This page is a reference for the current national nurse turnover rate, how different organizations measure and report it, and why credible sources land on different numbers for what sounds like the same statistic.

For the fuller picture — why nurses actually leave, what turnover costs a hospital, specialty-by-specialty breakdowns, and what retention strategies work — see our complete nurse turnover guide. This page focuses specifically on the numbers themselves: what’s current, how to read them, and which source to cite for which purpose.

If you manage a nursing unit, work the floor, or study healthcare workforce trends, you have probably seen wildly different turnover numbers thrown around.

  • One report says 17.6%.
  • Another says 18.5%.
  • A hospital down the street might report something else entirely.
  • These differences are not a mistake.

Nurse turnover in the United States typically ranges from roughly 16% to 19% annually for registered nurses in hospitals, though the exact figure depends heavily on how it is measured, which care setting is studied, and which year’s data is used.

According to the 2026 NSI National Health Care Retention Report, RN turnover climbed to 17.6% after a period of gradual decline, reversing earlier improvement.

This article focuses on what these figures actually measure, why they shift from source to source, and how to know which number applies to your situation.

If work stress or emotional strain feels like part of your daily routine, resources like remote, complementary wellness support from services such as Ne Ste Al exist alongside your regular care team, though they are not a substitute for addressing staffing or systemic workplace pressures.

Latest National Benchmark Table

Use this table to see, at a glance, which figure comes from which source, what population it covers, and when it was measured. This is the fastest way to check whether a number you’ve seen elsewhere is comparable to your own hospital’s data.

Metric Figure Population / sample Period measured Source
RN turnover (staff RNs, hospital survey) 17.6% 527 acute care hospitals, 40 states, ~262,000 RNs 2025 data, published 2026 2026 NSI National Health Care Retention Report
Hospital-wide turnover (all roles) 18.5% Same NSI survey population, all job types combined 2025 data, published 2026 2026 turnover analysis, ThriveSparrow, citing NSI
Self-reported RN turnover (national survey) 28.7% National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses respondents Survey-year self-report, most recent published wave Health Affairs Scholar analysis
RN vacancy rate, acute care 8.6% Acute care hospitals nationally Down from 9.6% the prior year AACN Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet
Hospital-level turnover range 5.6%–40.0% Individual hospitals, varying by size and region 2025 data ThriveSparrow, citing NSI

For the specialty-by-specialty breakdown behind these national figures — behavioral health, emergency, telemetry, step-down, and the rest — see the nurse turnover guide’s unit-level section, which covers this in full so it isn’t duplicated here.

How Nurse Turnover Rates in the United States Are Measured

Turnover sounds like a simple concept, but hospitals and researchers calculate it differently depending on what they want to track. Some numbers reflect people leaving a specific unit, while others track people leaving the profession entirely. That distinction matters a lot when you compare reports.

Turnover, Vacancy, and Intent-to-Leave Metrics

Turnover rate usually means the percentage of nursing staff who left a job over a set period, often a year. Vacancy rate measures unfilled budgeted positions at a single point in time, which is a different thing entirely.

Intent-to-leave surveys ask nurses whether they plan to leave soon, which can signal future turnover before it shows up in the data. As explained on Shiftkey’s overview of nursing turnover, turnover is the inverse of retention, so a 20% turnover rate means a facility retained about 80% of its nursing staff that year.

Voluntary and Involuntary Departures

Voluntary turnover includes nurses who resign for a new job, retirement, family reasons, or burnout. Involuntary turnover covers terminations, layoffs, or contract non-renewals.

Researchers reviewing nursing literature have called for turnover to be reported clearly as voluntary or involuntary, and as avoidable or unavoidable, according to a systematic review published in Nursing Outlook. Without that breakdown, a single headline percentage can hide very different workforce stories.

Why National Estimates Differ

National estimates often rely on different survey samples, time periods, and definitions of “nurse.” Some studies include only RNs, others fold in support staff like certified nursing assistants.

A Health Affairs Scholar analysis using the National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses found a self-reported turnover rate of 28.7%, a notably different figure from hospital-survey based estimates.

