$2,600–$3,600/week • 0% State Income Tax • Largest Surgical Volume in the US
Texas has the most surgical volume of any US state — 30M+ population growing by 500,000 per year, world-class facilities from Houston Medical Center to MD Anderson, and 0% state income tax that keeps more money in your pocket every contract.
Active TX OR Positions
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Weekly Package
$2,600–$3,600
State Income Tax
0%
CNOR Premium
+$3–5/hr
NLC Compact
Yes
Texas is a full NLC Compact state. If your home state is NLC-compact, you can start a TX OR assignment immediately — no separate endorsement needed. Non-compact nurses typically receive TX Board of Nursing endorsement in 4–6 weeks.
Updated every 4 hours • Sorted by weekly pay
TX OR positions open frequently — join the priority list now.
Texas OR travel contracts move fast. Our recruiters will match you to upcoming openings before they post publicly.
Join TX OR Priority ListTexas offers every OR subtype. General OR has the highest volume; CVOR and Robotic OR command premium pay. All rates reflect 0% TX income tax — take-home advantage vs. California is significant.
| OR Type / Surgical Specialty | TX Weekly Pay | Demand | Key Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| General OR / Laparoscopic | $2,600–$3,100/wk | Very High | Highest contract volume in TX; fastest to orient; strong in community hospitals statewide |
| CVOR (Cardiac OR) | $3,000–$3,600/wk | High | Texas Heart Institute + large cardiac programs in Houston & DFW; open-heart + TAVR experience preferred |
| Neuro OR | $2,900–$3,400/wk | High | UT Southwestern, Memorial Hermann; long cases, complex instrumentation; craniotomy exposure valued |
| Robotic OR (da Vinci) | $2,900–$3,500/wk | High | Fastest-growing TX segment; Intuitive Surgical training or console experience strongly preferred |
| Orthopedic OR | $2,700–$3,200/wk | High | Implant-heavy, high case volume; joint replacement corridors in DFW and Houston suburbs |
| Pediatric OR | $2,800–$3,300/wk | Moderate | Texas Children's Hospital (Houston) is the #1 pediatric hospital in the US; peds OR exp required |
| Oncological OR | $2,900–$3,400/wk | Moderate | MD Anderson Cancer Center — world's top cancer institution; highly specialized oncologic surgical experience |
Pay reflects typical travel package including tax-free housing stipend. Actual offers vary by facility, shift, and experience.
Texas is vast — six distinct OR travel markets, each with different hospital systems, case mix, and housing costs.
World's largest medical complex — Texas Medical Center. 8+ OR-heavy hospitals: Memorial Hermann, Methodist, St. Luke's Health, HCA Houston Healthcare, Texas Children's, MD Anderson. Massive surgical volume.
Methodist Health System, Baylor Scott & White (largest non-profit TX health system), UT Southwestern Medical Center, Medical City Healthcare. Rapidly growing metro adds surgical capacity every year.
University Health, Baptist Health System, CHRISTUS Santa Rosa. Military-adjacent market with diverse surgical volume. UT Health San Antonio programs add academic OR exposure.
St. David's HealthCare system growing fast alongside Austin's population surge. New surgical towers opening. One of the fastest-growing OR travel markets in the South.
Ascension Providence, Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest. Smaller market but consistent OR openings for general surgical and ortho cases. Less competition, faster credentialing.
University Medical Center of El Paso, Del Sol Medical Center. Border-region surgical demand; bilingual nurses highly valued. Some contracts include trauma OR with Level I exposure.
Texas is home to some of the most renowned surgical facilities in the world — from the #1 pediatric hospital (Texas Children's) to the world's top cancer center (MD Anderson).
All OR subtypes: General, CVOR, Neuro, Robotic, Pediatric, Oncological
60+ institutions, 100+ operating suites. Travel OR nurses staff multiple hospitals within a single complex.
General, Robotic, Ortho, Cardiac OR across DFW + Central TX
Statewide system with 51+ hospitals. High volume of robotic (da Vinci) OR contracts for travel RNs.
Neuro OR, Transplant OR, Oncological OR, General Surgical
NCI-designated cancer center + Level I trauma. High-complexity OR work. Strong preference for CNOR.
Pediatric OR exclusively — all subspecialties including cardiac and neuro
Highest-volume pediatric OR in the country. Peds OR experience is strictly required for travel assignments.
Oncological OR: surgical oncology, cytoreductive, minimally invasive cancer surgery
Unique case mix unlike any other OR. Cancer OR experience or strong general OR + oncology exposure preferred.
Cardiac OR (Texas Heart Institute affiliation), General, Ortho, Robotic
Texas Heart Institute connection drives strong CVOR travel demand. DFW metro location with excellent housing market.
