As of April 01, 2025, the average hourly pay of Preschool Teacher in the United States is $21. While Salary.com is seeing that the highest pay for Preschool Teacher in the US can go up to $26 and the lowest down to $17, but most earn between $19 and $24. Salary.com shows the average base salary (core compensation), as well as the average total cash compensation for the job of Preschool Teacher in the United States.
| Annual Salary |
Monthly Pay |
Weekly Pay |
Hourly Wage |
|
| 75th Percentile | $24 | $2 | $0 | $0 |
| Average | $21 | $2 | $0 | $0 |
| 25th Percentile | $19 | $2 | $0 | $0 |
As of April 01, 2025, Salary.com is seeing that an entry-level Preschool Teacher with under 1 year experience makes about $41,516. With less than 2 years of experience, a mid-level Preschool Teacher makes around $41,820. After 2-4 years, the Preschool Teacher pay rises to about $44,492. Those senior Preschool Teacher with 5-8 years of experience earn roughly $45,824, and those Preschool Teacher having 8 years or more experience is expected to earn about $46,268 on average.
| Levels | Salary |
|---|---|
| Entry Level Preschool Teacher | $41,516 |
| Intermediate Level Preschool Teacher | $41,820 |
| Senior Level Preschool Teacher | $44,492 |
| Specialist Level Preschool Teacher | $45,824 |
| Expert Level Preschool Teacher | $46,268 |
| Entry Level | 4% |
| Mid Level | 3% |
| Senior Level | 3% |
| Top Level | 6% |
| Experienced | 7% |
Salaries in the United States can vary significantly from state to state due to a multitude of factors, including cost of living, local economic conditions, and industry presence.
For example, as of April 01, 2025, the average yearly salary of Preschool Teacher is $47,600 in California and in Massachusetts, the average annual salary goes to $46,970. While in New Jersey, a Preschool Teacher earns $46,780 per year.
What Am I Worth?
Salaries in the United States can vary significantly from city to city due to a multitude of factors, including cost of living, local economic conditions, and industry presence.
For example, as of April 01, 2025, the average yearly salary of Preschool Teacher in San Francisco, CA is $53,900 and in New York, NY, the average annual salary goes to $50,020. While a Preschool Teacher earns $48,130 per year in Boston, MA.
For those exploring the changing dynamics of Preschool Teacher salaries, Salary.com offers detailed insights through our Job Trending in CA Labor Market analysis. As of April 01, 2025, our research highlights a notable shift in Preschool Teacher compensation over the past six years. For instance, the median salary has moved from $43,052 in 2023 to about $43,171 in 2024 (for a comprehensive analysis of Preschool Teacher salary trends, click here). It's crucial to consider several elements, including geographical location, experience level, industry demand, and economic development, as they play a significant role in influencing salary variations.
Salary.com job board provides millions of Preschool Teacher information for you to search for. Click on search button below to see Preschool Teacher job openings or enter a new job title here.
Here are companies hiring for Preschool Teacher and their salaries, click below for more details.
| Core Compensation | ||||
| Core Compensation | Median | % of Total | ||
| Base Salary | $43,160 | 69.0% | ||
| Bonus | $0 | 0.0% | ||
| Value of Benefits | ||||
| Core Compensation | Median | % of Total | ||
| Social Security | $3,302 | 5.3% | ||
| 401K/403B | $2,029 | 3.2% | ||
| Disability | $345 | 0.6% | ||
| Healthcare | $6,056 | 9.7% | ||
| Pension | $2,374 | 3.8% | ||
| Time Off | $5,312 | 8.5% | ||
| Total Compensation | $62,577 | 100% | ||
| Degree Level | % of user with this level of education |
|---|---|
| No Diploma | 1.0% |
| High School | 27.5% |
| Associates | 24.5% |
| Bachelors | 39.7% |
| Masters | 7.2% |
| Doctorate | 0.2% |
What Am I Worth?
The Preschool Teacher designs and structures the curriculum and monitors students' progress to ensure activities are meeting the children's needs. Oversees the educational activities of children within the day care classroom. Being a Preschool Teacher participates in parent conferences to discuss child's growth and development. Maintains a clean, safe, and nurturing environment. In addition, Preschool Teacher typically requires an associate degree in early childhood education or equivalent. Typically requires Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification. Typically reports to a supervisor or manager. Being a Preschool Teacher occasionally directed in several aspects of the work. Gaining exposure to some of the complex tasks within the job function. Working as a Preschool Teacher typically requires 2 -4 years of related experience.
Specify the abilities and skills that a person needs in order to carry out the specified job duties. Each competency has five to ten behavioral assertions that can be observed, each with a corresponding performance level (from one to five) that is required for a particular job.
Planning: An act or process of making or carrying out plans. Establishment of goals, policies, and procedures for a social or economic unit city planning business planning.
Professional Development: Professional development refers to continuing education and career training after a person has entered the workforce in order to help them develop new skills, stay up-to-date on current trends, and advance their career.
Classroom Management: Classroom Management is a term teachers use to describe the process of ensuring that classroom lessons run smoothly without disruptive behavior from students compromising the delivery of instruction.
