Substitute Teachers, Short-Term · SOC 25-3031
Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Substitute Teachers, Short-Terms
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025U.S. metropolitan areas
Metro areas ranked by published median annual wage for substitute teachers, short-term. Areas where BLS suppressed the median are not ranked (7 such areas are excluded here). Higher medians often track higher living costs — this is a pay comparison, not a ranking of where the job is “best”.
Top 25 of 323 metro areas
| # | Metro area | Median annual | Employment | Per 1,000 jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anchorage, AK | $78,840 | 330 | 1.8 |
| 2 | Napa, CA | $76,520 | 300 | 3.8 |
| 3 | San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA | $72,330 | 3,800 | 3.3 |
| 4 | Bakersfield-Delano, CA | $66,480 | 5,390 | 15.9 |
| 5 | Vallejo, CA | $66,000 | 700 | 4.9 |
| 6 | Stockton-Lodi, CA | $65,190 | 3,060 | 10.5 |
| 7 | Salinas, CA | $63,970 | 1,220 | 6.6 |
| 8 | Modesto, CA | $63,440 | 1,990 | 10.2 |
| 9 | Eugene-Springfield, OR | $62,660 | 480 | 3.0 |
| 10 | La Crosse-Onalaska, WI-MN | $62,400 | 170 | 2.1 |
| 11 | Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA | $62,310 | 610 | 3.0 |
| 12 | Kahului-Wailuku, HI | $62,280 | 350 | 4.7 |
| 13 | Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA | $62,260 | 2,100 | 6.5 |
| 14 | Yuba City, CA | $61,710 | 370 | 7.2 |
| 15 | Hanford-Corcoran, CA | $61,590 | 210 | 4.3 |
| 16 | Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA | $61,290 | 1,430 | 7.0 |
| 17 | Longview-Kelso, WA | $61,260 | 230 | 5.6 |
| 18 | Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $61,190 | 4,110 | 3.4 |
| 19 | Chico, CA | $61,030 | 450 | 5.7 |
| 20 | San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $60,790 | 10,570 | 4.5 |
| 21 | Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $60,780 | 15,430 | 9.0 |
| 22 | Merced, CA | $60,770 | 1,450 | 18.3 |
| 23 | Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $60,070 | 7,220 | 3.5 |
| 24 | St. Cloud, MN | $59,980 | 70 | 0.7 |
| 25 | Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | $59,900 | 1,070 | 10.9 |
Full state and metro tables, the national distribution, and the pay map are on the Substitute Teachers, Short-Term overview.
About this data. Estimates are from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, May 2025 release, retrieved from bls.gov/oes/tables.htm on July 24, 2026. OEWS estimates describe metropolitan/nonmetropolitan areas and states — not city limits — and are not designed for year-over-year comparisons. See BLS methodology, our plain-English methodology, and sources. CitySalaryData is independent and not affiliated with BLS.