Teachers play an important role to help educate the next generation to become future leaders — and some states are better for teachers than others.

Education careers are among the lowest-paying occupations requiring a bachelor’s degree, and salaries don’t keep up with inflation. But teachers are more fairly compensated and better protected in some states than in others.

To help America’s educators find the best opportunities and teaching environments, personal finance website WalletHub released a report on 2025’s Best & Worst States for Teachers.

WalletHub compared the 50 states and Washington, D.C., based on 24 key indicators of teacher-friendliness, such as teachers’ income growth potential, pupil-teacher ratio, and public school spending per student.

New York state ranked fourth overall as the best state for teachers, according to the study.

The state received a total overall score of 57.51, based on the key metrics. It ranked first for the highest teacher salary across the country, which was adjusted for the cost of living. It also ranked first for public-school spending per student and the existence of a digital learning plan.

Here are some other rankings across key indicators for New York state, according to the study.

  • 25th — Average Starting Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
  • 10th — Quality of School System
  • 5th — Pupil-Teacher Ratio
  • 7th — Teachers’ Income Growth Potential

Here are the 10 best states for teachers, according to WalletHub.

  1. Virginia
  2. Utah
  3. Washington
  4. New York
  5. Illinois
  6. Maryland
  7. Georgia
  8. Minnesota
  9. Massachusetts
  10. California

Here are the 10 worst states for teachers, according to WalletHub.

  1. Hawaii
  2. Montana
  3. Maine
  4. New Hampshire
  5. South Dakota
  6. Wyoming
  7. Alaska
  8. Missouri
  9. Iowa
  10. Rhode Island

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