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School district · Missouri · LEAID 2929280

St. Louis City

St. Louis City spends $24,843 per pupil, in the highest third among comparable Missouri districts with a reliable figure. Per-pupil spending, enrollment, and budget for St. Louis City come from the NCES Common Core of Data F-33 finance survey (FY2023).

$73,877
Est. avg teacher salary

Well above benchmark

$24,843
Per-pupil spending
18,321
Students enrolled
97th
Pct. in MO
$73,877

St. Louis City spends $24,843 per pupil, in the highest third among comparable Missouri districts with a reliable figure. Estimated average teacher salary is $73,877, above the national average of $70,245, serving 18,321 students (NCES CCD F-33, FY2023).

  • High per-pupil spending: St. Louis City spends $24,843 per pupil, in the highest third among comparable Missouri districts with a reliable figure.
  • 97th percentile for Missouri
  • 66th percentile nationally
  • 24% of spending reaches instructional salaries
  • Missouri ranks #43 of 49 on the salary estimate and #18 of 49 on enrollment in the same reliable-district pool.
  • St. Louis City ranks #12 of 405 Missouri districts by estimated teacher salary and #8 of 405 by per-pupil spending. Clayton pay #1 at $94,417 is not Brentwood spending #1 at $36,741 per pupil
  • +34.2% estimated-basis panel FY2019→FY2023 (not applied to the FTE figure above)

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LEAID 2929280 · NCES CCD F-33 FY2023

St. Louis F-33 compensation desk

SALARY-HIGH +41% vs state RANK-ST-TOP P97 in state RANK-NAT-MID P66 national PPE-HIGH $25K/pupil ENR-LARGE 18.3K students INSTR-LOW 24% instr BASIS-FTE FTE-reported PHOTO-NEAR Near Rockwood FY-2023-MID FY2023 book

FY2023: $73,877 estimated average teacher salary · P97 in Missouri · P66 nationally · 24% instructional salary share. Nearest salary peer: Rockwood ($234est. salary).

Salary neighbourhood chart for St. Louis

Salary neighbourhood · St. Louis

St. Louis 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).

est. salary
Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey As of FY2023
Appropriate use & corrections
National salary distribution for St. Louis

St. Louis City's estimated salary vs. every US district

NCES F-33 estimate, reliable-salary districts only

$73,877 Top 34% higher than 66% of 10,684 US districts

Show national distribution $30,000–$40,000: 155 US districts (1%). Below this entry. $40,000–$50,000: 1,360 US districts (13%). Below this entry. $50,000–$60,000: 2,382 US districts (22%). Below this entry. $60,000–$70,000: 2,402 US districts (22%). Below this entry. $70,000–$80,000: 1,633 US districts (15%). This entry sits in this band. $80,000–$90,000: 1,097 US districts (10%). Above this entry. $90,000–$100,000: 662 US districts (6%). Above this entry. $100,000–$110,000: 371 US districts (3%). Above this entry. $110,000–$120,000: 249 US districts (2%). Above this entry. $120,000–$130,000: 156 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $130,000–$140,000: 112 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $140,000–$150,000: 57 US districts (1%). Above this entry. $150,000–$160,000: 25 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $160,000–$170,000: 13 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $170,000–$180,000: 10 US districts (0%). Above this entry. $180,000–$190,000: 0 US districts (0%). Above this entry. St. Louis City $30,000 $190,000 every reliable-salary US district, bucketed by value

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

St. Louis in Missouri's upper-third pay band

Same 405 districts with a usable salary and a comparable per-pupil figure (NCES F-33 FY2023)

est. avg salary

What this shows St. Louis City ranks #12 of 405 Missouri districts by estimated teacher salary and #8 of 405 by per-pupil spending. Clayton pay #1 at $94,417 is not Brentwood spending #1 at $36,741 per pupil

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

The same districts by per-pupil spending

St. Louis City is marked; a high spending bar is not a high pay bar

per pupil

What this shows Brentwood leads spending at $36,741 per pupil; Clayton leads pay.

Source NCES CCD F-33 Finance Survey, FY2023 As of FY2023

What stands out about St. Louis City

  • Estimated teacher pay here rose +34.2% between FY2019 and FY2023, outpacing Missouri's statewide +14.3% by 19.8 points, a growth rate faster than 89% of the 499 Missouri districts with a comparable FY2019 baseline.
  • Enrolment fell from 21,814 to 18,321 students (16.0% down) across FY2019–FY2023 while the instructional salary pool per teacher went up. Districts on that path are usually holding staffing steady against a falling roll, which lifts the per-teacher figure without anyone getting a raise, so read this page's salary estimate alongside the enrolment line rather than on its own.

This pay stretches further than the headline figure suggests

Nominal district estimate
$73,877.234

The FY2023 salary estimate shown in the hero.

Missouri price level
91.1 / 100

BEA all-items regional price parity; 100 is the U.S. average.

National-price equivalent
$81,091

+10% versus the nominal figure.

