RN License Renewal Fees by State

RN license renewal costs between $50 and $245 per cycle depending on the state, and most boards renew every two years. Per each board’s fee schedule, Indiana is cheapest at $50 for two years and Oregon is priciest at $245 for two years. Spread across the cycle, the median state charges about $50 a year. The full 50-state table below is sorted by cost per year, since a $160 fee in Arizona that covers four years is cheaper annually than $100 for two.

What does RN renewal cost in every state?

Fees below come from our verified state data, checked against each board’s fee schedule between December 2025 and July 2026. Cost per year is the renewal fee divided by the cycle length. CE hours are the board’s required contact hours per cycle; a zero means the state doesn’t mandate general CE, though some substitute practice hours or coursework.

#	State	Cycle	Renewal fee	Cost per year	CE hours per cycle
1	New York	3 yr	$73	$24.33	0
2	Indiana	2 yr	$50	$25	0
3	Georgia	2 yr	$65	$32.50	30
4	Iowa	3 yr	$99	$33	36
5	Texas	2 yr	$68	$34	20
6	Utah	2 yr	$68	$34	15
7	Idaho	2 yr	$70	$35	0
8	Wisconsin	2 yr	$73	$36.50	0
9	Florida	2 yr	$75	$37.50	24
10	Maine	2 yr	$75	$37.50	0
11	Ohio	2 yr	$75	$37.50	24
12	Oklahoma	2 yr	$75	$37.50	24
13	South Carolina	2 yr	$75	$37.50	30
14	Illinois	2 yr	$80	$40	20
15	Arizona	4 yr	$160	$40	0
16	Kansas	2 yr	$85	$42.50	30
17	Minnesota	2 yr	$85	$42.50	24
18	Missouri	2 yr	$85	$42.50	0
19	West Virginia	2 yr	$90	$45	12
20	Wyoming	2 yr	$90	$45	0
21	Alabama	2 yr	$100	$50	24
22	Arkansas	2 yr	$100	$50	15
23	Louisiana	2 yr	$100	$50	30
24	Mississippi	2 yr	$100	$50	0
25	Montana	2 yr	$100	$50	0
26	Nevada	2 yr	$100	$50	30
27	North Carolina	2 yr	$100	$50	15
28	Colorado	2 yr	$108	$54	0
29	Delaware	2 yr	$110	$55	30
30	New Mexico	2 yr	$110	$55	30
31	South Dakota	2 yr	$115	$57.50	0
32	New Hampshire	2 yr	$116	$58	30
33	Massachusetts	2 yr	$120	$60	15
34	New Jersey	2 yr	$120	$60	30
35	Pennsylvania	2 yr	$122	$61	30
36	Nebraska	2 yr	$123	$61.50	20
37	Kentucky	1 yr	$65	$65	14
38	Michigan	2 yr	$131	$65.50	25
39	Rhode Island	2 yr	$135	$67.50	10
40	North Dakota	2 yr	$140	$70	12
41	Tennessee	2 yr	$140	$70	0
42	Virginia	2 yr	$140	$70	15
43	California	2 yr	$190	$95	30
44	Maryland	2 yr	$191	$95.50	30
45	Hawaii	2 yr	$196	$98	30
46	Alaska	2 yr	$200	$100	30
47	Connecticut	1 yr	$110	$110	2
48	Vermont	2 yr	$220	$110	20
49	Oregon	2 yr	$245	$122.50	3
50	Washington	1 yr	$138	$138	8

Two notes on reading the table. The CE column shows required hours only; a low number like Connecticut’s 2 or Oregon’s 3 usually reflects mandated topic hours rather than a general requirement, so check the state guide for what actually applies. And fees exclude any multistate add-on, workforce surcharge, or card fee that some boards bill separately.

Which states are cheapest and most expensive?

