Private school teachers earning less is surprising.
It’s Teacher Appreciation Week, and while there are certainly lots of different ways to appreciate teachers, I find that one of my favorite motivators to do my job (not a teacher, unless you count posting here as teaching) is money.
Also, I couldn’t find any data on how many $5 Starbucks gift cards were left on teachers’ desks this week, so here’s some data on salaries:
The median annual wages for pre-K-12 teachers was about $63,000 last year, based on BLS estimates. The lowest-paid 10% earned $46,800 or less, while the highest-paid 10% earned $102,000 or more.
For comparison, the median wage across all occupations was $49,500, or about 20% lower than the median for teachers.
But annual pay varies by a number of factors, including grade levels taught, school type (public or private), teacher type (general, technical, or special education), and location.
* High school teachers earn $64.7K annually, more than teachers of younger grades.
* Teachers in public schools made more than those in private schools at all grade levels.
* Special education teachers tend to earn a higher median wage than other teachers.
When adjusted for cost of living:
* Preschool teachers were paid the most in DC
* Kindergarten teachers were paid the most in Rhode Island
* Elementary, middle, and high school teachers were paid the most in Washington State
>On November 20, 2024, the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) [suspended publication](https://www.bls.gov/cew/notices/2024/suspension-of-publication-of-colorado-employment-and-wage-data.htm) of industry and substate data for Colorado due to data quality concerns. These data quality concerns were due to ongoing issues with the modernization of the state’s unemployment insurance (UI) system. Because the QCEW microdata are fundamentally a byproduct of state UI systems, QCEW data quality is sensitive to changes in these systems.
Something ain’t right about the private vs public teachers. There is no way private school teachers earn less. That has to be some B’s.
Good colour scheme. I am in grayscale mode, yet the colour scheme is (perceptually) linear.
Special Ed teacher of 15 years.
Why do special ed teachers get paid more? Every salary scale I’ve seen is based on years of service. Being certified for special ed doesn’t advance your salary in anyway
Well, at least Texas is consistent
Idaho pay is worse than surrounding states we can’t keep teachers. Is this like downtown Boise numbers or something?
Arkansas’ pay is way higher than I expected
It’s disgusting that teachers make so little and have to buy their own supplies
Can you add the value of the benefits? Average annual oop expense and benefits deductions compared to the rest of non government jobs?
65k seems like far too little to have had to deal with teenage me.
And considering what kids are like 20 years later I don’t know how they deal with the kids now with kids being stuck on phones, turning in ChatGPT homework and just their general attitude now.
I’d be interested to see the data on starting wages for teachers by state too. But these stats are part of why my dad did Sped teaching in Washington for the last decade or so before he retired. That was always his specialty or whatever but there weren’t available positions when he started his career as a teacher in our home state.
It’s important to recognize too that since these are median salaries, half of teachers earn less than this and the ones that earn more almost all have advanced degrees and/or years of service.
Teachers have a lower average salary than clergy. They make less than flight attendants. They make less than subway drivers.
Out of contract pay can also be substantial. Head of the Hispanic Art Honor society etc.
Why does Washington dominate on pay?
Keep in mind this is for 9 months
I really like how this color bar is labeled
Interesting. My mom was half of this for most of her career
If only it wasn’t a secret that being a teacher is not a high-paying job. They must be tricking people if they are still complaining about it.
Just kidding! I am 51, and my elementary teachers were openly complaining about it. Teachers are important, but none of them get drafted into the career.
I make far less teaching middle school than that chart states, which I’m sure is an average. But I’m WAY below that. Teachers should be paid far more than they are currently in the U.S.
A reminder as part of this post that often times teachers are paying out of pocket for student materials—my wife will often spend $3k+ a year on various things for her students. The max tax reimbursement you can claim is $250, which is laughable.
Pay teachers more and you will get better education.
Crazy to think the test scores of Louisiana and Mississippi recently surpassed California and New York despite having significantly lower pay for teachers.
I’m all for paying teachers more, particularly for performance but we should also include the pension benefits as part of the salary. Teaching is one of the last professions on the planet that gets pension and tenure.
Wow these numbers are actually a lot higher than I expected based on how often people say teachers are paid so terribly. They’re certainly not raking in the money but I expected it to be more like $40k average
With everything that is said about teachers’ salaries to the point that it’s just become a stereotype, I was thinking teachers were only making $35k-$40k. Teachers are making an average amount if not above average.
