The US nuclear fleet operated at an average annual capacity factor of 91% in 2025, the highest utilization rate of any electricity source on the American grid, according to Nuclear Energy Institute statistics. The figure extends a remarkable run of consistency: capacity factors for US reactors have held near 90% since the turn of the century.

Capacity factor measures actual output against theoretical maximum, and the gap between nuclear and other sources is wide. Natural gas combined cycle plants typically run in the 50% to 60% range, while wind and solar operate at roughly 35% and 25% respectively because of resource variability. A nuclear plant's ability to run at essentially full power around the clock is the reason a fleet supplying under 10% of US generating capacity delivers close to a fifth of the country's electricity.

The workforce behind that performance commands premium pay. Three of the top five careers by median salary in electric power generation are nuclear roles: nuclear engineers at $127,520, reactor operators at $122,610 and nuclear technicians at $104,240.

Staffing is the fleet's pressure point. Sixty-three percent of manufacturing employers in nuclear power generation reported that hiring was very difficult in 2024, a constraint that grows more binding as the industry plans new reactors alongside its existing 94 commercial units.

Source: Nuclear Energy Institute - https://www.nei.org/resources/statistics/us-nuclear-industry-capacity-factors