Minnesota Teacher Salaries

What does the NCES F-33 data show for Minnesota?

Minnesota reports 352 public school districts in the NCES Common Core of Data FY2022 Local Education Agency Finance Survey, with an estimated average teacher salary of $94,946. That places the state in the upper third of US teacher-pay rankings — #14 of 51, meaningfully above the national F-33 estimate of $82,292 (+15.4%). The state's public schools serve 800,886 students across these districts.

Among enrolling districts, pay varies widely: RED LAKE PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT reports the highest estimated average salary at $140,583, while FERGUS FALLS PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT sits at the lower end at $62,210 — a spread of $78,373 between top and bottom reporting districts. Licensing rules, state aid formulas, collective bargaining density, and local tax bases all drive this intra-state variation. Urban and suburban districts with larger tax bases typically lead, while rural districts often lag despite lower cost of living.

Teacher compensation here reflects both state policy choices — the statutory minimum salary schedule, pension funding levels, licensure reciprocity — and the funding formula that determines how much state aid each district receives per pupil. A #14 national rank signals where Minnesota sits in the competition for teachers against neighboring states; teacher shortage areas typically correlate with lower pay rank. Figures below are per-district estimates derived from the F-33 instructional salary expenditure field (Z33) divided by estimated teacher FTE — a district-level aggregate, not individual salary records.