Post job

How to hire a certified nurses' aide

Certified nurses' aide hiring summary. Here are some key points about hiring certified nurses' aides in the United States:

  • The median cost to hire a certified nurses' aide is $1,633.
  • It takes between 36 and 42 days to fill the average role in the US.
  • HR departments typically allocate 15% of their budget towards recruitment efforts.
  • Small businesses spend $1,105 per certified nurses' aide on training each year, while large companies spend $658.
  • It takes approximately 12 weeks for a new employee to reach full productivity levels.
  • There are a total of 972,671 certified nurses' aides in the US, and there are currently 171,087 job openings in this field.
  • New York, NY, has the highest demand for certified nurses' aides, with 52 job openings.

How to hire a certified nurses' aide, step by step

To hire a certified nurses' aide, you should create an ideal candidate profile, determine a budget, and post and promote your job. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to hire a certified nurses' aide:

Here's a step-by-step certified nurses' aide hiring guide:

  • Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
  • Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
  • Step 3: Make a budget
  • Step 4: Write a certified nurses' aide job description
  • Step 5: Post your job
  • Step 6: Interview candidates
  • Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new certified nurses' aide
  • Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a certified nurses' aide do?

A certified nurses' aide specializes in providing health care and welfare support to patients in nursing homes, hospitals, hospice, or any facilities that offer long-term care. A nurses' aide is responsible for assisting patients in bathing and dressing, toilet and catheter use, essential daily exercise and walks, and preparing and feeding meals. Furthermore, a nurses' aide must monitor a patient's vital signs and overall condition. It is also essential to coordinate with nurses and other health care workers by reporting changes or improvements.

Learn more about the specifics of what a certified nurses' aide does
jobs
Post a certified nurses' aide job for free, promote it for a fee
  1. Identify your hiring needs

    First, determine the employments status of the certified nurses' aide you need to hire. Certain certified nurses' aide roles might require a full-time employee, whereas others can be done by part-time workers or contractors.

    Determine employee vs contractor status
    Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

    You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a certified nurses' aide to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a certified nurses' aide that fits the bill.

    This list shows salaries for various types of certified nurses' aides.

    Type of Certified Nurses' AideDescriptionHourly rate
    Certified Nurses' AideNursing assistants, sometimes called nursing aides, help provide basic care for patients in hospitals and residents of long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes. Orderlies transport patients and clean treatment areas... Show more$11-20
    Patient SitterThe primary job of a patient sitter is to provide patients with care and companionship. You will be responsible for a few duties that always include supervising patients, assisting them with basic personal hygiene and care, and monitoring their vital signs... Show more$10-19
    Patient EscortA patient escort assists health care staff in providing patient care by managing a patient's immediate needs. Typical duties that you will perform include organizing and coordinating the transport of patients, assisting patients in personal hygiene such as dressing and bathing, and engaging with patients... Show more$12-20
  2. Create an ideal candidate profile

    Common skills:
    • Patients
    • Vital Signs
    • Care Plan
    • Blood Pressure
    • Customer Service
    • Infection Control
    • Fluid Intake
    • Home Health
    • Resident Care
    • Oral Hygiene
    • CPR
    • Quality Care
    • Direct Patient Care
    • Food Trays
    Check all skills
    Responsibilities:
    • Recognize by physicians for ability to meticulously prepare patient's chest and attach leads to obtain excellent quality EKG tracings.
    • Administer nursing care under direct supervision to assign residents and patients in order to achieve maximum level of independence.
    • Assist residents with bathing, feeding, transferring, oral care, etc., care track on vital signs and ADL 's
    • Demonstrate understanding of the needs of the patients and make appropriate matches between HHA and patients.
    • Provide companionship to keep patients mentally healthy.
    • Establish compassion by providing emotional/spiritual support to patients and families.
    More certified nurses' aide duties
  3. Make a budget

    Including a salary range in your certified nurses' aide job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A certified nurses' aide can vary based on:

    • Location. For example, certified nurses' aides' average salary in mississippi is 48% less than in hawaii.
    • Seniority. Entry-level certified nurses' aides 43% less than senior-level certified nurses' aides.
    • Certifications. A certified nurses' aide with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
    • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a certified nurses' aide's salary.

