The Ranking

The best states for teacher pay.

Pay alone doesn't tell the story. Our composite score weighs average salary, cost-of-living adjusted purchasing power, pension strength, and union protections.

1. 01
   New York

   Score 88.8 · COL 125.1
   $98,655

   Avg salary
   $78,861

   COL adjusted
2. 02
   California

   Score 88.6 · COL 142.3
   $103,552

   Avg salary
   $72,770

   COL adjusted
3. 03
   Washington

   Score 87.4 · COL 114.1
   $96,589

   Avg salary
   $84,653

   COL adjusted
4. 04
   Connecticut

   Score 83.7 · COL 112.7
   $89,593

   Avg salary
   $79,497

   COL adjusted
5. 05
   Massachusetts

   Score 82.0 · COL 141.2
   $93,554

   Avg salary
   $66,256

   COL adjusted
6. 06
   Rhode Island

   Score 80.6 · COL 110.6
   $85,772

   Avg salary
   $77,552

   COL adjusted
7. 07
   Maryland

   Score 80.3 · COL 115.4
   $87,409

   Avg salary
   $75,744

   COL adjusted
8. 08
   Pennsylvania

   Score 78.7 · COL 97.2
   $79,078

   Avg salary
   $81,356

   COL adjusted
9. 09
   New Jersey

   Score 78.4 · COL 115.1
   $84,974

   Avg salary
   $73,826

   COL adjusted
10. 10
    Illinois

    Score 76.6 · COL 94.7
    $78,495

    Avg salary
    $82,888

    COL adjusted
11. 11
    Minnesota

    Score 76.6 · COL 94.6
    $76,234

    Avg salary
    $80,586

    COL adjusted
12. 12
    Oregon

    Score 76.4 · COL 111.8
    $81,657

    Avg salary
    $73,038

    COL adjusted
13. 13
    Delaware

    Score 73.7 · COL 101.9
    $76,570

    Avg salary
    $75,142

    COL adjusted
14. 14
    Michigan

    Score 73.1 · COL 90.1
    $71,023

    Avg salary
    $78,827

    COL adjusted
15. 15
    Alaska

    Score 72.8 · COL 124.9
    $81,450

    Avg salary
    $65,212

    COL adjusted