Tennessee Travel Nurse Pay Guide: Salaries, Top Hospitals & No Income Tax (2026)

Tennessee punches above its weight for travel nurses who care about net take-home. It is one of only nine states with no state income tax, it is home to HCA Healthcare — the largest for-profit hospital chain in the country, headquartered in Nashville — and it offers three distinct regional markets with very different characters: the booming Music City healthcare hub, the culturally rich and affordable Memphis corridor, and the quieter but growing East Tennessee market anchored by Knoxville.

Gross weekly rates in Tennessee run below the national average. But once you remove state income tax from the equation, the gap with higher-paying states narrows significantly. A Tennessee contract at $1,900/week often nets more than a $2,100/week contract in South Carolina or Virginia once state taxes are applied to the taxable portion of each package.

This guide covers Tennessee travel nurse pay by specialty and city in 2026, the no-income-tax advantage quantified, the NLC compact picture, the top hospital systems, and what distinguishes each of Tennessee’s three regional markets.

Tennessee Travel Nurse Pay Overview: 2026

Tennessee travel nurse pay runs 10-15% below the national average on a gross basis. The no-income-tax offset is real and material — more on that below. Contract volume is high, driven by the HCA/TriStar network’s density across Nashville and the state.

The No-Income-Tax Advantage: What It Actually Means for Your Paycheck

Tennessee is one of only nine states with no state income tax on wages, alongside Florida, Texas, Washington, Nevada, Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska, and New Hampshire. For travel nurses, this is not a minor detail — it is a material difference in net take-home pay that changes how Tennessee contracts compare to higher-gross-pay states.

Here is a concrete comparison. Assume a travel nurse earns $900/week in taxable base wages on a 13-week contract:

A Tennessee nurse keeps roughly $819 more per 13-week contract than a South Carolina nurse at the same gross pay, and $526 more than a North Carolina nurse. That means a $1,900/week Tennessee contract can net more than a $1,963/week South Carolina contract or a $1,940/week North Carolina contract — despite a lower headline rate.

This math only applies to your taxable base wages, not your tax-free stipends. But it is a calculation every Southeast travel nurse should run before defaulting to higher-gross-pay states. For the full framework on how taxes and stipends interact, see our guide on Travel Nurse Tax Home Rules.

Tennessee Travel Nurse Pay by Specialty (2026)

Cardiac and interventional specialties command the highest rates in Tennessee, reflecting Nashville’s concentration of cardiac-focused HCA hospitals. General acute care specialties offer strong assignment volume but lower weekly rates.

Tennessee’s Three Regional Markets

Nashville — The HCA Capital

Nashville is the defining market for Tennessee travel nursing. HCA Healthcare — the largest for-profit hospital chain in the country — is headquartered here, and its TriStar Health division operates dozens of facilities in and around Nashville. TriStar Skyline Medical Center had 249 active travel nursing positions on Vivian as of January 2026, TriStar Centennial had 170, and Saint Thomas West Hospital added another 119 — a combined Nashville market volume that dwarfs most cities of comparable size.

Nashville’s hospital infrastructure extends well beyond HCA. Vanderbilt University Medical Center is one of the South’s premier academic medical centers, nationally ranked across multiple specialties. Ascension Saint Thomas operates a major network in Middle Tennessee. Nashville General Hospital serves as the city’s safety-net facility. For specialty nurses — particularly those in cardiac, OR, and neurology — Nashville’s density of large facilities creates both strong assignment availability and meaningful career credentials.

Contract rates in Nashville cluster near or slightly below the statewide average on general specialties, but cardiac and interventional roles at facilities like Centennial and Skyline push toward the top of the Tennessee range. Nashville’s cost of living has risen with the city’s population boom — one-bedroom apartments in desirable areas now run $1,400-$1,900/month — so factor housing into your net calculation for Nashville assignments.

