Education · 25 Cities Ranked

Highest Paying Cities for Secondary School Teacher (2024)

The median Secondary School Teacher salary is $103,640 in San Jose, CA, the highest-paying city for this role. After adjusting for cost of living, Detroit, MI offers the best purchasing power at $79,737 adjusted.

$77,578

National Median

$103,640

Highest City

$57,880

Lowest City

Cities Ranked

Ranked by Median Salary

Rank	City	Median	Range (10th–90th)	COL Index	COL-Adjusted	Jobs
1	San Jose, CA	$103,640	$63,290 – $150,400	195.8	$52,932	4,470
2	San Francisco, CA	$99,840	$61,890 – $162,070	179.6	$55,590	12,240
3	San Diego, CA	$99,740	$62,870 – $212,280	160.2	$62,260	6,440
4	Seattle, WA	$99,530	$60,380 – $127,340	149.4	$66,620	7,450
5	New York, NY	$99,260	$62,780 – $133,290	187.2	$53,024	77,530
6	Los Angeles, CA	$97,970	$62,890 – $167,790	166	$59,018	27,900
7	Boston, MA	$95,220	$60,170 – $113,170	152.1	$62,604	20,760
8	Portland, OR	$86,770	$52,850 – $126,700	130.1	$66,695	5,940
9	Chicago, IL	$80,440	$51,030 – $131,490	107.3	$74,967	34,720
10	Philadelphia, PA	$78,440	$52,300 – $99,630	118.4	$66,250	25,520
11	Washington, DC	$77,880	$50,820 – $117,810	152.8	$50,969	20,140
12	Salt Lake City, UT	$76,580	$52,840 – $99,110	101.4	$75,523	4,420
13	Denver, CO	$76,260	$49,540 – $98,820	112.8	$67,606	8,970
14	Atlanta, GA	$76,080	$56,520 – $94,290	99.2	$76,694	12,100
15	Detroit, MI	$75,830	$47,890 – $97,230	95.1	$79,737	9,810
16	Minneapolis, MN	$65,680	$48,560 – $100,850	106.2	$61,846	11,530
17	Houston, TX	$64,230	$51,260 – $77,220	96.5	$66,560	26,840
18	Dallas, TX	$64,180	$57,840 – $77,010	104.1	$61,652	28,280
19	Phoenix, AZ	$62,270	$47,310 – $102,630	100.7	$61,837	17,090
20	Nashville, TN	$62,100	$48,710 – $77,460	100.3	$61,914	6,000
21	Austin, TX	$61,820	$48,300 – $75,230	103	$60,019	8,020
22	Tampa, FL	$61,030	$49,150 – $79,490	99.6	$61,275	8,390
23	Miami, FL	$58,720	$48,580 – $78,580	123.1	$47,701	11,650
24	Charlotte, NC	$58,050	$46,650 – $73,990	96.7	$60,031	9,210
25	Raleigh, NC	$57,880	$46,510 – $72,890	99.8	$57,996	4,630

Ranked by Purchasing Power (COL-Adjusted)

Cost-of-living adjusted salaries show where your Secondary School Teacher paycheck goes furthest. A lower COL index means your dollars stretch further.

Rank	City	COL-Adjusted	Raw Median	COL Index
1	Detroit, MI	$79,737	$75,830	95.1
2	Atlanta, GA	$76,694	$76,080	99.2
3	Salt Lake City, UT	$75,523	$76,580	101.4
4	Chicago, IL	$74,967	$80,440	107.3
5	Denver, CO	$67,606	$76,260	112.8
6	Portland, OR	$66,695	$86,770	130.1
7	Seattle, WA	$66,620	$99,530	149.4
8	Houston, TX	$66,560	$64,230	96.5
9	Philadelphia, PA	$66,250	$78,440	118.4
10	Boston, MA	$62,604	$95,220	152.1
11	San Diego, CA	$62,260	$99,740	160.2
12	Nashville, TN	$61,914	$62,100	100.3
13	Minneapolis, MN	$61,846	$65,680	106.2
14	Phoenix, AZ	$61,837	$62,270	100.7
15	Dallas, TX	$61,652	$64,180	104.1
16	Tampa, FL	$61,275	$61,030	99.6
17	Charlotte, NC	$60,031	$58,050	96.7
18	Austin, TX	$60,019	$61,820	103
19	Los Angeles, CA	$59,018	$97,970	166
20	Raleigh, NC	$57,996	$57,880	99.8
21	San Francisco, CA	$55,590	$99,840	179.6
22	New York, NY	$53,024	$99,260	187.2
23	San Jose, CA	$52,932	$103,640	195.8
24	Washington, DC	$50,969	$77,880	152.8
25	Miami, FL	$47,701	$58,720	123.1

Frequently Asked Questions

San Jose, CA pays the highest median Secondary School Teacher salary at $103,640. However, after cost-of-living adjustment, Detroit, MI offers the most purchasing power at $79,737 adjusted.

The national median Secondary School Teacher salary is $77,578 based on BLS data. Salaries range from $57,880 to $103,640 depending on city.

Not necessarily. A city with higher nominal pay may have a higher cost of living that offsets the salary difference. Compare the "COL-Adjusted" column in both tables above — cities with lower costs of living often offer better real purchasing power.