Santa Clara Unified School District teacher salaries

Santa Clara Unified School District is a unified school district in Santa Clara County, with its district office in Santa Clara. Pay starts at $95,734 on the first step. The largest group (84%) is on the BA+60 column, which climbs to $171,568 by step 24.

Lowest

$95,734

BA+30, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$149,175

  • $26,919 above Santa Clara County average
  • $45,623 above California average

Highest

$171,568

BA+60, step 24

Santa Clara Unified average

California average$103,552

Santa Clara County average$122,256

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
970
Starting salary
$95,734
BA+30, step 1
Median salary
$153,667
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
4th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Does Santa Clara 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

Santa Clara Unified's average of $149,175 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Santa Clara Unified ranks 4th of 828.

Santa Clara Unified
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 29 reporting districts in Santa Clara County

Santa Clara Unified ranks 3rd of 29, above the middle district.

Santa Clara 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 Santa Clara Unified's BA+30 column pays $107,423. Experienced teachers joining Santa Clara 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. Santa Clara Unified's columns run from BA+30 to BA+60, 3 in all.

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

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

$144,716

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $171,568 on step 24.

$171,568$95,734
Step 1Step 24
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Santa Clara Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 50% of Santa Clara Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBA+30BA+45BA+60
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

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. 195
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 Santa Clara 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 Santa Clara Unified

How much do Santa Clara Unified teachers make?

The average salary on Santa Clara Unified's teacher schedule is $149,175 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $95,734 (BA+30, step 1) to $171,568 (BA+60, step 24).

What does a new teacher earn at Santa Clara Unified?

The schedule starts at $95,734 (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 Santa Clara Unified pay scale?

On the BA+60 column, where 84% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 24, where it reaches $171,568. Steps go up with years of service.

Does a master's degree raise pay at Santa Clara Unified?

Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and Santa Clara Unified reports a master's bonus of $2,958 on top. For a doctorate it reports $2,958.

Is Santa Clara Unified teacher pay high for California?

Santa Clara Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 4th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 3rd 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 Santa Clara 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. Santa Clara 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