Memphis — Affordable, High-Acuity, Underrated

Memphis is Tennessee’s second healthcare market and one of the most underrated travel nurse destinations in the Southeast. Regional One Health is a Level I trauma center and handles some of the highest acuity cases in the region, offering strong resume-building assignments for critical care nurses. Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare operates a major multi-campus system including Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, one of the region’s premier pediatric facilities. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, while primarily a research institution, elevates the overall medical ecosystem and specialist concentration of the city.

AMN listed Memphis contract rates ranging from $1,195 to $2,802/week in the city, with ICU assignments running at the upper end. Memphis’s key advantage is cost of living — one-bedroom apartments in the city average $800-$1,200/month, among the lowest of any major Tennessee market. For nurses who prioritize savings rate over lifestyle flash, Memphis contracts consistently outperform their gross weekly rate on a net purchasing power basis.

East Tennessee — Knoxville, Chattanooga, and the Mountain Markets

East Tennessee encompasses Knoxville, Chattanooga, and the smaller markets of the Appalachian corridor. UT Medical Center and Covenant Health anchor Knoxville, with consistent travel contract volume in ICU, OR, and med-surg. Chattanooga’s primary facilities include Erlanger Health System (a Level I trauma center) and CHI Memorial Hospital, with AMN reporting Chattanooga ICU contracts averaging $1,583/week and reaching $2,147/week as of March 2026.

East Tennessee’s lifestyle draw is distinctive — the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, outdoor recreation in Knoxville and Chattanooga, and a cost of living that runs meaningfully below even Memphis in many smaller markets. Nurses who want to combine travel nursing with access to genuine mountain scenery and outdoor culture should price out East Tennessee assignments before defaulting to the larger coastal markets.

Tennessee Travel Nurse Pay by City

Starr Regional Medical Center in Athens deserves attention — it ranked as the highest-volume ICU travel nurse employer in Tennessee on Vivian as of early March 2026 with 35 active ICU listings, ahead of the Nashville TriStar facilities. For ICU nurses who want consistent assignment availability in a smaller market with East Tennessee access, Athens is worth pricing out.

Top Tennessee Hospital Systems for Travel Nurses

HCA Healthcare / TriStar Health (Nashville and Statewide)

HCA Healthcare’s Nashville headquarters means Tennessee has denser HCA hospital infrastructure than any other state. TriStar Health, HCA’s Middle Tennessee division, operates Skyline Medical Center, Centennial Medical Center, Southern Hills Medical Center, Summit Medical Center, and more than a dozen other facilities across the Nashville metro. HCA also operates Parkridge Medical Center in Chattanooga. For travel nurses who want back-to-back contract availability within the same health system and familiar charting workflows, the TriStar network offers unusual flexibility.

Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville)

VUMC is Tennessee’s flagship academic medical center and one of the Southeast’s top-ranked hospitals nationally. Specialty nurses in cardiac, neurology, cancer care, and transplant will find VUMC assignments among the most clinically complex and resume-credentialing options in the state. Contract rates at VUMC tend to run above the Nashville average given the facility’s patient acuity and reputation.

Ascension Saint Thomas (Nashville and Middle Tennessee)

Ascension Saint Thomas operates a major Nashville-area network including Saint Thomas West Hospital (119 active travel listings on Vivian as of January 2026), Saint Thomas Midtown, and multiple community campuses. Ascension is consistently cited by Advantis and other agencies as a primary Tennessee placement partner.

Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare (Memphis)

Methodist University Hospital in Memphis ranked as the highest-volume travel nursing employer in Tennessee on Vivian as of March 2026 with 167 active listings — more than any Nashville facility. The Methodist system includes Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, a major pediatric center serving the Mid-South region. For pediatric specialty nurses, Le Bonheur is one of the stronger placement options in the Southeast.

Regional One Health (Memphis)

Regional One is Memphis’s Level I trauma center and a significant academic affiliate. High-acuity critical care nurses — particularly those with trauma ICU, burn, or complex surgical experience — will find Regional One assignments both clinically intensive and competitively rated relative to the Memphis market average.

