Map Shows Where Teacher Pay Is Best, Worst Versus Other Grad Jobs
A report found the pay gap between teachers and other similarly educated workers was more than 25 percent in half the country.
A new report released by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) has revealed that teachers in the United States continue to earn significantly less than similarly educated workers in other professions, with the pay gap standing at an estimated 25.2 percent in 2025. This means that teachers earn about a quarter less than comparable college graduates in other fields, a figure that has remained more than four times higher than the 6.1 percent gap recorded in 1996.
The report highlights variations in the teacher pay gap across states, with Colorado experiencing the highest gap at 40.7 percent, followed by Missouri at 35.9 percent, Arizona at 34.6 percent, and New Hampshire at 33.8 percent. Rhode Island, on the other hand, saw the smallest teacher pay penalty at 10.4 percent. The data underscores the long-standing trend of teacher earnings failing to keep pace with wages in other professions requiring a college degree, with inflation-adjusted weekly wages for public schoolteachers declining 6.2 percent over the past three decades, compared to a 28.8 percent increase for other college graduates.
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