San Diego Unified School District teacher salaries

San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) is a unified school district in San Diego County, with its district office in San Diego. Pay starts at $58,609 on the first step. The largest group (65%) is on the BA+90 OR MA+84 column, which climbs to $124,050 by step 23.

Lowest

$58,609

BA, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$105,672

  • $3,026 above San Diego County average
  • $2,120 above California average

Highest

$124,050

BA+90 OR MA+84, step 23

San Diego Unified average

AveragesSan Diego County $102,646, California $103,552

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
5,589
Starting salary
$58,609
BA, step 1
Median salary
$113,733
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
199th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does San Diego 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

San Diego Unified's average of $105,672 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

San Diego Unified ranks 199th of 828.

San Diego Unified
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 37 reporting districts in San Diego County

San Diego Unified ranks 11th of 37, above the middle district.

San Diego Unified
$80k$100k$120k

Middle district: $100,279

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 San Diego Unified's BA column pays $67,958. Experienced teachers joining San Diego Unified can be placed as high as step 17.
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. San Diego Unified's columns run from BA to BA+90 OR MA+84, 5 in all.

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

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

$96,211

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $124,050 on step 23.

$124,050$58,609
Step 1Step 23
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

San Diego Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 61% of San Diego Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBABA+36 OR MABA+60 OR BA+54+MABA+72 OR MA+66BA+90 OR MA+84
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23

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. 1,572
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 San Diego 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 San Diego Unified

How much do San Diego Unified teachers make?

The average salary on San Diego Unified's teacher schedule is $105,672 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $58,609 (BA, step 1) to $124,050 (BA+90 OR MA+84, step 23).

What does a new teacher earn at San Diego Unified?

The schedule starts at $58,609 (BA, step 1). Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 17.

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

On the BA+90 OR MA+84 column, where 65% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 23, where it reaches $124,050. Steps go up with years of service.

Is San Diego Unified teacher pay high for California?

San Diego Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 199th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 11th of 37 in San Diego County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $102,646 in San Diego County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in San Diego County

Sources for the San Diego 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. San Diego 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