Education & Library
Elementary School Teachers
SOC 25-2021
Teach young children the foundations across every subject.
The job
Median pay
$64k
$58k to $81k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Declining
-0.4% projected
Openings a year
88k
BLS projection
Typical education
Bachelor's plus license
Our model
AI displacement risk
Low
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
35/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
62nd pct
More exposed than 62% of occupations · modeled estimate · 66th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
54/100
Key skills
- Learning Strategies
- Speaking
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Monitoring
- Reading Comprehension
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 155,160 | 8.5 | 0.9× | $100k |
| Texas | 116,260 | 8.3 | 0.9× | $63k |
| New York | 101,410 | 10.5 | 1.2× | $86k |
| Florida | 79,090 | 8.0 | 0.9× | $59k |
| Illinois | 61,520 | 10.1 | 1.1× | $75k |
| Pennsylvania | 48,370 | 8.0 | 0.9× | $77k |
| Ohio | 47,870 | 8.6 | 1.0× | $77k |
| Georgia | 43,820 | 9.0 | 1.0× | $72k |
| North Carolina | 42,410 | 8.6 | 1.0× | $55k |
| Michigan | 40,910 | 9.3 | 1.0× | $65k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | 40,300 | 9.4 | 1.1× | $78k |
| Virginia | 37,880 | 9.2 | 1.0× | $66k |
| Missouri | 33,180 | 11.3 | 1.3× | $51k |
| Massachusetts | 29,930 | 8.2 | 0.9× | $94k |
| Maryland | 29,610 | 10.7 | 1.2× | $78k |
| Washington | 28,980 | 8.2 | 0.9× | $102k |
| Tennessee | 28,240 | 8.6 | 1.0× | $60k |
| Indiana | 27,720 | 8.7 | 1.0× | $60k |
| Minnesota | 26,640 | 9.0 | 1.0× | $76k |
| South Carolina | 25,030 | 10.9 | 1.2× | $61k |
| Wisconsin | 24,920 | 8.5 | 0.9× | $61k |
| Colorado | 24,860 | 8.7 | 1.0× | $63k |
| Arizona | 24,240 | 7.5 | 0.8× | $57k |
| Louisiana | 22,060 | 11.4 | 1.3× | $59k |
| Alabama | 22,030 | 10.4 | 1.2× | $61k |
| Kentucky | 19,080 | 9.5 | 1.1× | $61k |
| Oklahoma | 18,500 | 10.8 | 1.2× | $48k |
| Iowa | 17,300 | 11.1 | 1.2× | $61k |
| Connecticut | 16,330 | 9.6 | 1.1× | $81k |
| Utah | 14,820 | 8.5 | 1.0× | $75k |
| Kansas | 14,350 | 10.0 | 1.1× | $56k |
| Oregon | 12,600 | 6.4 | 0.7× | $77k |
| Arkansas | 12,590 | 9.7 | 1.1× | $53k |
| Mississippi | 11,060 | 9.5 | 1.1× | $50k |
| Nevada | 9,550 | 6.2 | 0.7× | $65k |
| Nebraska | 8,710 | 8.5 | 0.9× | $62k |
| Maine | 7,490 | 11.7 | 1.3× | $62k |
| Idaho | 6,850 | 8.0 | 0.9× | $62k |
| New Mexico | 6,210 | 7.1 | 0.8× | $75k |
| Hawaii | 6,040 | 9.6 | 1.1× | $71k |
| West Virginia | 5,420 | 7.7 | 0.9× | $56k |
| New Hampshire | 5,190 | 7.6 | 0.8× | $72k |
| Montana | 4,960 | 9.7 | 1.1× | $58k |
| North Dakota | 4,430 | 10.3 | 1.2× | $60k |
| South Dakota | 4,290 | 9.4 | 1.1× | $50k |
| Rhode Island | 3,830 | 7.6 | 0.9× | $91k |
| Washington DC | 3,750 | 5.3 | 0.6× | $97k |
| Vermont | 3,610 | 11.9 | 1.3× | $63k |
| Alaska | 3,500 | 10.8 | 1.2× | $79k |
| Delaware | 2,900 | 6.0 | 0.7× | $76k |
| Wyoming | 2,600 | 9.3 | 1.0× | $61k |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ98,900 jobs · $97k median
- Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN45,840 jobs · $78k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA44,790 jobs · $102k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX30,980 jobs · $65k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV30,940 jobs · $79k median
- Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX27,350 jobs · $65k median
- Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD23,380 jobs · $79k median
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA23,370 jobs · $77k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Elementary School Teachers interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.