Prices in Missouri 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 Missouri 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 St. Louis City

What the Numbers Say About St. Louis City

St. Louis City is a mid-sized school district in Missouri, serving 18,321 students at an estimated per-pupil spending of $24,843. Estimated average teacher salary, derived from reported teacher salary expenditure (F-33 items Z35-Z38) divided by teacher FTE, is $73,877, placing the district in the high-investment tier of NCES F-33 respondents. NCES LEAID 2929280 references the FY2023 Common Core of Data Local Education Agency Finance Survey.

Relative to the Missouri statewide average of $52,299, teacher pay in St. Louis City runs meaningfully above the state benchmark, a 41.3% gap, and above the national instructional-salary estimate of $70,245 (5.2% differential). Among enrolling districts in Missouri, it pays more than 97% of them. Missouri itself ranks #43 of 49 nationally on average teacher compensation, which shapes the funding ceiling districts operate under.

On the budget side, St. Louis City reports $455.1M in total expenditure against $518.1M in revenue, with instructional salaries accounting for 24% of spending, a compensation-to-budget ratio that signals how much of each tax dollar reaches classroom educators. Regular-program teacher salary outlay is $72.9M, special-education teacher pay is $11.6M.

How does St. Louis City compare?

Estimated average teacher salary versus a peer district, the Missouri average, and the national average. Pick any in-state district to compare.

St. Louis City $73,877
Springfield R-xii $58,777
Missouri avg $52,299
National avg $70,245

St. Louis City pays +25.7% more than Springfield R-xii · per-pupil $24,843 vs $17,820

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 Missouri districts

On pay, St. Louis City sits closest to Rockwood R-vi; on per-pupil investment, its nearest match is St. Charles R-vi. 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.

Closest on estimated pay
  1. Rockwood R-vi
  2. Hazelwood
  3. Ritenour
  4. Lee's Summit R-vii
  5. Parkway C-2
  6. Blue Springs R-iv
  7. Mehlville R-ix
  8. Park Hill
  9. Pattonville R-iii
  10. Francis Howell R-iii
  11. Fox C-6
Closest on per-pupil investment
  1. St. Charles R-vi
  2. Kirkwood R-vii
  3. Kansas City 33
  4. Hickman Mills C-1
  5. Raymore-peculiar R-ii
  6. Lee's Summit R-vii
  7. Blue Springs R-iv
  8. North Kansas City 74
  9. Francis Howell R-iii
  10. Springfield R-xii
  11. Raytown C-2

Similar estimated teacher pay

Similar per-pupil investment

Out-of-state districts near St. Louis City's enrollment scale

Two out-of-state peer sets for St. Louis City: closest on enrollment (18,321 students here) and closest on estimated average teacher salary ($73,877 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

$518.1M
Total Revenue
$455.1M
Total Expenditure
$111.1M
Instruction Salaries
24% of total spending

Instructional Salary by Program

$72.9M
Regular Program
$11.6M
Special Education
$4.1M
Vocational
$11.4M
Other Programs

The teacher salaries behind this page's average are the ones NCES reports for 4 programs in St. Louis City: 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.

Missouri Teacher Pay Overview

The highest average among comparably sized Missouri districts belongs to Clayton at $94,417. St. Louis City sits in the upper quarter of that field at 12 of 281, nearer the ceiling than the floor. Montana and New Mexico are the states closest to Missouri 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 Missouri districts →

Other Missouri Districts

Large-district sample from 405 Missouri peers with reliable NCES data; bar length shows pay magnitude within this slice.

Willard R-ii
$53,131
4,732 students
Webb City R-vii
$53,819
4,621 students
Branson R-iv
$54,875
4,560 students
Grain Valley R-v
$51,423
4,506 students
Lebanon R-iii
$54,919
4,480 students
Ladue
$78,953
4,442 students

This is a sample of 6 from 405 Missouri districts with enrollment and salary data reliable enough to compare in the NCES CCD F-33 survey.

Frequently Asked Questions about St. Louis City
What is the average teacher salary in St. Louis City?

The average teacher salary in St. Louis City is $73,877 (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 St. Louis City teacher pay compare to the Missouri average?

St. Louis City pays 41.3% more than the Missouri state average of $52,299. The district's average is $73,877.

How does St. Louis City teacher pay compare to the national average?

St. Louis City pays 5.2% above the national average of $70,245. The district average is $73,877.

What is the per-pupil spending in St. Louis City?

St. Louis City spends approximately $24,843 per student annually (NCES FY2023), covering instructional salaries, support services, and administration.

What percentage of St. Louis City's budget goes to teacher salaries?

Instructional salaries account for 24% of St. Louis City's total expenditure of $455.1M (NCES FY2023).

Next read for St. Louis City
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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Editorial standards & source notes

According to the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) F-33 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, PlainTeacher's figures are computed directly, no number is typed in by an editor. St. Louis City's salary and finance figures are computed directly from its FY2023 F-33 submission, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error on this page. Data current as of FY2023.