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New York has earned the title of best state for teachers

A high school physiology teacher shows students how to create a clay model of the endocrine system
Photo by Allison Shelley for The Verbatim Agency for EDUimages
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flickr.com
A high school physiology teacher shows students how to create a clay model of the endocrine system.

New York has earned the title of best state for teachers. WalletHub says the state ranked first for teacher salary, first for public school spending per student, and tops for its digital learning plan.

According to WalletHub, the state stands out for its competitive teacher salaries, generous public-school funding, and strong digital learning infrastructure.

New York ranks first in the country for the highest adjusted average teacher salary, with educators earning an impressive $82,571 annually after cost-of-living adjustments. Additionally, New York provides the most funding per public-school student, allocating $31,839, far surpassing other states.

Beyond high salaries, New York supports its teachers with strong tenure protections and ranks eighth for teachers’ income growth potential. Schools also benefit from manageable class sizes, with New York ranking sixth for its teacher-student ratio.

While the state ranks 17th for average starting teacher salary, it still remains a top choice for educators due to its low turnover rate, strong pension plans, and comprehensive resources that make teaching in New York rewarding and sustainable.

Read the full report here.

Bob Beck, a veteran media professional, currently serves as a part-time editor/host at WAER Public Radio and an adjunct professor at Syracuse University. Beck retired as News Director at Wyoming Public Radio in 2022 after 34 years. During his time, Beck won 5 regional Edward R. Murrow awards and 5 Public Media Journalists Association awards for reporting. He also won 11 PMJA awards for the news and public affairs program Open Spaces. He was awarded the Wyoming School Bell award for education reporting and was part of two Emmy Award winning television productions. You can find him on X under the name @butterbob.


Kat is WAER's anchor/producer, delivering local news content and hosting NPR's "All Things Considered." She excels in creating engaging long-form content, managing promotions, and leading audio editing projects. Kat is also instrumental in converting daily news content into digital formats for distribution on WAER.org.