First, it seems that the average salary for a nurse vs. a paramedic is much higher, nurses averaging about 60k and paramedics 35k. Second, I've been told by multiple healthcare professionals that it can be very hard to find a job as a paramedic, and that most paramedics become firefighters. Third, quality of life. I hear that work/life balance is much harder as a paramedic due to the long shift hours, and rotations compared to most nurse rotations.
This varies place to place. I make around 60k (40k/yr in my pocket after taxes) as a medic with only ~1 year of experience, working 2 days per week.
Finding a job is super easy in my area of the country. Medics are in extremely short supply because most people go into other allied health fields instead where pay/benefits/etc are better. There is also a lot of turnover in EMS. In general, people who make a career out of EMS look to get into municipal systems, fire departments, etc - private ambulance companies aren't always the best.
IMO quality of life and work/life balance is amazing, but again it depends where you are. I work 2x 24-hour shifts per week, and have 5 days per week off. And I make 60k/year. I can easily pick up an extra shift during the week and do "24 on / 24 off", and pick up an insane amount of overtime if I want more money. Working only 2 days per week means if you take 1 day off work, you get a 6-day vacation... I think I have it pretty freaking good.
I've even read about a lot of paramedics going back to school for nursing, for the reasons I've already mentioned. Before I conclude my question I would like to say that in no way am I saying one is better than another; I simply would like to gather more information from professionals in the field.
Despite having it really good, I am jumping ship to a different medical field after just 1 year as a medic... It doesn't really have anything to do with the reasons you listed though. My reasons are as follows:
There is very little security as an EMS worker. You are the lowest of the low on the totem pole, and you're always 1 call away from a career-ending injury. If you throw your back out at age 40 and are unable to work, and have no other skills or experience, what are you gonna do?
If you make a mistake, your employer is going to throw you under the bus at first opportunity. The job carries a huge amount of responsibility/liability, but the pay isn't really commensurate.
Hitting a ceiling in terms of knowledge and ability to apply it. I certainly still have a lot to learn about being a paramedic, but I think realistically after a few years I would start to stagnate. There is just only so much you can do in the back of an ambulance. If you go nursing you can think about becoming an NP, CRNA, etc.
Also $$$$$. Even having an above-average salary as far as EMS goes, I don't think I would be able to save for retirement very effectively in this job without working overtime. Hospital-based professions tend to have much better benefits and also pay more.
If you're starting from square one and are torn between nursing and EMS, it is easier to go the nursing route first. Here is a post I wrote in another thread:
This is the plan I would follow if I was in your position:
-Take the EMT class asap, get a job immediately.
-Start nursing school for a BSN, continue to work part time as an EMT throughout. This gains you money and experience!
-Finish nursing school and get a job as a nurse.
-Get 2 years of critical care experience as a nurse, make $$$, pay off loans.
From here if you are sick of hospitals and want to pursue the FF/Medic pathway, you can take a 2-week RN-to-Paramedic program:
https://ems.creighton.edu/training-certification/paramedic-certification-healthcare-providers-0
You can also explore becoming a flight medic/nurse, nurse practitioner, CRNA, etc etc.
If you want to be a medic, go do that. But if you can't decide, at least on paper IMO it makes more sense to go nursing->EMS rather than the other way around.
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