Florida Teachers Have the Lowest Average Salary When Adjusted for Cost of Living

In the 2021–22 school year, the average salary for a K-12 teacher was $66,397. But after adjusting for differences in the cost of living across the country, patterns emerge about where teachers are more highly compensated.

For example, if a teacher in Virginia and Iowa each make around $59,000 per year, that money would go further in Iowa because Virginia has a higher cost of living. If these salaries were adjusted to compensate for the different costs of living, the teacher in Iowa would make closer to $66,000 and the Virginia teacher would make closer to $58,000.

When considering cost of living adjustments, New York and Massachusetts K-12 teachers are compensated more than teachers in the rest of the country. Adjusted teacher pay is the lowest in Florida.