School district · North Carolina · LEAID 3702970
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable North Carolina districts (144,197 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).
- $50,646
- Est. avg teacher salary
- $16,641
- Per-pupil spending
- 144,197
- Students enrolled
- 68th
- Pct. in NC
Near benchmark
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable North Carolina districts (144,197 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $50,646, below the national average of $70,245, serving 144,197 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).
- Large enrollment scale: Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable North Carolina districts (144,197 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
- 68th percentile for North Carolina
- 16th percentile nationally
- 30% of spending reaches instructional salaries
- North Carolina ranks #47 of 49 on the salary estimate and #8 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools ranks #37 of 115 North Carolina districts by estimated teacher salary and #24 of 115 by per-pupil spending. Camden County Schools pay #1 at $53,553 is not Hyde County Schools spending #1 at $39,566 per pupil
- +5.6% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)
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Instructional payroll mix vs North Carolina median
Among 116 North Carolina districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools's instructional payroll puts 22.3% into other programs , 2.6 points above the state median of 19.7%. The mix below is the district's own F-33 program split against the in-state median, not a quality score.
| Program | Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools | NC median | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular program | 62.9% | 61.8% | +1.1 pp |
| Special education | 9.3% | 11.1% | -1.8 pp |
| Vocational programs | 5.5% | 7.1% | -1.6 pp |
| Other programs | 22.3% | 19.7% | +2.6 pp |
Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 116 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 3702970 · FY2023.
LEAID 3702970 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools F-33 compensation desk
FY2023: $50,646 estimated average teacher salary · P68 in North Carolina · P16 nationally · 30% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Pender ($54est. salary).
Salary neighbourhood chart for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Salary neighbourhood · Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools already leads most of its in-state peer set; the chart plots it against the top and bottom pay poles for context (NCES F-33 FY2023, not a full state reprint).
- Hoke · low pole
Hoke · low pole
$44,987 est. salary
- Cleveland · near
Cleveland · near
$50,407 est. salary
- Union · near
Union · near
$50,588 est. salary
- Pender · near
Pender · near
$50,592 est. salary
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Charlotte-Mecklenburg · this district
$50,646 est. salary
- Henderson · top pay
Henderson · top pay
$52,055 est. salary
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools's estimated salary vs. every US district
NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only
$50,646 16th percentile higher than 16% of 10,684 US districts
Show national distribution
Each bar is a $10K-wide band; taller bars hold more US districts. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 · FY2023
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina's upper-third pay band
Same 115 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)
- Camden County Schools
Camden County Schools
$53,553 est. avg salary
- Hyde County Schools
Hyde County Schools
$50,970 est. avg salary
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
$50,646 est. avg salary
What this shows Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools ranks #37 of 115 North Carolina districts by estimated teacher salary and #24 of 115 by per-pupil spending. Camden County Schools pay #1 at $53,553 is not Hyde County Schools spending #1 at $39,566 per pupil
The same districts by per-pupil spending
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar
- Hyde County Schools
Hyde County Schools
$39,566 per pupil
- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
$16,641 per pupil
- Camden County Schools $13,128
Camden County Schools
$13,128 per pupil
What this shows Hyde County Schools leads spending at $39,566 per pupil; Camden County Schools leads pay.
What stands out about Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
- With 144,197 students, it is the 16th-largest school district by enrollment among the 13,149 US districts reporting enrollment data.
- A district of this scale typically enrolls more students than several entire states' worth of smaller districts combined, which is part of why the per-pupil and per-teacher figures here should be read as an aggregate across many schools rather than a single-campus estimate.
- Its total annual revenue of $2.06B puts it among just 21 US districts operating a budget of this size or larger, out of the 13,149 districts in the NCES CCD F-33 survey, a scale that brings dedicated budget offices, multi-year capital planning, and district-wide procurement contracts that a small district's single-person business office cannot replicate.
Scale composition for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools enrolls 144,197 students (0.31% of the 46,412,683 students across 13,149 US districts that report enrollment in the NCES CCD F-33 survey). Only 88 districts clear the 50,000-student threshold used here - sparse districts in the 500-5,000 band cannot show a national-share read of this kind because their headcount is too small for the percentage to mean anything. Total annual revenue is $2.06B, putting it among 21 districts at this budget scale or larger.
Reported teacher FTE is 8,663, about 16.6 students per teacher (mega-cohort median 16.0; denser staffing than 33 of the 87 mega-districts with a usable FTE count, rank 54th densest) . At this enrollment the ratio is an aggregate across many campuses, so a single-school class-size story is the wrong read - use it to place Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools among other large systems, not against a 1,000-student district whose FTE is a handful of classrooms.
