Westminster School District teacher salaries

Westminster School District is an elementary school district in Orange County, with its district office in Westminster. A teacher with a full credential starts at $64,841. The largest group (77%) is on the BA+60+MA column, which climbs to $137,806 by step 25.

Lowest

$54,278

BA before a full credential, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$118,464

  • $5,223 above Orange County average
  • $14,912 above California average

Highest

$137,806

BA+60+MA with a credential, step 25

Westminster average

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

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
449
Starting salary
$64,841
BA with a credential, step 1
Median salary
$124,914
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
66th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does Westminster 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

Westminster's average of $118,464 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Westminster ranks 66th of 828.

Westminster
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 29 reporting districts in Orange County

Westminster ranks 7th of 29, above the middle district.

Westminster
$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 Westminster's BA column pays $68,220. Experienced teachers joining Westminster can be placed as high as step 30.
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. Westminster's columns run from BA to BA+60+MA, 5 in all.
Credentialed
Holds a full California teaching credential, the state license to teach. Westminster's credentialed columns start at $64,841.
Without full credential
Teachers who don't yet hold a full credential. Westminster pays them on separate columns, starting at $54,278.

How fast does a teacher's salary grow at Westminster?

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

$108,187

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $137,806 on step 25.

$137,806$54,278
Step 1Step 30
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Westminster's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 72% of Westminster's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBABA+15BA+30BA+45 OR MABA+60+MA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11 to 12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30

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
  1. 5+
  5. 37
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 Westminster

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.

Questions about teacher pay at Westminster

How much do Westminster teachers make?

The average salary on Westminster's teacher schedule is $118,464 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $54,278 (BA before a full credential, step 1) to $137,806 (BA+60+MA with a credential, step 25).

What does a new teacher earn at Westminster?

A new teacher with a full credential starts at $64,841 (BA column, step 1). Teachers without a full credential start lower, at $54,278. Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 30.

How long does it take to reach the top of the Westminster pay scale?

On the BA+60+MA column, where 77% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 25, where it reaches $137,806. Steps go up with years of service.

Is Westminster teacher pay high for California?

Westminster's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 66th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 7th 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

Sources for the Westminster 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.

  1. 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.
  2. Westminster'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.
  3. 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