Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education Salary in Kentucky

Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education in Kentucky have a median of $60,610 a year, below the national $63,970 (−5%); the state ranks 35th of 51 states by median. Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education earn 29% more than the median across all occupations in Kentucky ($46,920). Among neighbouring states, Ohio, Illinois and Virginia pay more (up to $77,370 in Ohio) and Tennessee, Indiana, West Virginia and Missouri pay less (down to $50,910 in Missouri). Kentucky employs 19,080 elementary school teachers, except special education, 9.54 per 1,000 jobs, the 26th largest count of any state. A location quotient of 1.07 is close to the national share.

Kentucky vs the United States, May 2025

Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education: wage percentiles, mean, employment, jobs per 1,000 and location quotient in Kentucky and nationally, May 2025
AreaBasisPercentile wageMeanEmploymentJobs per 1,000Location quotient
10th25thMedian75th90th
KentuckyHourly******19,0809.541.07
Annual$45,600$48,400$60,610$64,570$79,740$59,870
United StatesHourly******1,388,390––
Annual$47,960$57,710$63,970$81,450$104,340$72,650
$0$20k$40k$60k$80k10th10th: $45,600$45,60025th25th: $48,400$48,400MedianMedian: $60,610$60,61075th75th: $64,570$64,57090th90th: $79,740$79,740US median
Kentucky annual wage at the 10th, 25th, 50th (median), 75th and 90th percentiles; the line marks the US median. The same numbers are in the table above.
Rank by median
35th of 51 states
Rank by employment
26th of 51 states
Location quotient
1.07
Jobs per 1,000
9.54

Ranks count the 50 states and DC with a published value. The location quotient is the occupation's share of Kentucky's employment divided by its national share; 1.00 means the same share as the nation. Take-home pay at these wages: FastCalc's take-home pay calculator.

Metropolitan areas in Kentucky

9 metropolitan areas and 4 nonmetropolitan areas touching Kentucky publish a row for elementary school teachers, except special education, sorted by median. Areas crossing a state line are listed under every state they touch; a linked metro has its own profile.

AreaMedian hourlyMedian annual10th pct (annual)90th pct (annual)EmploymentJobs per 1,000Location quotient
Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN*$64,740$47,790$98,9509,1508.310.93
Owensboro, KY*$63,010$47,360$73,4504709.441.06
Paducah, KY-IL*$62,030$45,700$71,1603607.180.80
Elizabethtown, KY*$61,840$46,840$73,8204709.151.02
Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN*$61,610$47,230$92,7605,5108.040.90
Lexington-Fayette, KY*$61,460$47,140$82,8202,4208.450.95
Bowling Green, KY*$61,260$48,240$72,70091011.061.24
Clarksville, TN-KY*$59,760$39,970$76,7801,56015.141.70
Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH*$57,450$44,740$74,6201,3509.581.07
Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area*$59,810$41,000$64,5002,01011.631.30
West Kentucky nonmetropolitan area*$59,580$43,870$63,9301,47011.401.28
East Kentucky nonmetropolitan area*$59,130$41,310$60,9301,68018.252.04
South Central Kentucky nonmetropolitan area*$58,600$40,920$62,8802,16012.531.40

Neighbouring states

StateMedian hourlyMedian annualEmploymentLocation quotient
Kentucky*$60,61019,0801.07
Illinois*$75,32061,5201.13
Indiana*$59,70027,7200.97
Missouri*$50,91033,1801.27
Ohio*$77,37047,8700.97
Tennessee*$59,98028,2400.96
Virginia*$65,55037,8801.03
West Virginia*$55,6305,4200.87

See the national page for Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education (every state ranked) and the Kentucky wage profile (every occupation in the state).

Source and notes

Data: BLS OEWS May 2025, released 2026-05-15. Cross-industry estimates, all ownerships. BLS page: OEWS Kentucky estimates.

*
Wage estimate not available.
  • Annual wages assume 2,080 hours a year at the hourly rate; occupations BLS publishes on one basis only show an en dash (–) on the other.
  • Employment is rounded to the nearest 10 by BLS. Where BLS withholds a cell, nothing is estimated in its place.