Riverside Unified School District teacher salaries

Riverside Unified School District is a unified school district in Riverside County, with its district office in Riverside. Pay starts at $73,657 on the first step. The largest group (58%) is on the BA+75+MA OR MA+30 column, which climbs to $142,078 by step 28.

Lowest

$73,657

BA TO 44, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$117,452

  • $4,489 above Riverside County average
  • $13,900 above California average

Highest

$142,078

BA+75+MA OR MA+30, step 28

Riverside Unified average

AveragesCalifornia $103,552, Riverside County $112,963

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
1,865
Starting salary
$73,657
BA TO 44, step 1
Median salary
$125,872
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
72nd of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does Riverside 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

Riverside Unified's average of $117,452 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Riverside Unified ranks 72nd of 828.

Riverside Unified
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 23 reporting districts in Riverside County

Riverside Unified ranks 4th of 23, above the middle district.

Riverside Unified
$80k$100k$120k

Middle district: $112,200

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 Riverside Unified's BA TO 44 column pays $81,584. Experienced teachers joining Riverside Unified can be placed as high as step 14.
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. Riverside Unified's columns run from BA TO 44 to BA+75+MA OR MA+30, 4 in all.

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

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

$114,069

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $142,078 on step 28.

$142,078$73,657
Step 1Step 28
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Riverside Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 44% of Riverside Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBA TO 44BA+45 OR MABA+60 OR MA+15BA+75+MA OR MA+30
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
26
27
28

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. 173
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 Riverside 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.

Questions about teacher pay at Riverside Unified

How much do Riverside Unified teachers make?

The average salary on Riverside Unified's teacher schedule is $117,452 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $73,657 (BA TO 44, step 1) to $142,078 (BA+75+MA OR MA+30, step 28).

What does a new teacher earn at Riverside Unified?

The schedule starts at $73,657 (BA TO 44, step 1). Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 14.

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

On the BA+75+MA OR MA+30 column, where 58% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 28, where it reaches $142,078. Steps go up with years of service.

Is Riverside Unified teacher pay high for California?

Riverside Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 72nd of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 4th of 23 in Riverside County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $112,963 in Riverside County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in Riverside County

Sources for the Riverside 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.

  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. Riverside 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.
  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