    Average certified nurses' aide salary

    $15.66hourly

    $32,566 yearly

    Entry-level certified nurses' aide salary
    $24,000 yearly salary
    Updated December 27, 2025

    Average certified nurses' aide salary by state

    RankStateAvg. salaryHourly rate
    1New York$39,380$19
    2Montana$36,077$17
    3Michigan$35,984$17
    4Oregon$35,279$17
    5Illinois$35,218$17
    6Pennsylvania$34,915$17
    7New Jersey$34,470$17
    8Virginia$33,272$16
    9Colorado$31,684$15
    10Arizona$31,505$15
    11Indiana$30,580$15
    12Texas$28,470$14
    13Iowa$28,101$14
    14Tennessee$27,691$13

    Average certified nurses' aide salary by company

  4. Writing a certified nurses' aide job description

    A certified nurses' aide job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a certified nurses' aide job description:

    Certified nurses' aide job description example

    Ind23GV:

    Position Summary:

    To provide for the day-to-day cares of the residents/tenants in accordance with established company policies and procedures, standards, and guidelines; and current federal, state, and local laws and regulations governing the campus and as directed by the supervisor by performing the following duties.:

    In this role you will:

    * Provide day-to-day cares of residents.

    * Answer and assist residents with request for assistance.

    * Assist resident with Activities of Daily Living (ADL’s).

    Qualified candidates will have:

    * Successful completion of a state approved Nurses Assistant course and certified by the State of Nebraska.

    * Be a minimum of at least 16 years of age.

    * Experience preferred, but not required.

    What's in it for you:

    * Competitive benefits package including low premiums, short-term disability, long-term disability, HSA contribution matching, 401(k) with company match, and more!

    * Flexible scheduling for many positions including on-call, full-time, and part-time options.

    * Competitive wage scales including shift differential for qualifying positions.

    * Tuition reimbursement and scholarship programs.

    * Financial wellness and freedom through access to your earned wages prior to your pay date!

    * A great culture where we live out our mission "To celebrate life in environments we create by delivering exceptional service and superior value through innovative leadership in personalized care."

    In 1989, Nye Health Services was founded on the philosophy that people deserve services that recognize individuality and are tailored to their unique needs. Today, Nye Health Services remains family-owned with campuses in Fremont, Lincoln, and Norfolk, Nebraska . Nye Health Services is blessed with dedicated and compassionate people who believe in our vision and deliver on our mission every day. Having a great work environment, while providing the best quality services so people feel cared for is of the utmost importance to us. We give passionate people a purpose!:

    We’re an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran or disability status.:

    #ZR

  5. Post your job

    There are various strategies that you can use to find the right certified nurses' aide for your business:

    • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
    • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
    • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
    • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.
    Post your job online:
    • Post your certified nurses' aide job on Zippia to find and attract quality certified nurses' aide candidates.
    • Use niche websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
    • Post a job on free websites.
  6. Interview candidates

    During your first interview to recruit certified nurses' aides, engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. During the following interview, you'll be able to go into more detail about the company, the position, and the responsibilities.

    Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

    The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

  7. Send a job offer and onboard your new certified nurses' aide

    Once you've selected the best certified nurses' aide candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

    It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

    Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new certified nurses' aide. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

  8. Go through the hiring process checklist

    • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
    • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
    • Define job responsibilities and requirements
    • Establish budget and timeline
    • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
    • Write job description
    • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
    • Promote the job internally
    • Process applications through applicant tracking system
    • Review resumes and cover letters
    • Shortlist candidates for screening
    • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
    • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
    • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
    • Conduct background checks on top candidates
    • Check references of top candidates
    • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
    • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
    • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
    • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
    • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
    • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)
    Sign up to download full list

How much does it cost to hire a certified nurses' aide?

Hiring a certified nurses' aide comes with both the one-time cost per hire and ongoing costs. The cost of recruiting certified nurses' aides involves promoting the job and spending time conducting interviews. Ongoing costs include employee salary, training, benefits, insurance, and equipment. It is essential to consider the cost of certified nurses' aide recruiting as well the ongoing costs of maintaining the new employee.

You can expect to pay around $32,566 per year for a certified nurses' aide, as this is the median yearly salary nationally. This can vary depending on what state or city you're hiring in. If you're hiring for contract work or on a per-project basis, hourly rates for certified nurses' aides in the US typically range between $11 and $20 an hour.

Find better certified nurses' aides in less time
Post a job on Zippia and hire the best from over 7 million monthly job seekers.

Hiring certified nurses' aides FAQs

Search for certified nurses' aide jobs

Ready to start hiring?

Browse healthcare support jobs