Teacher Salaries Price History
1960–2025 · NEA / NCES
Average annual salary for public school teachers in the United States, tracked from 1960 to 2025. Teachers have always occupied a weird spot in the American economy — universally acknowledged as essential, perpetually underpaid relative to other college-educated professionals. In 1960, the average teacher earned just under $5,000 a year. By 2025, that figure has climbed past $69,000, which sounds like solid progress until you realize that housing, healthcare, and basically everything else has outpaced those gains. The 2010s were especially rough, with salaries essentially flatlined for nearly a decade.
Price in 1960
$4,995.00
Price in 2025
$69,800.00
Total Change
+1297.4%
Years Tracked
65
Teacher Salaries Over Time
Compare to inflation: The chart above shows nominal (not inflation-adjusted) prices. Use the toggle to switch to inflation-adjusted values when available, or try the inflation calculator to convert any amount between years.
Key Insights
- Teacher salaries went from $4,995 in 1960 to $69,800 in 2025 — a 1,297% nominal increase. But adjusted for inflation, real purchasing power has only grown about 15-20% over that entire 65-year span.
- The lost decade of 2010-2019 was devastating. Salaries barely budged from $52,300 to $59,660 while cost of living kept climbing, effectively giving teachers a real pay cut year after year.
- The fastest growth period was 1975-1990, when salaries nearly tripled from $11,641 to $31,367. Strong unions and a wave of education reform spending drove meaningful gains during this window.
- Post-pandemic teacher shortages finally forced movement — salaries jumped from $60,660 in 2020 to $69,800 by 2025, a 15% bump that represents the strongest five-year growth since the early 1990s.
Year-by-Year Data
| Year | Price (USD per year) | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | $4,995.00 | — |
| 1965 | $6,195.00 | +24.0% |
| 1970 | $8,626.00 | +39.2% |
| 1975 | $11,641.00 | +35.0% |
| 1976 | $12,300.00 | +5.7% |
| 1977 | $12,920.00 | +5.0% |
| 1978 | $13,582.00 | +5.1% |
| 1979 | $14,343.00 | +5.6% |
| 1980 | $15,970.00 | +11.3% |
| 1981 | $17,644.00 | +10.5% |
| 1982 | $19,274.00 | +9.2% |
| 1983 | $20,695.00 | +7.4% |
| 1984 | $21,935.00 | +6.0% |
| 1985 | $23,600.00 | +7.6% |
| 1986 | $25,199.00 | +6.8% |
| 1987 | $26,569.00 | +5.4% |
| 1988 | $28,034.00 | +5.5% |
| 1989 | $29,564.00 | +5.5% |
| 1990 | $31,367.00 | +6.1% |
| 1991 | $33,015.00 | +5.3% |
| 1992 | $34,063.00 | +3.2% |
| 1993 | $35,029.00 | +2.8% |
| 1994 | $35,764.00 | +2.1% |
| 1995 | $36,833.00 | +3.0% |
| 1996 | $37,846.00 | +2.8% |
| 1997 | $38,443.00 | +1.6% |
| 1998 | $39,350.00 | +2.4% |
| 1999 | $40,574.00 | +3.1% |
| 2000 | $41,807.00 | +3.0% |
| 2001 | $43,250.00 | +3.5% |
| 2002 | $44,400.00 | +2.7% |
| 2003 | $45,500.00 | +2.5% |
| 2004 | $46,310.00 | +1.8% |
| 2005 | $47,102.00 | +1.7% |
| 2006 | $48,050.00 | +2.0% |
| 2007 | $49,109.00 | +2.2% |
| 2008 | $51,009.00 | +3.9% |
| 2009 | $52,000.00 | +1.9% |
| 2010 | $52,300.00 | +0.6% |
| 2011 | $52,100.00 | -0.4% |
| 2012 | $52,000.00 | -0.2% |
| 2013 | $52,500.00 | +1.0% |
| 2014 | $53,100.00 | +1.1% |
| 2015 | $53,800.00 | +1.3% |
| 2016 | $54,900.00 | +2.0% |
| 2017 | $55,950.00 | +1.9% |
| 2018 | $57,900.00 | +3.5% |
| 2019 | $59,660.00 | +3.0% |
| 2020 | $60,660.00 | +1.7% |
| 2021 | $61,600.00 | +1.5% |
| 2022 | $63,645.00 | +3.3% |
| 2023 | $66,397.00 | +4.3% |
| 2024 | $68,200.00 | +2.7% |
| 2025 | $69,800.00 | +2.3% |
Sources & Methodology
National Education Association annual Rankings & Estimates report, supplemented by NCES Digest of Education Statistics. Figures represent the average annual salary for full-time public elementary and secondary school teachers across all states.
Primary source: NEA / NCES
For a full explanation of how we collect and adjust data, see our methodology page.