Adult Basic Education, Adult Secondary Education, and English as a Second Language Instructors
Median $61,540
Occupation · SOC 25-3031
Substitute Teachers, Short-Term: pay and where the jobs are
What substitute teachers, short-term earn in the U.S., how pay varies across workers and states, and tools to plan around it.
National pay, May 2025
$41,670 median annual wage
- Mean (average) annual wage
- $46,420
- Median hourly wage
- $20.03
- Mean hourly wage
- $22.32
- Employment
- 524,770
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 25-3031.
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See where your pay falls among substitute teachers, short-term nationally and in your state. Nothing you type leaves your browser.
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Use these numbers
How much do substitute teachers, short-term make?
The median annual wage for substitute teachers, short-term was $41,670 in May 2025, so half of workers earned more and half earned less. The lowest-paid 10% earned less than $28,560 and the highest-paid 10% more than $65,790. As an hourly rate, the median is $20.03. About 524,770 people work in this occupation nationwide. The highest state medians are in Alaska ($66,920), California ($60,300) and Hawaii ($58,530). Alaska also comes out on top after taxes and local prices.
Pay ladder
What each step of the pay range for substitute teachers, short-term looks like per month. Take-home here includes federal tax, Social Security and Medicare for a single filer; add your state in the paycheck calculator.
| Step | Annual | Hourly | Monthly gross | Monthly after federal tax & FICA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $28,560 | $13.73 | $2,380 | $2,094 |
| 25th percentile | $34,170 | $16.43 | $2,848 | $2,470 |
| Median | $41,670 | $20.03 | $3,473 | $2,972 |
| 75th percentile | $54,890 | $26.39 | $4,574 | $3,857 |
| 90th percentile | $65,790 | $31.63 | $5,483 | $4,587 |
Substitute Teachers, Short-Term: pay by state
51 states and territories have a published median, sorted from highest to lowest. The last two columns are our estimates: the median after 2026 federal and state taxes, and that take-home restated in national-average prices.
1
$54,355 take-home in national prices
2
$44,878 take-home in national prices
3
$43,524 take-home in national prices
Where a median substitute teachers, short-term paycheck goes furthest after 2026 taxes and BEA price levels.
| State | Employment | Median | 10th pct. | 90th pct. | Median after tax* | In national prices† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 1,420 | $66,920 | $38,250 | $132,530 | $55,637 | $54,355 |
| California | 115,660 | $60,300 | $39,040 | $78,670 | $48,190 | $43,524 |
| Hawaii | 3,990 | $58,530 | $45,690 | $60,620 | $46,272 | $42,084 |
| Oregon | 8,090 | $58,280 | $54,870 | $74,290 | $44,817 | $43,359 |
| Washington | 14,820 | $55,740 | $45,790 | $67,700 | $46,194 | $43,167 |
| Minnesota | 8,660 | $50,390 | $37,750 | $75,890 | $40,544 | $41,110 |
| District of Columbia | 750 | $49,790 | $46,450 | $51,090 | $40,365 | $36,728 |
| West Virginia | 4,840 | $49,020 | $41,440 | $75,290 | $40,165 | $44,878 |
| Maryland | 7,610 | $46,470 | $32,870 | $47,360 | $37,677 | $35,897 |
| Rhode Island | 1,910 | $45,590 | $36,410 | $60,640 | $37,217 | $36,388 |
| Pennsylvania | 22,360 | $44,870 | $30,470 | $63,930 | $36,824 | $37,740 |
