Medical Skilled Trades
Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)
Certified nursing assistants help patients with daily needs like bathing, eating and moving, and report changes to nurses. Training is short, and it can lead to other nursing careers.
1.Career snapshot
- Role
- Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)
- Pay (planning range)
- $30K–$50K+ Wealth Playbook guide, 2026
- Training time
- 4–12 weeks
- Pathway
- Patient Care
- Demand
- Employment of nursing assistants and orderlies is projected to grow 3 percent from 2025 to 2035, about as fast as the average for all occupations.
- Patient contact
- High
- Occupation code
- SOC 31-1131 · O*NET 31-1131.00
- Career advancement potential
2.What you'll do
Everyday work and where it happens
You will spend most of your shift with patients: helping them wash, dress, eat and get from bed to a wheelchair. You take vital signs such as blood pressure and temperature, answer call lights, and tell the nurse when something seems wrong. Most CNAs work in nursing homes or hospitals, and the work keeps you on your feet.
Typical duties
- Help patients bathe, dress and use the toilet
- Turn, reposition and transfer patients between beds and wheelchairs
- Measure and record vital signs such as blood pressure and temperature
- Serve meals and help patients eat and drink
- Listen to patients' concerns and report them to nurses
- Answer call lights and keep patients safe and comfortable
- Where you could work
- Nursing care facilities, Hospitals, Assisted living and retirement communities, Home health care
- Schedule
- Most CNAs work full time, though some work part time. Because care facilities run around the clock, you may need to work nights, weekends and holidays.
- Physical demands
- This is physical work. You are on your feet most of the day and regularly lift, turn and move patients.
- Patient contact
- High
3.How to get there
Education, training, exams and licensing
- Typical training
- State-approved certificate
- Training time
- 4–12 weeks
1.Finish high school or an equivalent
Many nursing assistant jobs ask for a high school diploma or equivalent. Some high schools offer state-approved nursing assistant programs.
2.Complete a state-approved nursing assistant program
Programs combine classroom learning with supervised clinical work. They are offered in high schools, community colleges, vocational and technical schools, hospitals and nursing homes.
3.Pass your state's competency exam
Many states use the National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP), which has a written (or oral) part and a hands-on skills part.
4.Get listed on your state nurse aide registry
Passing the exam places you on the state registry. You must be on the registry to work in a nursing home.
5.Complete on-the-job orientation
Nursing assistants typically complete a brief period of on-the-job training to learn their employer's policies.
Exams and credentials
- National Nurse Aide Assessment Program (NNAAP) exam (used by many states)
Licensing
Nursing assistants often need a state-issued license or certification. In most cases, you must complete a state-approved program, pass your state's competency exam and be listed on the state nurse aide registry. Titles differ by state (CNA, STNA, LNA and others), and some states add continuing education or a background check. Requirements vary by state; check your state board.
Look up your state's license requirements (opens in a new tab)
4.What it costs
Tuition, fees, exams and financial aid
Costs vary by program.
Grants, loans and work-study can help pay for an eligible program. Start with the FAFSA at studentaid.gov (opens in a new tab), and ask each program what its total cost includes.
5.What you can earn
Starting, median and experienced pay, and where the figures come from
Planning range
$30K–$50K+
Planning range from the Wealth Playbook medical careers guide, 2026
Local wage data isn't loaded yet, so this is a broad planning range, not a wage figure.
A planning range is broad and has no median: it is for planning, not a promise of pay. Starting, median and experienced wages will show here when BLS wage data is loaded.
For reference only (not this page's pay figure): BLS median, May 2025, national: $42,260 a year (source, opens in a new tab).
6.Jobs near you
Coming soon
We plan to show local openings here once a job-data source is connected. Until then, you can search current listings yourself.
7.Career ladder
Next certifications and roles
- Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA)(this career)
- Licensed Practical / Vocational Nurse (LPN/LVN)(About one year of practical nursing school plus the NCLEX-PN licensing exam.)
- Registered Nurse (RN)(Needs more education: an associate's degree, a diploma or a bachelor's degree in nursing (BLS lists a bachelor's degree as typical), plus the RN licensing exam. LPN-to-RN bridge programs exist.)
8.Your wealth path
From your first paycheck to owning and investing
Train
Certify
Get hired
Advance
Build wealth
Own / invest
Estimated take-home pay
Low end of the planning range: $30,000 a year
About $25,394 a year ($2,116 a month)
High end of the planning range: $50,000 a year
About $40,464 a year ($3,372 a month)
Estimate only. Assumptions: tax year 2026, single filer, the standard deduction, federal income tax, FICA at 7.65%, and a default state income tax rate of 5.00% (choose a state above to use its rate). No retirement contributions or other deductions. The Paycheck calculator uses the same engine.
9.Find training
Free U.S. Department of Labor resources. We don't list or rank schools.
Registered apprenticeships exist for some of these roles. For licensed careers, check that a program meets your state's licensing rules.
10.Compare careers
Save this career and put it beside others
Sources
- Pay: Planning range from the Wealth Playbook medical careers guide, 2026 (a planning range, not wage data).
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Nursing Assistants and Orderlies (opens in a new tab)
- O*NET OnLine: 31-1131.00 Nursing Assistants (opens in a new tab)
- NCSBN: NNAAP and MACE (opens in a new tab)
- Credentia: NNAAP (opens in a new tab)
- BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Registered Nurses (opens in a new tab)