As a public high school teacher, none of this is surprising.
Now do educational administrators
I am a high school teacher and I have always felt my pair is absolutely fair. I have been teaching for 20 years and make over 100k per year with 8 weeks off every summer and a week in winter and another week for spring break. I am doing just fine overall.
Also for anyone wondering why private school teachers make less than public school teachers, it is likely because private school teachers are not required to be certified.
AFAIK public school teachers are on the same grade scale within school districts, regardless of what grade they teach. Pay is usually dependent on education level and teaching experience. I’m not sure why lower grades are showing less pay.
Not a teacher, but my gf is – I think she’s more annoyed at the archaic pay structure than the lower base pay. She can be the best performing teacher in the district, yet she’ll always make the same amount of money as the lowest performing, lazy teachers who show up late everyday with no lessons planned just because pay is based on tenure.
This is because most private schools aren’t elite Hogwarts/School of Rock style institutions. They’re typically local church schools operating mostly out of cheap construction buildings. They don’t have to hire certified teachers in many states. They have a lower tuition base of only people attending the school versus all of the people in a school district contributing via taxes. Many of the people who teach at private schools are aligned with that particular school’s vision and are fine taking a pay cut. And there’s no one advocating for pay increases, whether through unions or elected governing bodies.
Paying teachers less than 6 figures in 2025 is insane.
Every time I see teachers’ pay in the US, I think of my dad who’s a teacher in China and gets the same salary as doctors, plus they enjoy two months of paid vacation each year.
These medians need to be 3x what they currently are
Not too shabby considering summer vacation. Good for them
![Teacher pay in the US in 8 charts [OC]](https://www.europesays.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/uvc17zaxdfze1-1080x1024.png)
41 comments
Source: [US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics](https://www.bls.gov/oes/)
Tools: Datawrapper, Illustrator
More data [here](https://usafacts.org/answers/how-much-do-teachers-get-paid-in-the-us/country/united-states/)
We don’t pay our teachers here in Colorado.
Private school teachers earning less is surprising.
It’s Teacher Appreciation Week, and while there are certainly lots of different ways to appreciate teachers, I find that one of my favorite motivators to do my job (not a teacher, unless you count posting here as teaching) is money.
Also, I couldn’t find any data on how many $5 Starbucks gift cards were left on teachers’ desks this week, so here’s some data on salaries:
The median annual wages for pre-K-12 teachers was about $63,000 last year, based on BLS estimates. The lowest-paid 10% earned $46,800 or less, while the highest-paid 10% earned $102,000 or more.
For comparison, the median wage across all occupations was $49,500, or about 20% lower than the median for teachers.
But annual pay varies by a number of factors, including grade levels taught, school type (public or private), teacher type (general, technical, or special education), and location.
* High school teachers earn $64.7K annually, more than teachers of younger grades.
* Teachers in public schools made more than those in private schools at all grade levels.
* Special education teachers tend to earn a higher median wage than other teachers.
When adjusted for cost of living:
* Preschool teachers were paid the most in DC
* Kindergarten teachers were paid the most in Rhode Island
* Elementary, middle, and high school teachers were paid the most in Washington State
More data [here](https://usafacts.org/answers/how-much-do-teachers-get-paid-in-the-us/country/united-states/) if you’re curious!
My state white in every category 😅
Considering how important education is, you’d think teachers would be paid commensurate to their value to society…
I taught full time at a public university in Colorado and made less than the Pre-School average? Ouch.
In case anyone is wondering what the heck happened in Colorado, apparently their data had quality concerns.
[BLS says](https://www.bls.gov/oes/notices/2024/colorado-data.htm):
>On November 20, 2024, the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW) [suspended publication](https://www.bls.gov/cew/notices/2024/suspension-of-publication-of-colorado-employment-and-wage-data.htm) of industry and substate data for Colorado due to data quality concerns. These data quality concerns were due to ongoing issues with the modernization of the state’s unemployment insurance (UI) system. Because the QCEW microdata are fundamentally a byproduct of state UI systems, QCEW data quality is sensitive to changes in these systems.
Something ain’t right about the private vs public teachers. There is no way private school teachers earn less. That has to be some B’s.
