Being a teacher is hard work, but unfortunately, many teachers don’t get paid enough for what they do. The pay for an average teacher greatly varies based on which state you are in though, so which states pay teachers the most and the least?

The Average Teacher Salary

The salary of a teacher varies greatly based on experience and location, but overall the average salary of a teacher is lower than it should be. For new teachers, their salary is typically less than $40,000 a year. However, for all teachers combined, the median salary is about an average of around $60,477 for the 2017-2018 school year.

Each state has its own average, which varies based on which article or study you look at, but these averages by state can range anywhere from $40,000 to $85,000.

Here’s how the states ranked during the 2017-2018 school year:

1. New York: $83,585
2. California: $81,126
3. Massachusetts: $79,710
4. District of Columbia: $76,486
5. Connecticut: $73,113
6. New Jersey: $69,917
7. Maryland: $69,761
8. Alaska: $69,474
9. Pennsylvania: $67,398
10. Illinois: $66,778
11. Rhode Island: $66,758
12. Oregon: $63,143
13. Michigan: $62,702
14. Delaware: $60,484
15. Wyoming: $58,578
16. Vermont: $58,572
17. Ohio: $58,000
18. New Hampshire: $57,833
19. Hawaii: $57,866
20. Nevada: $57,812
21. Minnesota: $57,782
22. Iowa: $56,790
23. Georgia: $56,329
24. Wisconsin: $55,895
25. Washington: $55,175
26. North Dakota: $54,421
27. Indiana: $54,846
28. Nebraska: $53,473
29. Texas: $53,167
30. Kentucky: $52,952
31. Montana: $52,776
32. Colorado: $52,389
33. Maine: $51,663
34. Virginia: $51,265
35. South Carolina, $51,027
36. Tennessee: $50,900
37. North Carolina: $50,861
38. Kansas: $50,403
39. Louisiana: $50,256
40. Alabama: $50,239
41. Idaho: $49,225
42. Missouri: $49,208
43. Arkansas: $49,017
44. South Dakota: $47,944
45. New Mexico: $47,839
46. Florida: $47,721
47. Arizona: $47,746
48. Utah: $47,604
49. Oklahoma: $45,678
50. West Virginia: $45,642
51. Mississippi: $43,107