School district · Tennessee · LEAID 4702220
Knox County
Knox County is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (60,609 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for Knox County come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).
- $61,264
- Est. avg teacher salary
- $11,759
- Per-pupil spending
- 60,609
- Students enrolled
- 78th
- Pct. in TN
Above benchmark
Knox County is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (60,609 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort). Estimated average teacher salary is $61,264, below the national average of $70,245, serving 60,609 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).
- Large enrollment scale: Knox County is in the largest third by enrollment among comparable Tennessee districts (60,609 students in the NCES CCD F-33 cohort).
- 78th percentile for Tennessee
- 40th percentile nationally
- 39% of spending reaches instructional salaries
- Tennessee ranks #38 of 49 on the salary estimate and #13 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
- Knox County ranks #30 of 139 Tennessee districts by estimated teacher salary and #121 of 139 by per-pupil spending. Achievement School District pay #1 at $82,057 is not Franklin SSD spending #1 at $24,604 per pupil
- +20.7% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)
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Instructional payroll mix vs Tennessee median
Among 141 Tennessee districts that break out F-33 program salary totals, Knox County's instructional payroll puts 13.2% into special education , 3.2 points above the state median of 10.0%. That heavier special-education share usually means more of the teacher-salary pool is tied to IEP-driven staffing than at a typical Tennessee peer.
| Program | Knox County | TN median | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regular program | 82.4% | 84.1% | -1.6 pp |
| Special education | 13.2% | 10.0% | +3.2 pp |
| Vocational programs | 3.9% | 5.0% | -1.1 pp |
Shares are of this district's reported F-33 teacher-salary program totals (Z35–Z38), compared with the median share across 141 in-state peers with a positive program sum. NCES LEAID 4702220 · FY2023.
LEAID 4702220 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023
Knox County F-33 compensation desk
FY2023: $61,264 estimated average teacher salary · P78 in Tennessee · P40 nationally · 39% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Hamblen ($378est. salary).
Salary neighbourhood chart for Knox County
Salary neighbourhood · Knox County
Knox County 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).
- Union · low pole $32,029
Union · low pole
$32,029 est. salary
- Cheatham · near
Cheatham · near
$60,145 est. salary
- Roane · near
Roane · near
$60,195 est. salary
- Hamblen · near
Hamblen · near
$60,886 est. salary
- Knox · this district
Knox · this district
$61,264 est. salary
- Achievement · top pay
Achievement · top pay
$82,057 est. salary
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for Knox County
Knox County's estimated salary vs. every US district
NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only
$61,264 40th percentile higher than 40% 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
What stands out about Knox County
- Estimated teacher pay here rose +20.7% between FY2019 and FY2023, outpacing Tennessee's statewide +12.8% by 8.0 points, a growth rate faster than 85% of the 141 Tennessee districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.
- With 60,609 students, it is the 65th-largest school district by enrollment among the 13,149 US districts reporting enrollment data.
- Its total annual revenue of $762M puts it among just 132 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 Knox County
Knox County enrolls 60,609 students (0.13% 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 $762M, putting it among 132 districts at this budget scale or larger.
Reported teacher FTE is 4,128, about 14.7 students per teacher (mega-cohort median 16.0; denser staffing than 64 of the 87 mega-districts with a usable FTE count, rank 23rd 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 Knox County among other large systems, not against a 1,000-student district whose FTE is a handful of classrooms.
Instructional salaries take 39% of total expenditure on a $713M 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aldine ISD · Texas | 60,074 | $54,820 | $1.04B |
| Granite District · Utah | 61,197 | $86,834 | $809M |
| Jordan District · Utah | 59,421 | $78,196 | $676M |
| Elk Grove Unified · California | 61,886 | $117,022 | $1.23B |
| North East ISD · Texas | 59,007 | $57,830 | $872M |
This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests
- Nominal district estimate
- $61,263.649
- Tennessee price level
- 92.1 / 100
- National-price equivalent
- $66,523
The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.
BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.
+9% versus the nominal figure.
Prices in Tennessee 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 Tennessee 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 Knox County
What the Numbers Say About Knox County
Knox County is a large urban school district in Tennessee, serving 60,609 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $11,759. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $61,264, placing the district in the lower-spending tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 4702220 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.
Relative to the Tennessee statewide average of $57,941, teacher pay in Knox County runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 5.7% gap, and below the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (12.8% differential). Among enrolling districts in Tennessee, it pays more than 78% of them. Tennessee itself ranks #38 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.
On the budget side, Knox County reports $712.7M in total expenditure against $762.1M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 39% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $208.4M, special-education teacher pay is $33.4M.
How does Knox County compare?
Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Tennessee average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.
Knox County pays +4.4% more than Memphis-Shelby County Schools · per-pupil $11,759 vs $16,050
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 Tennessee districts
On pay, Knox County sits closest to Sumner County; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is Wilson County. 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 Knox County's enrollment scale
Two out-of-state peer sets for Knox County: closest on enrollment (60,609 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($61,264 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 Knox County: the regular program, special education, vocational programs and other programs. Every program category NCES breaks out separately carries a figure here. Together they are 90% of everything the district spends on instructional salaries; the other 10% pays instructional aides, paraprofessionals, substitutes and other instructional staff who are not counted as teachers here.
Tennessee Teacher Pay Overview
The highest average among comparably sized Tennessee districts belongs to Achievement School District at $82,057. Knox County sits in the upper quarter of that field at 29 of 137, nearer the ceiling than the floor. Indiana and Idaho are the states closest to Tennessee 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 Tennessee districts →Other Tennessee Districts
Large-district sample from 138 Tennessee peers with reliable NCES data; bar length shows pay magnitude within this slice.
This is a sample of 6 from 138 Tennessee districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.
Frequently Asked Questions about Knox County
What is the average teacher salary in Knox County?
The average teacher salary in Knox County is $61,264 (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 Knox County teacher pay compare to the Tennessee average?
Knox County pays 5.7% more than the Tennessee state average of $57,941. The district's average is $61,264.
How does Knox County teacher pay compare to the national average?
Knox County pays 12.8% below the national average of $70,245. The district average is $61,264.
What is the per-pupil spending in Knox County?
Knox County spends approximately $11,759 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.
What percentage of Knox County's budget goes to teacher salaries?
Instructional salaries account for 39% of Knox County's total expenditure of $712.7M (NCES FY2023).
Next read for Knox County
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 |