This month, WalletHub has released its 2024 ranking of the best states for teachers in the U.S.
To do so, researchers at WalletHub examined the following factors:
| Category | Metric | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Opportunity & Competition (70%) | Average starting salary for teachers | 10% |
| Teachers’ income growth potential | 10% | |
| Length of time before tenure kicks in | 10% | |
| Average salary for teachers | 5% | |
| 10-year change in teachers’ salaries | 5% | |
| Average teacher pension | 5% | |
| Share of new teachers with inadequate pensions | 5% | |
| Projected teacher competition in 2030 | 5% | |
| Public-school enrollment growth | 5% | |
| Teacher tenure protections | 5% | |
| Teacher prep program completion | 5% | |
| Academic & Work Environment (30%) | Quality of school system | 6.67% |
| Existence of digital learning plan | 2.22% | |
| State statute on out-of-school access to instructional materials | 2.22% | |
| State guidance on acceptable technologies | 2.22% | |
| Pupil-teacher ratio | 2.22% | |
| Public school spending per student | 2.22% | |
| Presence of annual teacher evaluation requirement | 2.22% | |
| Presence of teacher effectiveness requirement | 2.22% | |
| Projected share of teacher turnover | 2.22% | |
| Share of teachers who feel supported by administrators | 2.22% | |
| Average commute time | 1.11% | |
| Prevalence of childhood disadvantage | 1.11% | |
| Working mom-friendliness | 1.11% |
At the top of the ranking was New York, which placed No. 2 overall for its academic and workplace environments (though it lagged a bit in opportunity and competition, placing at No. 9 for that category).
“New York is the best state for teachers, boasting the highest average annual salary for public school teachers after adjusting for the cost of living, at $82,571. Teachers in New York also have the eighth-best income growth potential and the fifth-highest average pensions. On top of that, the state has the strongest tenure protections in the country.
In addition to investing in teachers directly, New York also makes teaching easier by giving schools the resources they need. New York has the highest amount of funding per public-school student in the country, at $31,839, beating out second-place Vermont by over $4,000 per student. While increased spending doesn’t always lead to better results, the fact that New York has the eighth-best school systems in the country shows that it does matter.
Due to all of these reasons, it’s no wonder that New York has the lowest teacher turnover rate in the country, at only 4.3%. For comparison, the District of Columbia’s teacher turnover is over 20%!”
WalletHub, “Best & Worst States for Teachers (2024)”
Next up were Washington (No. 2), Virginia (No. 3), and Utah (No. 4). Maryland (No. 5) scored highest for academic and workplace environment, while California (No. 9) took the top spot for academic and workplace environments, specifically.
Meanwhile, Florida came in at No. 8 for the overall ranking, scoring No. 12 in both categories.
However, Florida ranked as the top state for education earlier this year, mainly thanks to its higher-level education graduation rates and low tuition.
The full state-by-state ranking is as follows:
| Overall Rank | Score | State | Opportunity & Competition Rank | Academic & Workplace Environment Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60.73% | New York | 9 | 2 |
| 2 | 59.96% | Washington | 4 | 9 |
| 3 | 59.33% | Virginia | 5 | 10 |
| 4 | 58.36% | Utah | 3 | 15 |
| 5 | 56.84% | Maryland | 17 | 1 |
| 6 | 56.10% | Illinois | 7 | 17 |
| 7 | 5605% | Georgia | 2 | 25 |
| 8 | 54.42% | Florida | 12 | 12 |
| 9 | 54.31% | California | 1 | 47 |
| 10 | 53.96% | Indiana | 14 | 11 |
| 11 | 52.84% | Connecticut | 24 | 4 |
| 12 | 52.59% | New Jersey | 19 | 6 |
| 13 | 52.41% | Mississippi | 8 | 30 |
| 14 | 50.57% | Massachusetts | 30 | 5 |
| 15 | 50.51% | Arizona | 6 | 46 |
| 16 | 50.20% | Minnesota | 13 | 26 |
| 17 | 50.00% | Pennsylvania | 16 | 19 |
| 18 | 49.18% | North Dakota | 39 | 7 |
| 19 | 48.87% | Oregon | 11 | 41 |
| 20 | 48.05% | Delaware | 45 | 3 |
| 21 | 46.73% | Kentucky | 25 | 22 |
| 22 | 46.30% | Idaho | 15 | 38 |
| 23 | 45.32% | Wisconsin | 29 | 24 |
| 24 | 45.08% | Texas | 27 | 27 |
| 25 | 44.69% | New Mexico | 10 | 51 |
| 26 | 44.08% | Alabama | 20 | 35 |
| 27 | 43.28% | North Carolina | 22 | 37 |
| 28 | 43.24% | Michigan | 31 | 28 |
| 29 | 42.81% | South Carolina | 23 | 40 |
| 30 | 42.35% | Nebraska | 46 | 13 |
| 31 | 42.08% | Vermont | 47 | 14 |
| 32 | 41.84% | Ohio | 32 | 32 |
| 33 | 41.76% | Iowa | 42 | 21 |
| 34 | 41.60% | Missouri | 26 | 44 |
| 35 | 41.57% | Montana | 34 | 34 |
| 36 | 41.41% | West Virginia | 48 | 16 |
| 37 | 41.20% | Colorado | 37 | 31 |
| 38 | 40.90% | Kansas | 35 | 36 |
| 39 | 40.65% | Arkansas | 28 | 45 |
| 40 | 40.52% | Wyoming | 44 | 23 |
| 41 | 40.37% | Rhode Island | 49 | 18 |
| 42 | 40.37% | Louisiana | 40 | 29 |
| 43 | 40.23% | Oklahoma | 18 | 50 |
| 44 | 40.16% | Alaska | 21 | 49 |
| 45 | 39.96% | South Dakota | 38 | 39 |
| 46 | 39.52% | Washington, D.C. | 36 | 42 |
| 47 | 38.67% | Tennessee | 43 | 33 |
| 48 | 38.30% | Nevada | 33 | 48 |
| 49 | 37.29% | New Hampshire | 51 | 8 |
| 50 | 37.15% | Hawaii | 41 | 43 |
| 51 | 34.39% | Maine | 50 | 20 |
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