Saddleback Valley Unified School District teacher salaries

Saddleback Valley Unified School District is a unified school district in Orange County, with its district office in Mission Viejo. A teacher with a full credential starts at $63,300. The largest group (62%) is on the BA+66 column, which climbs to $133,169 by step 25.

Lowest

$30,000

INTERN before a full credential, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule¹

$107,416

$5,825 below Orange County average
$3,864 above California average

Highest

$133,169

BA+66 with a credential, step 25

Saddleback Valley Unified average

AveragesCalifornia $103,552, Orange County $113,241

Full-time equivalents on the schedule: 1,131
Starting salary: $63,300; BA with a credential, step 1
Median salary: $109,751; Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California: 166th of 828 reporting; of 828 reporting

Does Saddleback Valley Unified pay teachers more than the median California district?

Line up all 828 reporting California districts from the lowest average salary to the highest. The one in the middle is the median district: half the districts pay a lower average, half pay a higher one. A median isn't pulled up or down by a few unusually high- or low-paying districts, so it shows what a typical district pays.

Yes

Saddleback Valley Unified's average of $107,416 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Saddleback Valley Unified ranks 166th of 828.

Saddleback Valley Unified

$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 29 reporting districts in Orange County

Saddleback Valley Unified ranks 22nd of 29, below the middle district.

Saddleback Valley Unified

$100k$120k$140k

Middle district: $111,191

Each bar counts the districts whose average salary falls in a $5,000 band. The dashed line marks the median district.

What BA+98, steps and credentials mean

Teacher pay in California is set by a grid. Two things place you on it: how long you've taught and how much college you've done.

Step: Steps go up with years of service. Step 5 on Saddleback Valley Unified's BA column pays $63,306. Experienced teachers joining Saddleback Valley Unified can be placed as high as step 24.
Column, such as BA+98: Your bachelor's degree (BA) plus the college semester units you've completed since. BA+98 means a bachelor's plus 98 more units. Saddleback Valley Unified's columns run from BA to BA+66, 12 in all.
Credentialed: Holds a full California teaching credential, the state license to teach. Saddleback Valley Unified's credentialed columns start at $63,300.
Without full credential: Teachers who don't yet hold a full credential. Saddleback Valley Unified pays them on separate columns, starting at $30,000.

How fast does a teacher's salary grow at Saddleback Valley Unified?

Pick a column and a step to see the salary, and how far it is from the top.

Degree and units (column)Step (roughly years of experience): 10

$99,573

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $133,169 on step 25.

$133,169$30,000

Step 1Step 25

Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Saddleback Valley Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-25²

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 55% of Saddleback Valley Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

Saddleback Valley Unified credentialed salary schedule, 2024-25. Annual salary in dollars by step (rows) and column (units past a bachelor's degree).
Step	BA	BA+7	BA+13	BA+19	BA+25	BA+30	BA+36	BA+42	BA+48	BA+54	BA+60	BA+66
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25

Only BA+30, BA+36, BA+42, BA+48, BA+54, BA+60, BA+66 continue past step 11.

Saddleback Valley Unified without full credential salary schedule, 2024-25. Annual salary in dollars by step (rows) and column (units past a bachelor's degree).
Step	INTERN
1 to 2
3 to 5
6
7
8
9
10
11

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Tap any salary to see how many full-time equivalents are paid it and follow it on the chart above.

Full-time equivalents in a cell

Cells with fewer than 5 stay unshaded. Bold figures sit in the three darkest shades.Striped cells: this column has no salary at that step.

Bonuses, health cover and work days at Saddleback Valley Unified

Bonuses are paid on top of the schedule, in the amounts the district reported.² Teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.³ Extra pay for coaching, clubs and similar duties isn't part of this report.

Health insurance, family planNot reported
Master's degree bonus$3,338673 full-time equivalents eligible
Doctorate bonus$3,74217 full-time equivalents eligible
Bilingual teaching bonus$3,33839 full-time equivalents eligible
National Board Certification bonusNot reported
Special education bonusNot reported
Summer school payNot reported
Work days a year184 days180 of them with students
Schedule raise on last year1.07%
Highest starting step for experienced hiresStep 24

Questions about teacher pay at Saddleback Valley Unified

How much do Saddleback Valley Unified teachers make?

The average salary on Saddleback Valley Unified's teacher schedule is $107,416 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $30,000 (INTERN before a full credential, step 1) to $133,169 (BA+66 with a credential, step 25).

What does a new teacher earn at Saddleback Valley Unified?

A new teacher with a full credential starts at $63,300 (BA column, step 1). Teachers without a full credential start lower, at $30,000. Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 24.

How long does it take to reach the top of the Saddleback Valley Unified pay scale?

On the BA+66 column, where 62% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 25, where it reaches $133,169. Steps go up with years of service.

Does a master's degree raise pay at Saddleback Valley Unified?

Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and Saddleback Valley Unified reports a master's bonus of $3,338 on top. For a doctorate it reports $3,742.

Is Saddleback Valley Unified teacher pay high for California?

Saddleback Valley Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 166th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 22nd of 29 in Orange County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $113,241 in Orange County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in Orange County

Compare all 29 Orange County districtsStarting, average and top pay side by side, sortable

Sources for the Saddleback Valley Unified figures

Salaries are the annual amounts on the district's certificated salary schedule. Following the state's definitions, they leave out extended-year pay, bonuses and extra-curricular pay such as coaching. Counts are full-time equivalents, so two half-time teachers count as one, and they can include counselors, nurses and librarians paid on the same schedule. County averages, ranks and percentages are our own arithmetic on these figures; our statewide average matches the state's published $103,552.

California Department of Education, Selected Certificated Salaries and Related Statistics, 2024-25, Table I: average salary paid, raise on last year, highest starting step. The median salary is our own calculation from source 2.
Saddleback Valley Unified's report to the California Department of Education, Form J-90 database, 2024-25: salary schedule, full-time equivalents per cell, bonuses, health contributions, work days.
U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #17D: Exemption for Professional Employees Under the FLSA: teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.

How we read the data