Many people consider public school teachers to have one of the most important jobs.
But while teaching is the most common public-sector job, per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, many educators still struggle to make ends meet. A 2025 Gallup poll found that 21% of polled K-12 educators said they were “finding it difficult to get by on their present income,” while 52% reported they were just getting by rather than living comfortably.
A third of K-12 teachers also reported having non-teaching-related jobs, “such as ride-sharing, food service or running a side business,” the poll found.
For many teachers, their salaries simply aren’t enough, and, due to differences in affordability, housing prices, and tax structures, teacher salaries — and how far they go — vary widely across the country.
In April, the National Education Association released its Rankings of the States 2025 and Estimates of School Statistics 2026 report, which included data such as the number of school districts, student enrollment and attendance, and education expenditures in every state and Washington, DC.
The report also listed the average salaries of public school teachers in 2024-2025, as well as the change in pay from the previous year. For a few states — Connecticut, Montana, and Rhode Island — and Washington, DC, the NEA relied on salary estimates.
Per the report, the state where teachers received the largest average year-over-year raise was Nevada. Though its average salary in 2024-2025 ranked 17th in the country, it grew by roughly $8,000, or about 11.8%, from 2023-24. By contrast, teachers in Oklahoma received a 1% average raise, about $600.
See the average public school teacher salary in every state and Washington, DC.
We also listed how much the average salary increased year-over-year and how the state’s average salary ranked among all other states and Washington, DC, with No. 1 being the highest salary and 51 the lowest.
ALABAMA
Carmen K. Sisson/Shutterstock
ALASKA
Jeremy Hammond/Getty Images
ARIZONA
OLIVIER TOURON/AFP via Getty Images
ARKANSAS
Adele Heidenreich/Shutterstock
CALIFORNIA
MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images
COLORADO
Katie Wood/Denver Post via Getty Images
CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Post/Hearst Newspapers via Getty Images
DELAWARE
Khairil Azhar Junos/Shutterstock
FLORIDA
John Parra/WireImage/The Latin Recording Academy via Getty Images
GEORGIA
Chad Robertson Media/Shutterstock
HAWAII
Phil Mislinski/Getty Images
IDAHO
UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
ILLINOIS
Boston Globe via Getty Images
INDIANA
KK Stock/Shutterstock
IOWA
Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images
KANSAS
Mihai_Andritoiu/Shutterstock
KENTUCKY
Jon Cherry/Getty Images
LOUISIANA
Chris Graythen/Getty Images
MAINE
Portland Press Herald/Getty Images
MARYLAND
The Washington Post via Getty Images
MASSACHUSETTS
Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
MICHIGAN
Dennis MacDonald/Shutterstock
MINNESOTA
The Washington Post via Getty Images
MISSISSIPPI
Bloomberg via Getty Images
MISSOURI
Kit Leong/Shutterstock
MONTANA
Janie Osborne/Getty Images
NEBRASKA
Photo Spirit/Shutterstock
NEVADA
Katherine Carey/Shutterstock
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Boston Globe via Getty Images
NEW JERSEY
EQRoy/Shutterstock
NEW MEXICO
Brendan SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images
NEW YORK
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
NORTH CAROLINA
Wileydoc/Shutterstock
NORTH DAKOTA
LiftedFairingLLC/Shutterstock
OHIO
Joey Foley/WireImage for NARAS via Getty Images
OKLAHOMA
Vineyard Perspective/Shutterstock
OREGON
Hrach Hovhannisyan/Shutterstock
PENNSYLVANIA
Michelle Gustafson for The Washington Post
RHODE ISLAND
Boston Globe via Getty Images
SOUTH CAROLINA
Steven Starr Photography/Shutterstock
SOUTH DAKOTA
Victoria Ditkovsky/Shutterstock
TENNESSEE
Kirk Fisher/Shutterstock
TEXAS
Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images
UTAH
M Outdoors/Shutterstock
VERMONT
Bob LoCicero/Shutterstock
VIRGINIA
John M. Chase/Shutterstock
WASHINGTON
John Moore/Getty Images
WASHINGTON, DC
bluestork/Shutterstock
WEST VIRGINIA
Dennis Ray Dennison II/Shutterstock
WISCONSIN
Aaron of L.A. Photography/Shutterstock
WYOMING
Al Drago/Getty Images