Nursing informatics certification

Nursing informatics blends clinical care with health data and technology. Certification is optional but widely recognized.

By Simmie J.Figures checked against official government and agency dataUpdated

Nursing informatics is the part of nursing that manages health information and the technology that carries it. Informatics nurses work on electronic health records, clinical decision support, data analysis, training and safety, often as a bridge between clinical staff and IT teams.

Who certifies informatics nurses

The American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), part of the American Nurses Association, offers a board certification in nursing informatics. ANCC renamed the credential from RN-BC to NI-BC in 2023, so you may see either label. Other organizations, such as HIMSS, offer informatics credentials that are not specific to nursing. Certification is voluntary: employers may prefer it but few require it.

What the ANCC certification requires

Eligibility rules are set by the ANCC and are updated from time to time, so check the current requirements on the ANCC website before you plan. In general, candidates need:

  • An active RN license.
  • A bachelor’s degree or higher in nursing or a related field.
  • Practice experience in informatics, expressed in years and hours, with an alternative path for nurses who have completed graduate informatics coursework.
  • Continuing education in informatics.

Applicants then pass a computer-based exam, and the credential must be renewed on a cycle set by the ANCC.

Degrees in informatics

Some nurses enter informatics through a master’s degree or a post-master’s certificate in nursing informatics, many of them offered online. See online nursing classes for how to vet an online program, and nursing degree requirements for how the master’s fits with other degrees.

Pay

The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not report informatics nurses as a separate group, so there is no reliable national figure. Many are registered nurses, whose median pay was $97,550 in May 2025, and pay depends on employer, region and role. See registered nurse pay by state.

How to prepare

  1. Work on projects in your unit that involve the electronic health record, such as order set reviews or training.
  2. Join a hospital informatics or quality committee.
  3. Study the exam content outline published by the certifying body.
  4. Keep a log of project hours to document your experience.