San Mateo-Foster City School District teacher salaries

San Mateo-Foster City School District is an elementary school district in San Mateo County, with its district office in Foster City. A teacher with a full credential starts at $68,577. The largest group (60%) is on the BA+75 column, which climbs to $128,965 by step 22.

Lowest

$65,604

BA+30 INTERN before a full credential, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$104,943

  • $10,783 below San Mateo County average
  • $1,391 above California average

Highest

$128,965

BA+75 with a credential, step 22

San Mateo-Foster City average

California average$103,552

San Mateo County average$115,726

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
611
Starting salary
$68,577
BA<45 with a credential, step 1
Median salary
$108,251
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
213th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does San Mateo-Foster City 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 Mateo-Foster City's average of $104,943 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

San Mateo-Foster City ranks 213th of 828.

San Mateo-Foster City
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 19 reporting districts in San Mateo County

San Mateo-Foster City ranks 10th of 19, above the middle district.

San Mateo-Foster City
$100k$120k$140k

Middle district: $104,943

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 Mateo-Foster City's BA<45 column pays $78,684. Experienced teachers joining San Mateo-Foster City can be placed as high as step 22.
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 Mateo-Foster City's columns run from BA<45 to BA+75, 4 in all.
Credentialed
Holds a full California teaching credential, the state license to teach. San Mateo-Foster City's credentialed columns start at $68,577.
Without full credential
Teachers who don't yet hold a full credential. San Mateo-Foster City pays them on separate columns, starting at $65,604.

How fast does a teacher's salary grow at San Mateo-Foster City?

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

$104,604

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $128,965 on step 22.

$128,965$65,604
Step 1Step 40
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

San Mateo-Foster City's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 42% of San Mateo-Foster City's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

San Mateo-Foster City credentialed salary schedule, 2024-25. Annual salary in dollars by step (rows) and column (units past a bachelor's degree).
StepBA<45BA+45BA+60BA+75
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 to 26
27
28
29
30 to 32
33
34 to 40

Only BA+75 continues past step 33.

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+
  2. 23
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 Mateo-Foster City

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 Mateo-Foster City

How much do San Mateo-Foster City teachers make?

The average salary on San Mateo-Foster City's teacher schedule is $104,943 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $65,604 (BA+30 INTERN before a full credential, step 1) to $128,965 (BA+75 with a credential, step 22).

What does a new teacher earn at San Mateo-Foster City?

A new teacher with a full credential starts at $68,577 (BA<45 column, step 1). Teachers without a full credential start lower, at $65,604. Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 22.

How long does it take to reach the top of the San Mateo-Foster City pay scale?

On the BA+75 column, where 60% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 22, where it reaches $128,965. Steps go up with years of service.

Does a master's degree raise pay at San Mateo-Foster City?

Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and San Mateo-Foster City reports a master's bonus of $1,500 on top. For a doctorate it reports $1,500.

Is San Mateo-Foster City teacher pay high for California?

San Mateo-Foster City's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 213th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 10th of 19 in San Mateo County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $115,726 in San Mateo County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in San Mateo County

Sources for the San Mateo-Foster City 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 Mateo-Foster City'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