The cheapest six renewal fees are Indiana $50, Georgia $65, Kentucky $65, Texas $68, Utah $68, and Idaho $70. Kentucky’s $65 is annual, though, so it costs more over two years than any of the others. On a per-year basis New York sneaks into first place at $73 every three years.

The priciest per cycle are Oregon $245, Vermont $220, Alaska $200, Hawaii $196, Maryland $191, and California $190, all on two-year cycles. Per year, Washington tops the list at $138 annually, ahead of Oregon’s $122.50.

Callout	State	Fee	Cycle	Per year
Cheapest fee	Indiana	$50	2 years	$25
Cheapest per year	New York	$73	3 years	$24.33
Priciest fee	Oregon	$245	2 years	$122.50
Priciest per year	Washington	$138	1 year	$138
Longest cycle	Arizona	$160	4 years	$40

Which states renew every year?

Three states in our data renew annually: Connecticut at $110, Kentucky at $65, and Washington at $138. An annual cycle means the fee lands twice as often as everywhere else, and it also means a shorter window to forget. Washington’s $138 a year is the highest recurring cost in the country, more than five times what an Indiana nurse pays annually.

At the other end, New York and Iowa renew every three years, and Arizona every four. Arizona’s $160 looks steep on the invoice but averages $40 a year, cheaper than 35 other states.

What else do you pay at renewal?

The renewal fee is the floor, not the total. Every board in our data charges a late penalty if you miss the deadline, and every one says practice must stop on the expiration date; Wisconsin lists a $25 late fee and Iowa a $50 late fee, while most boards say only that “a late fee applies.” Reinstating a lapsed license costs more again; Tennessee charges a $200 reinstatement fee. For what happens if your license lapses, see license renewal mistakes to avoid.

The other cost people forget is time. Most boards open the renewal window a month or two before expiration (the exact window is on each board’s renewal page), and the online portal is the fast path; a paper renewal or a mailed check can add weeks and, if it arrives after the deadline, a late fee. Expiration dates also vary in kind: Maine and Tennessee renew by your birthday, Colorado RN licenses expire September 30, and Indiana expires October 31 of odd years, so mark the specific date rather than an anniversary.

CE is the bigger hidden cost. A 30-hour requirement in California or Alaska can run from free to several hundred dollars depending on where you take it. Multistate licenses sometimes carry an add-on; Indiana, for example, charges $25 extra for the multistate privilege at initial licensure. And some states, like South Dakota, bundle surcharges into the fee: its $115 is $95 base plus $10 for a loan fund and $10 for a workforce center.

One more thing the table hides: what “CE hours” actually cost you. Thirteen states require no hours at all, which we cover in states with no CE for RN renewal, while Iowa asks for 36 every three years. If you pay $10 to $20 per contact hour, a 30-hour state adds $300 to $600 per cycle on top of the fee, which is more than the entire fee spread between the cheapest and priciest boards.

Should renewal cost affect where you get licensed?

Not much. The spread between the cheapest and priciest state is about $110 a year, less than most nurses spend on scrubs. What matters more is total cost of getting licensed in the first place, including application, NCLEX, and fingerprinting, which we rank in license cost by state, and whether the state is in the Nurse Licensure Compact.

The honest caveat: these fees change. Boards raise them by rule or statute, sometimes with little notice, and our data was verified between December 2025 and July 2026. If you’re budgeting for a renewal this year, confirm the number on the board’s fee page (linked from each state guide) before you rely on the table.

Bottom line

• Renewal runs $50 to $245 per cycle; most states use two years and land between $75 and $140.
• Per year, New York, Indiana, Georgia, Iowa, Texas, and Utah are the cheapest; Washington, Oregon, Vermont, and Connecticut are the priciest.
• Annual-renewal states (Connecticut, Kentucky, Washington) charge less per invoice but more per decade.
• Late fees, reinstatement fees, CE, and surcharges all sit on top of the base fee.

To see what a full license costs including the initial application, use the cost calculator or browse the cheapest RN license states.