Kentucky teacher salaries by school district, 2025-26
Kentucky's 171 public school districts employ 43,042 teachers (full-time equivalents). Each district pays from its own salary schedule, by rank (degree) and years of experience. Across districts, the average classroom teacher salary is $59,855.1
What is the average teacher salary in Kentucky?
Average classroom teacher salary, Kentucky districts1
$59,855
2025-26 school year, each district counted once
- Teachers
- 43,042
- full-time equivalents, 2025-26
- Typical starting salary
- $42,700
- bachelor's degree, middle district
- Typical top of the schedule
- $71,092
- Rank I, middle district
- School districts
- 171
- county and independent districts
Which Kentucky school districts pay teachers the most?
By average classroom teacher salary, 2025-26, among districts with at least 20 teachers.1
Highest average salary
- Anchorage IndependentIndependent district$84,633
- Jefferson CountyCounty district$79,022
- Fort Thomas IndependentIndependent district$75,973
- Fayette CountyCounty district$73,871
- Boone CountyCounty district$71,381
- Pikeville IndependentIndependent district$71,173
- Kenton CountyCounty district$70,673
- Bardstown IndependentIndependent district$69,780
- Washington CountyCounty district$69,197
- Ludlow IndependentIndependent district$68,941
Kentucky district average, $59,855
Where do new Kentucky teachers start highest?
Starting salary for a new teacher with a bachelor's degree (Rank III, 0 years of experience) on each district's 2025-26 schedule. The middle district starts at $42,700.1
Highest starting salary
- Kenton CountyCounty district$51,232
- Boone CountyCounty district$50,548
- Fayette CountyCounty district$50,051
- Mercer CountyCounty district$50,000
- Jefferson CountyCounty district$49,480
- Oldham CountyCounty district$48,770
- Simpson CountyCounty district$48,148
- Ludlow IndependentIndependent district$48,000
- Carroll CountyCounty district$47,643
- Fort Thomas IndependentIndependent district$47,493
Middle Kentucky district, $42,700
Compare teacher pay at every Kentucky school district
Average classroom teacher salary, starting pay with a bachelor's (Rank III) and a master's (Rank II), and the top of each schedule (Rank I). Click a column to sort it.1 Ranks follow state law.2
Showing 1 to 25 of 171 districts, highest average salary first.
| Anchorage Independent | $84,633 | $46,619 | $52,417 | $92,211 | 37 | 1% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County | $79,022 | $49,480 | $56,152 | $97,033 | 6,398 | 3% |
| Fort Thomas Independent | $75,973 | $47,493 | $51,771 | $89,057 | 197 | 3% |
| Fayette County | $73,871 | $50,051 | $53,867 | $99,453 | 3,189 | 1% |
| Boone County | $71,381 | $50,548 | $53,719 | $87,645 | 1,347 | 4.4% |
| Pikeville Independent | $71,173 | $47,349 | $53,158 | $79,883 | 80 | 2% |
| Kenton County | $70,673 | $51,232 | $53,555 | $93,981 | 784 | 4% |
| Bardstown Independent | $69,780 | $47,308 | $52,628 | $85,779 | 172 | 4% |
| Washington County | $69,197 | $45,560 | $50,666 | $81,373 | 102 | 3% |
| Ludlow Independent | $68,941 | $48,000 | $51,000 | $84,000 | 55 | 0.7% |
| Marion County | $68,371 | $47,000 | $51,170 | $83,753 | 180 | 5% |
| Bullitt County | $67,553 | $46,179 | $51,629 | $88,518 | 780 | 2.5% |
| Beechwood Independent | $67,368 | $45,554 | $47,961 | $79,630 | 83 | 2% |
| Hancock County | $67,236 | $43,880 | $44,955 | $76,484 | 98 | 3% |
| Newport Independent | $67,175 | $45,107 | $49,430 | $84,395 | 95 | 0% |
| Dayton Independent | $66,114 | $46,305 | $50,843 | $83,061 | 60 | 2.5% |
| Gallatin County | $65,792 | $46,367 | $51,786 | $80,266 | 88 | 10% |
| Oldham County | $65,678 | $48,770 | $54,284 | $87,501 | 737 | 8.7% |
| Campbell County | $65,548 | $47,250 | $51,510 | $87,791 | 316 | 2% |
| Jessamine County | $65,027 | $46,369 | $51,303 | $84,079 | 584 | 1.7% |
| Simpson County | $65,006 | $48,148 | $52,998 | $78,055 | 200 | 5% |
| Hardin County | $64,991 | $47,041 | $51,189 | $86,850 | 937 | 4% |
| Paducah Independent | $64,989 | $44,579 | $49,117 | $78,244 | 202 | 2% |
| Bowling Green Independent | $64,865 | $46,800 | $51,243 | $77,392 | 311 | 4% |
| Owensboro Independent | $64,847 | $46,125 | $47,969 | $77,157 | 358 | 3% |
No district matches. Clear the search or pick another county or size.
Districts with fewer than 20 teachers have no page of their own. The raise is the typical change across each schedule from the year before.
Questions about Kentucky teacher salaries
How much do teachers make in Kentucky?
The average classroom teacher salary across Kentucky's 171 school districts was $59,855 in 2025-26, counting each district once, as the Kentucky Department of Education reports it. The middle district paid $59,250.
What is the starting salary for teachers in Kentucky?
The middle Kentucky district starts a new teacher with a bachelor's degree at $42,700 (2025-26). Kenton County starts highest, at $51,232.
What do teachers earn at Jefferson County (JCPS)?
Jefferson County, Kentucky's largest district with 6,398 teachers, paid its classroom teachers an average of $79,022 in 2025-26. A new teacher with a bachelor's degree starts at $49,480.
Sources for the Kentucky teacher figures
Salary schedules and average salaries as each district reported them to the Kentucky Department of Education, for public school districts only. The average classroom teacher salary includes pay for contracted extra days and extra duties; the statewide figure is the state's own average of the district averages. Medians, ranks and raises are our own arithmetic on these figures.
- Kentucky Department of Education, School District Personnel Information, 2025-26: Certified Salary Schedule, Average Classroom Teacher Salaries and Yearly FTE for Teachers.
- Kentucky Revised Statutes 161.1211, rank classification of teachers, as amended by 2020 Ky. Acts ch. 113 (SB 174).