Good colour scheme. I am in grayscale mode, yet the colour scheme is (perceptually) linear.
Special Ed teacher of 15 years.
Why do special ed teachers get paid more? Every salary scale I’ve seen is based on years of service. Being certified for special ed doesn’t advance your salary in anyway
Well, at least Texas is consistent
Idaho pay is worse than surrounding states we can’t keep teachers. Is this like downtown Boise numbers or something?
Arkansas’ pay is way higher than I expected
It’s disgusting that teachers make so little and have to buy their own supplies
Can you add the value of the benefits? Average annual oop expense and benefits deductions compared to the rest of non government jobs?
65k seems like far too little to have had to deal with teenage me.
And considering what kids are like 20 years later I don’t know how they deal with the kids now with kids being stuck on phones, turning in ChatGPT homework and just their general attitude now.
I’d be interested to see the data on starting wages for teachers by state too. But these stats are part of why my dad did Sped teaching in Washington for the last decade or so before he retired. That was always his specialty or whatever but there weren’t available positions when he started his career as a teacher in our home state.
It’s important to recognize too that since these are median salaries, half of teachers earn less than this and the ones that earn more almost all have advanced degrees and/or years of service.
Teachers have a lower average salary than clergy. They make less than flight attendants. They make less than subway drivers.
Out of contract pay can also be substantial. Head of the Hispanic Art Honor society etc.
Why does Washington dominate on pay?
Keep in mind this is for 9 months
I really like how this color bar is labeled
Interesting. My mom was half of this for most of her career
If only it wasn’t a secret that being a teacher is not a high-paying job. They must be tricking people if they are still complaining about it.
Just kidding! I am 51, and my elementary teachers were openly complaining about it. Teachers are important, but none of them get drafted into the career.
I make far less teaching middle school than that chart states, which I’m sure is an average. But I’m WAY below that. Teachers should be paid far more than they are currently in the U.S.
A reminder as part of this post that often times teachers are paying out of pocket for student materials—my wife will often spend $3k+ a year on various things for her students. The max tax reimbursement you can claim is $250, which is laughable.
Pay teachers more and you will get better education.
Crazy to think the test scores of Louisiana and Mississippi recently surpassed California and New York despite having significantly lower pay for teachers.
I’m all for paying teachers more, particularly for performance but we should also include the pension benefits as part of the salary. Teaching is one of the last professions on the planet that gets pension and tenure.
Wow these numbers are actually a lot higher than I expected based on how often people say teachers are paid so terribly. They’re certainly not raking in the money but I expected it to be more like $40k average
With everything that is said about teachers’ salaries to the point that it’s just become a stereotype, I was thinking teachers were only making $35k-$40k. Teachers are making an average amount if not above average.
As a public high school teacher, none of this is surprising.
Now do educational administrators
I am a high school teacher and I have always felt my pair is absolutely fair. I have been teaching for 20 years and make over 100k per year with 8 weeks off every summer and a week in winter and another week for spring break. I am doing just fine overall.
Also for anyone wondering why private school teachers make less than public school teachers, it is likely because private school teachers are not required to be certified.
AFAIK public school teachers are on the same grade scale within school districts, regardless of what grade they teach. Pay is usually dependent on education level and teaching experience. I’m not sure why lower grades are showing less pay.
Not a teacher, but my gf is – I think she’s more annoyed at the archaic pay structure than the lower base pay. She can be the best performing teacher in the district, yet she’ll always make the same amount of money as the lowest performing, lazy teachers who show up late everyday with no lessons planned just because pay is based on tenure.
This is because most private schools aren’t elite Hogwarts/School of Rock style institutions. They’re typically local church schools operating mostly out of cheap construction buildings. They don’t have to hire certified teachers in many states. They have a lower tuition base of only people attending the school versus all of the people in a school district contributing via taxes. Many of the people who teach at private schools are aligned with that particular school’s vision and are fine taking a pay cut. And there’s no one advocating for pay increases, whether through unions or elected governing bodies.
Paying teachers less than 6 figures in 2025 is insane.
Every time I see teachers’ pay in the US, I think of my dad who’s a teacher in China and gets the same salary as doctors, plus they enjoy two months of paid vacation each year.
These medians need to be 3x what they currently are
Not too shabby considering summer vacation. Good for them
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