SalariesWhat the occupation covers
Teach academic and social skills to students at the elementary school level. Excludes “Special Education Teachers” (25-2050) and “Substitute Teachers, Short-Term” (25-3031).
Official definition from the Standard Occupational Classification, code 25-2021.
The pay range
Pay differs a lot inside one occupation, with experience, employer and place. The table shows where the lines fall.
| Share of workers | A year | A month* | A week* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest 10% earn less than | $47,960 | $3,997 | $922 |
| Lowest 25% earn less than | $57,710 | $4,809 | $1,110 |
| Median (half earn less, half more) | $63,970 | $5,331 | $1,230 |
| Top 25% earn more than | $81,450 | $6,788 | $1,566 |
| Top 10% earn more than | $104,340 | $8,695 | $2,007 |
* Month and week are the yearly figure divided by 12 and by 52, worked out here for convenience. BLS publishes the yearly and hourly figures.
BLS publishes only yearly pay for this occupation, because many of these workers are paid by the year and work fewer than 2,080 hours in it.
How it compares
The median for all occupations in the United States was $50,980 a year. The median for Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education is $63,970, which is 25% higher. Among the 64 occupations of the field Educational Instruction and Library, it ranks number 50 by median pay. With 1,388,390 jobs, it makes up about 89 of every 10,000 jobs in the country. The average ($72,650) is well above the median, a sign that a smaller group of high earners pulls the average up.
Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education pay by state
The highest median pay was in Washington ($102,350), California ($99,650) and District of Columbia ($96,580). The lowest was in Oklahoma ($48,200), Mississippi ($49,790) and South Dakota ($50,130). The most jobs were in California (155,160), Texas (116,260) and New York (101,410). The occupation is most concentrated in Virgin Islands, where its share of all jobs is 2.2 times the national share.
No state matches.
| State | Jobs | Median a year | Average a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington | 28,980 | $102,350 | $97,970 |
| California | 155,160 | $99,650 | $95,670 |
| District of Columbia | 3,750 | $96,580 | $93,910 |
| Massachusetts | 29,930 | $94,000 | $88,720 |
| Rhode Island | 3,830 | $90,930 | $79,660 |
| New York | 101,410 | $85,760 | $93,400 |
| Connecticut | 16,330 | $80,600 | $83,380 |
| Alaska | 3,500 | $79,260 | $78,580 |
| New Jersey | 40,300 | $78,200 | $82,120 |
| Maryland | 29,610 | $77,680 | $80,090 |
| Ohio | 47,870 | $77,370 | $72,740 |
| Oregon | 12,600 | $77,130 | $74,370 |
| Pennsylvania | 48,370 | $77,060 | $75,780 |
| Minnesota | 26,640 | $76,350 | $74,790 |
| Delaware | 2,900 | $75,920 | $73,230 |
| Illinois | 61,520 | $75,320 | $74,630 |
| Utah | 14,820 | $74,810 | $73,630 |
| New Mexico | 6,210 | $74,550 | $72,170 |
| New Hampshire | 5,190 | $72,410 | $69,930 |
| Georgia | 43,820 | $72,290 | $70,720 |
| Hawaii | 6,040 | $71,410 | $70,670 |
| Virginia | 37,880 | $65,550 | $71,540 |
| Michigan | 40,910 | $65,110 | $69,000 |
| Nevada | 9,550 | $65,040 | $65,840 |
| Colorado | 24,860 | $63,410 | $70,110 |
| Vermont | 3,610 | $63,070 | $68,410 |
| Texas | 116,260 | $62,760 | $61,890 |
| Maine | 7,490 | $62,390 | $65,930 |
| Nebraska | 8,710 | $62,380 | $63,730 |
| Guam | 1,000 | $62,240 | $61,440 |
| Idaho | 6,850 | $61,600 | $60,940 |
| Alabama | 22,030 | $61,380 | $59,590 |
| Wisconsin | 24,920 | $61,210 | $65,960 |
| Wyoming | 2,600 | $61,150 | $63,630 |
| South Carolina | 25,030 | $60,820 | $62,210 |
| Kentucky | 19,080 | $60,610 | $59,870 |
| Iowa | 17,300 | $60,580 | $59,110 |
| Virgin Islands | 630 | $60,560 | $59,220 |
| North Dakota | 4,430 | $60,030 | $59,140 |
| Tennessee | 28,240 | $59,980 | $59,850 |
| Indiana | 27,720 | $59,700 | $60,850 |
| Florida | 79,090 | $58,930 | $59,530 |
| Louisiana | 22,060 | $58,770 | $58,170 |
| Montana | 4,960 | $57,530 | $58,150 |
| Arizona | 24,240 | $56,590 | $58,920 |
| Kansas | 14,350 | $56,450 | $56,730 |
| West Virginia | 5,420 | $55,630 | $54,890 |
| North Carolina | 42,410 | $54,930 | $54,070 |
| Arkansas | 12,590 | $52,700 | $56,210 |
| Puerto Rico | 4,370 | $51,540 | $53,410 |
| Missouri | 33,180 | $50,910 | $56,730 |
| South Dakota | 4,290 | $50,130 | $52,680 |
| Mississippi | 11,060 | $49,790 | $52,300 |
| Oklahoma | 18,500 | $48,200 | $52,320 |
Sorted by median pay, highest first. "Not published" means BLS did not release that figure for the state, usually because too few employers were surveyed. "$239,200 or more" is the highest value BLS reports in the state tables.
Similar occupations by pay
- Special Education Teachers, Preschool$64,830 a year
- Archivists$64,550 a year
- Middle School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education$64,370 a year
- Career/Technical Education Teachers, Postsecondary$63,820 a year
- Curators$63,420 a year
- Kindergarten Teachers, Except Special Education$62,680 a year
Common questions
How much do Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education earn in the United States?
The median pay was $63,970 a year in May 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $47,960 and the highest-paid 10% more than $104,340.
How many people work as Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education?
About 1,388,390 jobs in the United States in May 2025, not counting the self-employed.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025. Checked in November 2026. Figures are for employees, before tax, and leave out overtime pay and benefits. They are official statistics, not advice or a pay offer; see bls.gov/oes for the original tables.