Tennessee Nursing License: What Travel Nurses Need to Know

Tennessee is a full NLC compact member. If your primary state of residence is one of the 40+ current compact states and you hold an active multistate license, you can practice in Tennessee without a separate endorsement. Verify your multistate license status at Nursys.com before your first shift.

If Your Home State Is NOT an NLC Member

Apply for a Tennessee RN license by endorsement through the Tennessee Board of Nursing before your assignment start. Key details:

• Endorsement fee: $115 (fee waived for nurses obtaining licensure by exam)
• Renewal cycle: Every two years
• Submit license verification through Nursys.com
• Processing times: Plan for 4-8 weeks for non-compact applicants

Practical Notes Before Accepting a Tennessee Assignment

• Run the net math, not the gross math. Tennessee’s no-income-tax status is the single most important financial variable in this state. Always compare net take-home across state lines, not gross weekly rates. A $1,900/week Tennessee package often beats a $2,100/week South Carolina package after taxes.
• Nashville housing costs have risen sharply. The city’s decade-long population boom has pushed rents well above Tennessee norms. Budget $1,400-$1,900/month for a decent one-bedroom in desirable Nashville neighborhoods. Your stipend may not fully cover it — especially compared to what the same stipend covers in Memphis, Chattanooga, or Knoxville.
• HCA charting uniformity is a practical advantage. If you have experience with Meditech or the HCA-standard EHR, Tennessee assignments within the TriStar network require less orientation time than facilities on unfamiliar platforms. For nurses who have worked HCA before, Tennessee is a low-friction re-entry market.
• Tennessee borders six compact states. Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi are all NLC members. Nurses building a Southeast rotation from a Tennessee assignment have compact access to every bordering state — exceptional geographic flexibility for consecutive contracts.
• East Tennessee weather is genuinely four-season. Knoxville and Chattanooga experience real winters with occasional snow and ice, unlike the more temperate Memphis climate. The Smoky Mountains add elevation-driven weather variability. Factor this into housing and commute planning for East Tennessee assignments.

Before signing any Tennessee contract, make sure you understand the full pay package structure. See our guide on What Is a Travel Nurse Pay Package? and review our Travel Nurse Contract Red Flags guide before you sign.

Agencies with Strong Tennessee Placement

The top agencies on Vivian for Tennessee as of March 2026 were HealthTrust Workforce Solutions HCA (169 jobs), Malone Healthcare (78 jobs), and Trustaff (78 jobs). HealthTrust’s dominance reflects HCA’s deep footprint — their volume advantage in Tennessee is structural. For the major national agencies:

• Aya Healthcare — broad statewide coverage including Nashville and Memphis markets (read our Aya Healthcare review)
• AMN Healthcare — strong Vanderbilt and Ascension relationships in Nashville (read our AMN Healthcare review)
• Cross Country Nurses — consistent Tennessee placement including Memphis market (read our Cross Country Nurses review)
• Health Carousel — active placement across Middle Tennessee and East Tennessee markets (read our Health Carousel review)
• Vivian Health — aggregator platform for comparing all Tennessee contracts across agencies simultaneously (read our Vivian Health review)

References

Salary Data

• Vivian Health, “Travel Nursing Jobs in Tennessee,” “Travel Nursing Jobs in Nashville,” and “Travel ICU Nurse Jobs in Tennessee,” January-March 2026
• AMN Healthcare, “Tennessee Travel Nurse Jobs,” “Travel RN Jobs in Tennessee,” “ICU Travel Nursing Jobs in Tennessee,” “ICU Travel Nursing Jobs in Chattanooga,” and “Travel RN Jobs in Nashville,” January-March 2026
• Advantis Medical, “Travel Nursing Jobs in Tennessee,” March 2026
• TravelNurseCalc.com, blended rate data for Tennessee, 2026

Licensing

• Tennessee Board of Nursing, accessed April 2026
• NCSBN / NURSECOMPACT.com, NLC state map and status, accessed April 2026

Last updated: April 2026