Sample size, response rate, and the years covered all shape the final number.

Differences by Care Setting

Acute care hospitals are the most closely tracked setting, largely because of consistent annual surveys. Other settings, including outpatient clinics, long-term care, and home health, are studied less consistently, which makes direct comparisons harder.

The national RN vacancy rate in acute care settings stood at 8.6%, down slightly from 9.6% the prior year, according to the AACN Nursing Shortage Fact Sheet. Vacancy and turnover often move together, though not always at the same pace.

For how these national figures break down by specialty, region, and tenure — and what’s actually driving departures in each — see the nurse turnover guide, which covers causes, costs, and retention strategies in depth. This page focuses on the measurement and benchmark side; the guide covers the rest.

How to Use This Data Without Getting Burned

Turnover statistics come from different surveys, years, and hospital samples, so comparing figures across sources takes more care than it looks like it should.

Before you cite any turnover figure in a board deck or a staffing plan, ask three questions:

  1. What year does this data actually reflect?
  2. How many hospitals were surveyed, and how were they sampled?
  3. Does the figure cover RNs specifically, or all hospital staff combined?

Those three answers determine whether a benchmark is genuinely comparable to your own hospital’s numbers, or whether you’re about to measure your unit against a figure that was never built to describe it. For a worked example of applying benchmark data to your own hospital’s numbers, see our cost of nurse turnover per FTE guide.

For Causes, Costs, and Retention Strategies

This page is deliberately scoped to measurement and current benchmarks. For the broader picture, our nurse turnover guide covers:

  • Why nurses actually leave — workload, compensation, career mobility, burnout, and workplace safety
  • Specialty and regional breakdowns, including which units lose staff fastest and why
  • The full financial and patient-care cost of turnover, including continuity-of-care effects
  • Retention strategies with the strongest evidence behind them, from structured onboarding to flexible scheduling

If work stress or emotional strain is part of what’s driving turnover on your unit, remote complementary wellness options such as those offered by Ne Ste Al are sometimes used by working professionals seeking short, private sessions to help manage stress and emotional overwhelm. These services are not medical, psychiatric, or psychotherapy treatment, and they are not positioned as a fix for staffing shortages or systemic workplace pressures. They may be used alongside, not instead of, organizational retention efforts and any existing mental health care a nurse already has in place.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the current nurse turnover rate in the United States?

Recent hospital survey data puts RN turnover at around 17.6% nationally, according to the 2026 NSI National Health Care Retention Report. Individual hospitals can report rates far above or below that average, so the national figure is best used as a benchmark, not a universal standard.

How has nurse turnover changed in recent years?

Turnover dropped to around 16.4% in one recent year before rising again to 17.6%, based on Becker’s Hospital Review’s cost analysis. This up-and-down pattern reflects ongoing staffing pressure rather than a steady trend in either direction.

What is considered a high turnover rate for nurses?

There is no single agreed-upon cutoff, but hospital-level RN turnover has ranged from 5.6% to 40% across surveyed facilities, according to recent turnover statistics. Rates well above the 17% to 18% national average generally signal deeper staffing or workplace concerns worth investigating.

How is a nurse turnover rate calculated?

Turnover rate is typically calculated as the percentage of nursing staff who left their position over a specific period, usually a year. Different organizations may include or exclude voluntary departures, involuntary terminations, or internal transfers, which is why transparent reporting definitions matter when comparing numbers across sources.

Why do different reports show different national turnover rates?

Because they measure different things: some track RNs only, others include all hospital staff; some survey hospitals directly, others rely on nurse self-report; and each uses a different sample size and time window. Always check the population, period, and definition behind a number before comparing it to another source — see the benchmark table above for a side-by-side comparison.

Where can I find the causes, costs, and retention strategies behind these numbers?

Our nurse turnover guide covers the full picture — why nurses leave, specialty and regional patterns, the complete financial and patient-care cost of turnover, and which retention strategies have the strongest evidence behind them. This page is scoped specifically to current benchmark figures and measurement methodology.

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