Registered Nurse License Renewal by State — Fees, CE & Calculator (2026)
Renewal costs, continuing education mandates, and state board information for Registered Nurses in every US jurisdiction.
Registered Nurse Renewal Calculator
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50-State Fee Comparison
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51 of 51 states shown. Click any row to pre-select that state in the calculator.
Registered Nurse License Renewal: What the Data Shows
RN renewal fees range from $40 in Illinois to $187 in District of Columbia, with a national average of $85. Fee variation is substantial — California charges $160 while Illinois charges just $40. However, the renewal fee itself is rarely the largest cost of maintaining RN licensure; CE course expenses often exceed the renewal fee, especially in states with high contact hour requirements.
More than half of US states have no mandatory continuing education requirement for RN renewal. States including Rhode Island, New York, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Alaska, and 20 others require zero CE contact hours for license renewal. This represents a significant departure from most other licensed professions and reflects ongoing debate about whether CE mandates correlate with better patient outcomes. States with no CE requirements often rely on demonstrated practice hours instead.
The Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) fundamentally changes the renewal equation for nurses working across state lines. NLC member states allow nurses to hold a single multistate license issued in their home state, valid in all compact states without separate state applications or fees. As of 2025, 41 states participate in the NLC. Nurses in compact states pay one renewal fee instead of potentially dozens — a significant financial advantage for travel nurses.
States that do require CE impose widely varying mandates. Florida mandates HIV/AIDS training, domestic violence, and medication error prevention as part of its CE requirement. Some states mandate specific training in substance abuse recognition, end-of-life care, or cultural competency. California requires CE in pain management, end-of-life care, and cultural competency. When comparing CE costs, these specialty requirements can add $30–$100 per topic to CE course expenses.
Note: Washington State's data shows an unusually high CE figure that is flagged as a likely data error in our verification database. Most states require 15–30 contact hours per renewal cycle. If you are a Washington RN, please verify CE requirements directly with the Washington State Department of Health before relying on any automated estimate.
CE Requirements by State
States grouped by continuing education hour requirement for Registered Nurse renewal.
- Alaska — None
- Arizona — None
- Colorado — None
- Connecticut — None
- Delaware — None
- Hawaii — None
- Idaho — None
- Indiana — None
- Louisiana — None
- Maine — None
- Maryland — None
- Mississippi — None
- Montana — None
- New Hampshire — None
- New York — None
- North Carolina — None
- North Dakota — None
- Oklahoma — None
- Oregon — None
- Rhode Island — None
- South Dakota — None
- Utah — None
- Vermont — None
- Virginia — None
- Wisconsin — None
- Wyoming — None
- Arkansas — 15 Contact Hours
- Kentucky — 14 Contact Hours
- Massachusetts — 15 Contact Hours
- Tennessee — 5 Contact Hours
- West Virginia — 12 Contact Hours
- Alabama — 24 Contact Hours
- California — 30 Contact Hours
- District of Columbia — 24 Contact Hours
- Florida — 24 Contact Hours
- Georgia — 30 Contact Hours
- Illinois — 20 Contact Hours
- Kansas — 30 Contact Hours
- Michigan — 25 Contact Hours
- Minnesota — 24 Contact Hours
- Missouri — 30 Contact Hours
- Nebraska — 20 Contact Hours
- Nevada — 30 Contact Hours
- New Jersey — 30 Contact Hours
- New Mexico — 30 Contact Hours
- Ohio — 24 Contact Hours
- Pennsylvania — 30 Contact Hours
- South Carolina — 30 Contact Hours
- Texas — 20 Contact Hours
- Washington — 30 Contact Hours
- Iowa — 36 Contact Hours