Instructional salaries take 30% of total expenditure on a $2.40B budget . Large systems carry central offices, transportation, and facilities lines that dilute the classroom share relative to a small district whose budget is almost entirely payroll - comparing that percentage across the enrollment cliff without this scale note misreads both ends.
Nearest mega-district peers by enrollment (same 50k+ cohort):
| District | Enrollment | Est. avg salary | Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas ISD · Texas | 141,169 | $59,863 | $2.58B |
| Prince George's County Public Schools · Maryland | 131,133 | $88,440 | $2.97B |
| Duval · Florida | 129,680 | $51,421 | $1.75B |
| Wake County Schools · North Carolina | 159,778 | $50,350 | $1.96B |
| Montgomery County Public Schools · Maryland | 160,554 | $80,717 | $3.83B |
This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests
- Nominal district estimate
- $50,645.901
- North Carolina price level
- 94.4 / 100
- National-price equivalent
- $53,651
The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.
BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.
+6% versus the nominal figure.
Prices in North Carolina run below the national average, so this salary has roughly the buying power of the national-price equivalent above. A district in a costlier state can advertise a larger nominal salary and still leave a teacher with less.
Regional price parity: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2023 all-items RPP by state. The adjustment applies a statewide index to a district figure, so it captures how North Carolina compares nationally, not how this district compares with others in its own state. Compare every state on this basis.
How this salary figure is calculated
Full NCES reading for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
What the Numbers Say About Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is a large urban school district in North Carolina, serving 144,197 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $16,641. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $50,646, placing the district in the moderately funded tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 3702970 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.
Relative to the North Carolina statewide average of $49,898, teacher pay in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools runs roughly in line with the state benchmark, a 1.5% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (27.9% differential). Among enrolling districts in North Carolina, it pays more than 68% of them. North Carolina itself ranks #47 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.
On the budget side, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools reports $2399.6M in total expenditure against $2055.5M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 30% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $275.9M, special-education teacher pay is $40.9M.
How does Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools compare?
Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the North Carolina average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools pays +0.6% more than Wake County Schools · per-pupil $16,641 vs $13,702
Derived from NCES F-33 teacher salary expenditure (Z35-Z38) and CCD Staff Universe teacher FTE (FY2023); a small minority use the documented fallback. Unreliable service entities are excluded.
Data-derived comparison paths
Find comparable North Carolina districts
On pay, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools sits closest to Union County Public Schools; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Winston Salem / Forsyth County Schools. These are not simply nearby districts: each group is selected from the same NCES FY2023 dataset using a matching salary or per-pupil-investment signal and a comparable enrollment range.
Similar estimated teacher pay
Similar per-pupil investment
Out-of-state districts near Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools's enrollment scale
Two out-of-state peer sets for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: closest on enrollment (144,197 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($50,646 here). Rows stay link-disjoint so each axis is a distinct neighborhood.
Similar enrollment
Nearest other districts by NCES student count (floored at ≥200).
Similar estimated salary
Nearest other districts by F-33-derived average teacher salary, distinct from the enrollment row.
Enrollment and salaries from NCES CCD F-33; estimated teacher pay can diverge widely at the same student count because of state funding, cost of living, and local bargaining.
Revenue & Expenditure
Instructional Salary by Program
The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools: the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 61% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 39% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.
North Carolina Teacher Pay Overview
The highest average among comparably sized North Carolina districts belongs to Camden County Schools at $53,553. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools places 36 of 113 comparably sized districts, squarely in the middle band the state average actually represents. Michigan and South Carolina are the states closest to North Carolina on BEA's price parity, which makes them the fair comparison; against a costlier state this salary goes further than its number suggests.
View all North Carolina districts →Other North Carolina Districts
Large-district sample from 114 North Carolina peers with reliable NCES data; bar length shows pay magnitude within this slice.
This is a sample of 6 from 114 North Carolina districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.
Frequently Asked Questions about Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
What is the average teacher salary in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools?
The average teacher salary in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is $50,646 (NCES CCD FY2023), from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by the district's reported teacher headcount (NCES CCD Staff Universe Survey).
How does Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teacher pay compare to the North Carolina average?
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools pays 1.5% more than the North Carolina state average of $49,898. The district's average is $50,646.
How does Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools teacher pay compare to the national average?
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools pays 27.9% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $50,646.
What is the per-pupil spending in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools?
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools spends approximately $16,641 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.
What percentage of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools's budget goes to teacher salaries?
Instructional salaries account for 30% of Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools's total expenditure of $2399.6M (NCES FY2023).
Next read for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools
Disclaimer & data sources
Disclaimer: This information is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute professional advice. Data is sourced from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD). Consult a qualified professional before making decisions based on this data.
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainTeacher
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| Sources | Public official public datasets |