229Live Travel Nursing Jobs in California · July 31 700+ 5-Star Reviews

Travel Nurse Jobs in California | Open Now

Browse California RN contracts by weekly pay, specialty, shift, and city.

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All RN travel jobs · California
229
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$2,574
avg weekly pay iMarket pay is the average weekly rate across active assignments matching your specialty and location. Each job’s pay tier compares its weekly pay to this average.
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    California's Ratio Law and License Rules

    Practicing in California means working under the only mandated nurse-to-patient ratios in the country, so travel nurse jobs in California carry a known patient load on every unit. It's also a non-compact state, which means a California RN license has to be in hand before day one, not after. Advantis has 229 open California contracts on the live board across Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento, and the Bay Area. The state pairs the nation's highest nursing wages with current weekly pay ranging between $1,604 - $3,683.

    California travel nursing at a glance

    What Shapes California Travel Pay

    Updated today
    $2,567
    Median weekly pay
    Range $1,604–$3,683 on open jobs
    200+
    Open California RN jobs
    Updated through the day
    Single-state
    License by endorsement
    Single-state: ~10-12 Weeks by endorsement
    13.3%
    State income tax
    up to 13.3% (graduated)
    +41%
    Cost of living vs U.S.
    Above U.S. average · 2-BR rent ~$2,599
    78,000
    RNs not working in nursing (57% age 65+)
    CA BRN · UCSF 2022
    See the full California salary breakdown New Median & percentiles, pay by specialty & metro, hourly, and take-home
    Top cities in California Riverside
    Read the full California RN licensing guide
    Pay and open jobs are live Advantis inventory: marketplace contract value, not a staff-nurse wage. Cost of living, rent, tax, licensing and demand figures come from public sources (MERIC/BEA, HUD, Tax Foundation, NCSBN, BLS/HRSA) compiled in our State Reference. Tax and cost-of-living figures are general information, not advice; rent is a metro-varying average.
    Pay by specialty

    Top-Paying Travel Nurse Specialties in California

    Updated today

    Which California travel nurse specialties pay the most right now. Each bar is the top weekly pay on open California contracts in that specialty, sorted high to low.

    highest open weekly pay
    Operating Room
    $3,683
    PICU
    $3,607
    CVOR
    $3,490
    RN First Assistant
    $3,415
    Case Manager
    $3,392
    Cath Lab
    $3,382
    Labor and Delivery
    $3,314
    See the full California travel nurse salary breakdown
    Top weekly pay on open Advantis California contracts in each specialty: marketplace contract value, not a staff-nurse wage. Each bar reflects the highest-paying open contracts in the specialty.

    California Licensing and Staffing-Ratio Law

    If you're planning a California contract, start with the license. California sits outside the Nurse Licensure Compact, so a multistate license won't cover you here. You'll want a California RN license in hand before your first shift, and endorsement usually takes about 10 to 12 weeks, so it pays to get the paperwork moving early. Once you're on assignment, you'll know your patient load up front: California is the only state that writes nurse-to-patient ratios into law, and the state's Title 22 rule holds units to 1:2 in intensive care, 1:4 in the ER and telemetry, and 1:5 on medical-surgical floors. Demand stays steady for a real reason, too. A Board of Registered Nursing and UCSF survey found close to 78,000 licensed RNs across California weren't working in nursing, and more than half were 65 or older. That gap is a big part of why hospitals keep leaning on travelers to fill their units.

    California Facilities With Open Contracts

    Across California, Advantis staffs travel nurses at more than 200 partner facilities, Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, and Sacramento among them, spanning major-metro medical centers and regional care settings across more than 125 communities statewide. Its RN workforce numbers more than 300,000 registered nurses.

    Adventist Health Clearlake Critical Access

    25 beds · Clearlake, CA

    Hiring now Inpatient Rehab

    Adventist Health Clearlake is a 25-bed critical access hospital in Clearlake, CA, with emergency, surgical, intensive care, and outpatient rehabilitation services.

    Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital Level II Trauma

    338 beds · Santa Rosa, CA

    Hiring now ER ICU Labor and Delivery Operating Room

    A 338-bed hospital in Santa Rosa, CA, the only Level II trauma center serving Marin, Mendocino, Napa, and Sonoma counties.

    Providence St. Mary Medical Center

    213 beds · Apple Valley, CA

    Hiring now ER Labor and Delivery Oncology Operating Room

    In Apple Valley, CA, a 213-bed Providence medical center offering cardiac catheterization along with labor and delivery.

    Stanford Health Care Magnet

    613 beds · Palo Alto, CA

    Hiring now Cardiology ER ICU Oncology

    A Magnet academic medical center on U.S. News's national Honor Roll, Stanford Health Care runs a Level I trauma center and NCI-designated cancer care.

    Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley

    167 beds · Pleasanton, CA

    Hiring now ER ICU Labor and Delivery Med Surg

    Backed by Stanford Medicine, the 167-bed Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley in Pleasanton holds Primary Stroke Center certification and the AHA's Gold Plus stroke Honor Roll.

    Good to Know

    California Assignments, Explained

    Do I need a California nursing license, or will my compact license work?
    You need a California license. California is not a Nurse Licensure Compact state, so a multistate license does not authorize you to work here. Apply to the California Board of Registered Nursing for licensure by endorsement, which typically runs about 10 to 12 weeks, and have the license in hand before your first shift. Confirm current timing with the board.
    How do California's nurse-to-patient ratios affect an assignment?
    California is the sole state that caps nurse-to-patient loads by law, so your maximum patient count is fixed by unit rather than left to the facility, and the Department of Public Health enforces it. The exact cap depends on the unit you are placed on. Many travelers weigh that predictability when comparing offers. Compare unit type, setting, and region together before letting the city name decide the assignment.
    Which California regions have a large share of travel assignments?
    California contracts largely concentrate in Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, San Diego, Sacramento, and the Central Valley, where the large medical centers and regional systems sit. Demand shifts week to week, so the live listings are the strong read on where roles are open. Sort by city to focus on one market. When demand is cyclical, timing the search to the season improves the options.
    Why is travel nurse demand so high in California?
    Two forces drive it. Federal workforce projections rank California's nurse shortfall among the large in the nation, and a large share of the state's licensed RNs have left bedside work as the workforce ages. The state's mandated staffing ratios also raise the number of nurses each unit must keep on, which sustains hospital reliance on travelers.
    Does California's cost of living cancel out the higher pay?
    Not entirely, but it narrows the gap. California posts some of the country's strongest RN wages and also steep housing costs, so real buying power lands closer to the national middle than the headline rate suggests. Travel packages usually include a housing stipend that offsets part of it, so weigh the full weekly package against local rent before you sign.