NEA 2024-25 averages for all 50 states plus DC, with a step-schedule projector
| Rank | State | 2023-24 | 2024-25 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | $101,084 | $103,552 | 2.4% |
| 2 | New York | $95,615 | $98,655 | 3.2% |
| 3 | Washington | $91,720 | $96,589 | 5.3% |
| 4 | District of Columbia | $86,663 | $95,077 | 9.7% |
| 5 | Massachusetts | $91,014 | $93,554 | 2.8% |
| 6 | Connecticut | $86,511 | $89,593 | 3.6% |
| 7 | Maryland | $84,338 | $87,409 | 3.6% |
| 8 | Rhode Island | $82,189 | $85,772 | 4.4% |
| 9 | New Jersey | $82,877 | $84,974 | 2.5% |
| 10 | Oregon | $77,130 | $81,657 | 5.9% |
| 11 | Alaska | $78,256 | $81,450 | 4.1% |
| 12 | Pennsylvania | $76,961 | $79,078 | 2.8% |
| 13 | Illinois | $75,978 | $78,495 | 3.3% |
| 14 | Delaware | $71,186 | $76,570 | 7.6% |
| 15 | Minnesota | $72,430 | $76,234 | 5.3% |
| 16 | Hawaii | $74,222 | $75,860 | 2.2% |
| 17 | Nevada | $66,930 | $74,812 | 11.8% |
| 18 | Utah | $69,161 | $72,882 | 5.4% |
| 19 | Colorado | $68,647 | $72,781 | 6.0% |
| 20 | Vermont | $69,555 | $71,871 | 3.3% |
| 21 | Georgia | $67,641 | $71,524 | 5.7% |
| 22 | Michigan | $69,068 | $71,023 | 2.8% |
| 23 | Ohio | $68,236 | $70,586 | 3.4% |
| 24 | New Mexico | $68,440 | $69,736 | 1.9% |
| 25 | New Hampshire | $67,170 | $69,432 | 3.4% |
| 26 | Virginia | $66,327 | $69,254 | 4.4% |
| 27 | Wisconsin | $65,762 | $67,794 | 3.1% |
| 28 | Wyoming | $63,669 | $65,668 | 3.1% |
| 29 | Maine | $62,569 | $65,621 | 4.9% |
| 30 | Iowa | $62,399 | $65,312 | 4.7% |
| 31 | Arizona | $62,714 | $64,291 | 2.5% |
| 32 | South Carolina | $60,763 | $64,050 | 5.4% |
| 33 | Texas | $62,463 | $63,749 | 2.1% |
| 34 | Nebraska | $60,239 | $63,326 | 5.1% |
| 35 | Alabama | $61,912 | $62,985 | 1.7% |
| 36 | Idaho | $61,516 | $62,786 | 2.1% |
| 37 | Oklahoma | $61,330 | $61,931 | 1.0% |
| 38 | Indiana | $58,620 | $61,661 | 5.2% |
| 39 | Kansas | $58,276 | $61,470 | 5.5% |
| 40 | Tennessee | $58,610 | $61,222 | 4.5% |
| 41 | North Dakota | $58,581 | $60,704 | 3.6% |
| 42 | Kentucky | $58,325 | $60,594 | 3.9% |
| 43 | North Carolina | $58,292 | $60,323 | 3.5% |
| 44 | Montana | $57,556 | $59,305 | 3.0% |
| 45 | Arkansas | $58,337 | $59,193 | 1.5% |
| 46 | South Dakota | $56,328 | $58,486 | 3.8% |
| 47 | West Virginia | $55,300 | $58,099 | 5.1% |
| 48 | Missouri | $55,132 | $57,366 | 4.1% |
| 49 | Louisiana | $55,911 | $56,785 | 1.6% |
| 50 | Florida | $54,875 | $56,663 | 3.3% |
| 51 | Mississippi | $53,704 | $54,975 | 2.4% |
| — | United States | $71,985 | $74,495 | 3.5% |
Source: NEA Rankings and Estimates, 2026 report (2024-25 data), published April 2026. Averages cover all public PreK-12 teachers in each state. Teachers earn 24% more on average in states with collective bargaining.
| Role | Median Annual Wage |
|---|---|
| High school teachers | $72,040 |
| Middle school teachers | $64,370 |
| Elementary school teachers | $63,970 |
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. Medians sit below NEA state averages partly because averages are pulled up by long-career salaries, and partly because the two datasets count slightly different populations.
Two calculators in one page. The state lookup reads from the NEA's 2024-25 Rankings and Estimates table above. The projector models the step-and-lane salary schedule that most public school districts use.
Step schedules pay salary × (1 + step%)^(years − 1), with an optional lane multiplier for graduate credits or certifications: × (1 + lane%). Cumulative earnings sum every year's salary. The hourly rate divides by your contract hours per week times contract weeks, defaulting to 40 × 38, which is a standard 190-day contract at 8 paid hours a day.
Pick your state for the published average. Then set your district's actual starting salary (the national average starting salary is $48,112, but districts range widely), your step percentage from the salary schedule on your district's HR page, and any lane bump. Teachers in step-schedule states typically see steps between 1% and 5%; some years districts freeze steps entirely, which the tool lets you model by setting step to 0.
Start at the national average starting salary, $48,112, with 3% annual steps and no lane change. Year one pays $48,112; year ten pays 48,112 × 1.03^9 = $62,775. Over ten years the teacher earns $551,550 gross. On a 190-day, 8-hour contract that's 1,520 paid hours a year, so the hourly rate climbs from $31.65 to $41.30.
Add a 10% master's lane at hire and every figure scales: year-ten salary becomes $69,053, and the ten-year cumulative becomes $606,705, a $55,155 difference for the same decade of work. That's why lane changes are the single biggest lever inside a salary schedule, often worth more than a state-average raise.
For context against the state table: a teacher earning $62,775 in year ten is already above the 2024-25 average salary in fifteen states, from Oklahoma ($61,931) down to Mississippi ($54,975), states where the average includes 25-year veterans.
California, at an average of $103,552 for 2024-25, the only state above $100,000. New York is second at $98,655, Washington third at $96,589, the District of Columbia fourth at $95,077, and Massachusetts fifth at $93,554. Mississippi is lowest at $54,975, with Florida ($56,663) and Louisiana ($56,785) just above it.
The national average public school teacher salary for 2024-25 is $74,495, up 3.5% from $71,985 the year before, per the NEA's Rankings and Estimates. The national average starting salary is $48,112. Averages blend everyone from first-year teachers to 30-year veterans, which is why they sit well above starting pay.
Statewide one-year increases averaged 3.5% in 2024-25. The biggest movers were Nevada at 11.8%, the District of Columbia at 9.7%, and Delaware at 7.6%; Oklahoma raised just 1.0%. Within a career, most districts use step schedules that add roughly 1% to 5% per year of experience, plus larger lane jumps for graduate credits, which is what the projector above models.
Usually, yes, through lane differentials in the salary schedule. The premium varies widely by district, commonly 5% to 15% at each step and often compounding across a career. Enter your district's lane bump in the projector to see the career difference; a 10% lane premium applied at every step is worth several hundred thousand dollars over 30 years.
Both are real; they measure different things. The NEA collects average salaries from state education agencies ($74,495 for 2024-25, all public K-12 teachers). The Bureau of Labor Statistics surveys employers and reports medians by role: $72,040 for high school teachers, $64,370 for middle school, and $63,970 for elementary (May 2025). Averages run higher than medians because veteran salaries pull the mean up.