more: Job Bank’s wage page says nothing about the cost of housing, food or travel in the far north, and this page does not either.
Among the four largest provinces the medians are close, from CAD 40.00 in Quebec to CAD 47.58 in British Columbia, a spread of CAD 7.58.
What these figures are not
They are prevailing wages for the occupation, published by region. They are not an offer, not a guarantee, and not what any particular employer pays. What you are actually offered turns on the employer, the contract and whether your credentials are recognised in that province.
Nursing is a regulated profession in Canada and registration is provincial. Job Bank’s wage page does not cover licensing, credential assessment or English language requirements, so this page states none of them.
Nor does this page cover Canadian immigration. Entry and work rights are the Canadian government’s decision under rules that change independently of wage data. The work visa requirements guide explains why the Philippine government controls the exit documents but not the visa.
The Philippine side
| Charge | Amount |
|---|---|
| DMW processing, direct hire | USD 100, in peso equivalent |
| DMW processing, manual OEC through a landbased agency | ₱200.00 |
| OWWA membership | USD 25 |
| Pag-IBIG | ₱600.00 |
Charging above the allowable schedule is illegal recruitment under RA 10022, carrying 12 years and 1 day to 20 years and a fine of ₱1,000,000.00 to ₱2,000,000.00, and a placement fee loan may not bear interest above 8% per annum.
The recruitment agencies guide covers the licence directory, the deployment bans and placement fees guide covers when no fee may be charged at all, and the OEC guide covers the exit certificate.
Related
The nurse salary abroad comparison puts Job Bank’s figures beside the other six destinations that publish nurse pay, the nurse salary in the USA guide covers the nearest comparable market, the caregiver salary in Canada guide covers the same country’s home support work from the same source, the PEOS guide covers the free pre-employment seminar to take before applying, the working in Australia guide covers a destination where nursing pay is set by an award, and the working in the UK guide covers one where NHS pay sits outside the minimum wage entirely.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a registered nurse earn in Canada?
- Job Bank publishes a national low of CAD 30.00, a median of CAD 43.27 and a high of CAD 54.37 per hour, updated 19 November 2025. Those are prevailing hourly wages, not an annual salary and not take-home pay.
- Which province pays the most?
- By median, the Northwest Territories at CAD 58.00 and Nunavut at CAD 57.99 an hour. By the high figure, Nunavut leads at CAD 71.57. Among the larger provinces, British Columbia has the highest median at CAD 47.58.
- Which pays the least?
- Quebec, with a low of CAD 27.00, a median of CAD 40.00 and a high of CAD 50.00 an hour. Ontario has the lowest starting figure among the large provinces at CAD 29.00.
- Is the territory premium worth it?
- The median in the Northwest Territories is CAD 14.73 an hour above the national median. That is a published difference in wages only. It says nothing about the cost of living, housing or travel in those territories, which Job Bank does not publish on this page.
- Are these figures a guarantee?
- No. Job Bank describes them as prevailing wages for the occupation at the stated location. What an individual employer offers depends on the contract, the employer and your credentials recognised in that province.
- Do I need Canadian nursing registration?
- Nursing is a regulated profession in Canada and registration is handled provincially. Job Bank's wage page does not cover licensing, so no requirements are stated here.
- Does the Philippine side still apply?
- Yes. You still need an Overseas Employment Certificate, OWWA membership and either a licensed agency or a qualifying direct hire, whatever Canada's immigration position is.
- How current are these figures?
- The page was updated on 19 November 2025. Job Bank revises its wage data periodically, so check the source before relying on a figure in a negotiation.