Palo Alto Unified School District teacher salaries

Palo Alto Unified School District is a unified school district in Santa Clara County, with its district office in Palo Alto. Pay starts at $91,546 on the first step. The largest group (64%) is on the BA+90 column, which climbs to $168,598 by step 27.

Lowest

$91,546

BA+30, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$145,938

  • $23,682 above Santa Clara County average
  • $42,386 above California average

Highest

$168,598

BA+90, step 27

Palo Alto Unified average

California average$103,552

Santa Clara County average$122,256

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
766
Starting salary
$91,546
BA+30, step 1
Median salary
$150,984
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
6th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does Palo Alto 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

Palo Alto Unified's average of $145,938 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Palo Alto Unified ranks 6th of 828.

Palo Alto Unified
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 29 reporting districts in Santa Clara County

Palo Alto Unified ranks 4th of 29, above the middle district.

Palo Alto Unified
$100k$120k$140k$160k$180k

Middle district: $117,248

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 Palo Alto Unified's BA+30 column pays $101,778. Experienced teachers joining Palo Alto Unified can be placed as high as step 12.
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. Palo Alto Unified's columns run from BA+30 to BA+90, 5 in all.

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

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

$143,319

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $168,598 on step 27.

$168,598$91,546
Step 1Step 27
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Palo Alto Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 59% of Palo Alto Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBA+30BA+45BA+60BA+75BA+90
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

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. 101
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 Palo Alto 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 Palo Alto Unified

How much do Palo Alto Unified teachers make?

The average salary on Palo Alto Unified's teacher schedule is $145,938 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $91,546 (BA+30, step 1) to $168,598 (BA+90, step 27).

What does a new teacher earn at Palo Alto Unified?

The schedule starts at $91,546 (BA+30, step 1). Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 12.

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

On the BA+90 column, where 64% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 27, where it reaches $168,598. Steps go up with years of service.

Does a master's degree raise pay at Palo Alto Unified?

Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and Palo Alto Unified reports a master's bonus of $3,171 on top. For a doctorate it reports $3,171.

Is Palo Alto Unified teacher pay high for California?

Palo Alto Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 6th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 4th of 29 in Santa Clara County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $122,256 in Santa Clara County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in Santa Clara County

Sources for the Palo Alto 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. Palo Alto 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