Nursing home status is an independent risk factor for adverse 30-day postoperative outcomes after common, nonemergent inpatient procedures.

•The effect of nursing home status on surgical complications is limited.•ACS-NSQIP was used to find the effect of nursing home status on surgical outcomes.•Nursing home status was found to be an independent risk factor for adverse outcomes.•Nursing home status independently predicted septic complications in all procedures.•Nursing home status should be considered in assessing risks of specific complications.