See How NJ Teacher Pay Compares To Rest Of Country

NEW JERSEY — New Jersey teachers had the eighth-highest average salary in the nation last school year, according to a new report released by the National Education Association.

The average pay for a teacher in New Jersey is $82,877 for the 2023-24 school year, according to the NEA Rankings and Estimates report, up slightly from $81,102 the previous year. Despite the 2.2 percent increase, the Garden State fell one spot in the ranking from No. 7 to No. 8.

New Jersey teachers also made significantly more than the national average salary, which increased by 3.8 percent last year to $72,030.

Additionally, the starting salary for teachers in the Garden State was among the highest in the nation for the 2023-24 school year. According to the report, New Jersey had the fourth-highest starting salary at $57,603.

The 2025 NEA Teacher Salary Benchmark Report, which collects information from over 12,000 local school districts on teacher salaries, found that in 2023-24, starting teacher salaries picked up "a little momentum." According to the report, starting salaries increased by an average of 4.4 percent, the most significant increase over the 15 years the NEA has tracked the data.

Despite these gains, the average teacher salary, when adjusted for inflation, has decreased by an estimated 5.1 percent over the past decade.

State average teacher salaries ranged from the highest in states including California ($101,084), New York ($95,615) and Massachusetts ($92,076). At the low end were Mississippi ($53,704), Florida ($54,875) and Missouri ($55,132).

At $58,409, California also maintains the highest average starting teacher salary, followed by Washington ($57,912).

The report comes as New Jersey continues to face an ongoing teacher shortage.

In 2023, a task force started by Gov. Phil Murphy found that the number of teachers leaving Garden State schools far exceeded the number of new certified teacher graduates between the 2014-15 school year and the 2017-18 school year, the Bergen Record reported.

The state has implemented several solutions, including the Teach.Inspire.New Jersey initiative. Lawmakers also passed a bill that eliminated basic skills testing for new teachers seeking certification. requirements for new teachers.