All three states are major OR travel markets. Texas offers the unique combination of 0% income tax AND NLC Compact — a combination California does not have.
| Factor | Texas | California | Florida |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekly OR Pay Range | $2,600–$3,600 | $3,000–$4,200 | $2,400–$3,200 |
| State Income Tax | 0% | 9.3–13.3% | 0% |
| NLC Compact | Yes | No | Yes |
| OR Staffing Ratios | Facility-set | 1:1 (AB 394 mandate) | Facility-set |
| License Speed | NLC — immediate | 8–12 weeks | NLC — immediate |
| Houston GSA | ~$1,800/mo | LA ~$3,200/mo | Orlando ~$1,550/mo |
| Dallas GSA | ~$1,900/mo | SF ~$3,600/mo | Miami ~$2,100/mo |
| OR Contract Volume | Highest in US | Very High | High |
| CNOR Premium | +$3–5/hr | +$4–6/hr | +$2–4/hr |
Certified Nurse Operating Room (issued by AORN) is the primary OR credential. Required or strongly preferred at UT Southwestern, Baylor Scott & White, HCA facilities, and Texas Medical Center hospitals. Pays +$3–5/hr over base rate. Board exam pass rate is high with adequate study prep.
BLS (Basic Life Support) and ACLS (Advanced Cardiac Life Support) are universally required across all Texas OR travel contracts. Ensure certifications are current before applying — most facilities require cards dated within 2 years. PALS required for pediatric OR roles at Texas Children's.
RNFA (Registered Nurse First Assistant) opens first-assist roles at higher hourly rates. Intuitive Surgical da Vinci certification or documented robotic case experience is increasingly required for robotic OR contracts across DFW and Houston — Texas has one of the highest robotic program densities in the US.
Yes — Texas is a full Nurse Licensure Compact (NLC) state. If you hold an active multistate compact license from your home state, you can legally work in Texas immediately with no separate TX endorsement required. This is one of the biggest advantages of Texas OR travel work compared to California (non-compact), which requires 8–12 weeks of BRN processing. If your home state is not NLC-compact, you'll need a Texas endorsement — which typically processes in 4–6 weeks via the Texas Board of Nursing.
Travel OR nurses in Texas typically earn $2,600–$3,600 per week depending on specialty, facility type, and shift. Texas has 0% state income tax — meaning take-home pay is meaningfully higher than the same gross package in California (9.3–13.3% state tax) or other high-tax states. On a $3,000/week package, 0% TX tax versus California's rate can represent $150–$200/week more in net income. Combined with lower housing costs — Houston GSA ~$1,800/mo vs. LA ~$3,200/mo — Texas OR contracts frequently offer the strongest real purchasing power in the country.
BLS and ACLS are required for all TX OR travel contracts. CNOR (Certified Nurse Operating Room, issued by AORN) is strongly preferred and often required at Level I trauma centers, academic medical centers, and large system hospitals like UT Southwestern, Baylor Scott & White, and HCA facilities. CNOR typically pays +$3–5/hr over base. For CVOR contracts (Texas Heart Institute programs, Methodist Dallas), prior cardiac OR or open-heart experience is non-negotiable. For robotic OR contracts (increasingly common in TX), Intuitive Surgical/da Vinci console training or documented robotic case experience is frequently listed as required. RNFA (Registered Nurse First Assistant) certification opens additional first-assist roles at higher pay.
General OR and laparoscopic surgical roles have the highest volume statewide and the fastest credentialing timelines. Robotic OR (da Vinci) is the fastest-growing segment in Texas — virtually every major hospital system has expanded robotic programs, creating strong travel demand. CVOR (Cardiac OR) is concentrated in Houston (Texas Heart Institute, Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular) and Dallas (Methodist, Baylor Heart) and commands premium pay of $3,000–$3,600/week. Pediatric OR is concentrated at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston — the highest-volume pediatric OR in the country — and requires specific peds experience. Oncological OR at MD Anderson is highly specialized and typically requires surgical oncology or strong general OR experience.
Texas has the highest total surgical volume of any US state. With a population exceeding 30 million — growing by roughly 500,000 people per year — surgical demand consistently outpaces local supply of OR nurses. Texas also has the most hospital beds of any state and is home to the world's largest medical complex (Texas Medical Center in Houston). Rapid suburban growth in DFW, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston adds new surgical suites every year. This structural demand — not a temporary shortage — makes Texas one of the most consistent travel OR markets in the country.
Most elective OR contracts in Texas follow a Monday–Friday schedule with cases starting at 6:30–7:00 AM. A call requirement is standard — typically one evening call shift or one weekend call shift per week. Add-on and trauma cases extend beyond scheduled hours; always confirm the add-on case policy and call-in pay rate before signing. Trauma OR contracts (Level I centers like Memorial Hermann, UT Southwestern) run 24/7 with rotating shifts including nights and weekends. CVOR contracts frequently include on-call requirements for emergent cardiac cases. Weekly call pay and on-call activation pay are separate from your base weekly package — clarify all components before accepting a contract.
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0% TX income tax. NLC Compact — start immediately if compact-licensed. The largest surgical volume in the US means consistent contract availability year-round.
Our OR-specialized recruiters know which TX facilities are CNOR-required, which have the best call structures, and which systems are currently hiring travel OR nurses fastest.