| Wisconsin | 8,420 | $43,950 | $35,740 | $59,890 | $36,215 | $38,488 |
| New Jersey | 17,100 | $43,780 | $34,170 | $58,670 | $36,116 | $33,194 |
| New York | 36,090 | $43,490 | $35,090 | $60,010 | $35,154 | $32,574 |
| North Dakota | 420 | $42,570 | $33,780 | $55,080 | $36,385 | $40,901 |
| Massachusetts | 8,410 | $41,350 | $33,590 | $58,930 | $33,367 | $31,551 |
| Michigan | 3,600 | $39,500 | $29,720 | $61,370 | $32,490 | $33,768 |
| Illinois | 17,220 | $39,410 | $31,200 | $58,040 | $32,040 | $32,053 |
| Virginia | 24,350 | $39,020 | $27,670 | $53,540 | $32,103 | $31,752 |
| Georgia | 16,400 | $38,870 | $20,800 | $45,900 | $32,221 | $33,461 |
| Arizona | 4,710 | $38,500 | $31,170 | $50,290 | $32,546 | $32,327 |
| Connecticut | 5,950 | $38,460 | $35,050 | $63,980 | $31,680 | $30,576 |
| Vermont | 1,400 | $38,200 | $31,470 | $54,120 | $32,028 | $32,695 |
| Nebraska | 3,430 | $37,690 | $28,080 | $61,450 | $31,629 | $35,103 |
| Maine | Not published | $37,440 | $31,110 | $49,590 | $31,122 | $32,068 |
| Iowa | 7,300 | $37,230 | $30,980 | $47,770 | $31,331 | $35,700 |
| Ohio | 9,140 | $37,150 | $28,480 | $47,470 | $31,459 | $33,909 |
| Florida | 25,270 | $37,080 | $30,300 | $60,520 | $31,974 | $30,918 |
| Wyoming | 2,230 | $36,990 | $30,600 | $45,590 | $31,901 | $34,417 |
| Delaware | Not published | $36,510 | $31,200 | $50,590 | $30,020 | $30,078 |
| Utah | 4,710 | $36,490 | $24,710 | $53,780 | $30,604 | $30,956 |
| New Mexico | 3,510 | $36,400 | $30,170 | $43,960 | $30,830 | $33,433 |
| Indiana | 9,920 | $36,360 | $28,540 | $56,330 | $30,352 | $32,522 |
| Kansas | 9,360 | $36,190 | $28,980 | $44,900 | $30,039 | $33,351 |
| New Hampshire | 1,070 | $34,990 | $28,870 | $46,490 | $30,294 | $29,083 |
| Missouri | 11,480 | $34,790 | $29,220 | $49,850 | $29,436 | $32,412 |
| Idaho | 1,800 | $34,080 | $29,110 | $45,240 | $28,865 | $30,227 |
| North Carolina | 20,360 | $33,780 | $28,390 | $45,040 | $28,483 | $30,196 |
| Texas | 29,150 | $32,040 | $22,870 | $39,090 | $27,924 | $28,771 |
| South Carolina | 7,700 | $30,400 | $22,460 | $78,690 | $26,300 | $28,054 |
| Kentucky | 320 | $29,730 | $24,120 | $64,680 | $25,145 | $27,890 |
| Tennessee | 7,690 | $29,500 | $21,570 | $35,970 | $25,883 | $28,174 |
| Arkansas | 2,560 | $29,230 | $24,440 | $36,040 | $25,072 | $28,840 |
| Montana | 2,370 | $28,050 | $22,930 | $38,230 | $24,148 | $25,514 |
| South Dakota | 1,610 | $27,840 | $25,560 | $34,700 | $24,536 | $27,698 |
| Louisiana | 1,090 | $27,370 | $20,730 | $44,350 | $23,714 | $26,885 |
| Guam | 780 | $27,210 | $27,210 | $46,220 | — | — |
| Alabama | 9,290 | $25,340 | $18,170 | $30,020 | $21,522 | $24,230 |
| Nevada | 6,600 | $24,960 | $24,960 | $40,620 | $22,165 | $22,169 |
| Oklahoma | 4,990 | $23,770 | $18,300 | $42,550 | $20,660 | $23,520 |
| Mississippi | 2,390 | $22,340 | $16,430 | $33,320 | $19,845 | $22,823 |
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS May 2025 (released 2026-05-15), SOC 25-3031. *Our estimate for a single filer paid biweekly with no pre-tax deductions or local tax, 2026 federal and state rules. †Take-home ÷ BEA Regional Price Parity × 100 (2024 price levels).
Sources
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25nat.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.
- OEWS May 2025 (oesm25st.zip) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Accessed 2026-10-09.