Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education in Delaware
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$29,944
after federal, FICA and Delaware tax
Tax takes
$6,416
17.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$30,170
Delaware costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Delaware — roughly, since only five points along the band are published.
One filer, standard deduction, no dependants and nothing paid in before tax — the same household the rest of this page uses, so the comparison holds. City and school-district income taxes are not included.
Median here
$36,360
Kept after tax
$29,944
Worth in national money
$30,170
State rank
31
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Delaware is 31 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $36,360. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Within Delaware this is lower-paid work. Of 445 occupations the state publishes figures for, this job ranks 404. That is the bottom quarter locally, whatever the national comparison says.
- No great distortion either way. Delaware costs about what the country costs, so from $36,360, take-home of $29,944 is worth roughly $30,170 in national money. The average comes to $37,240, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Delaware ranks 31 of 51 for preschool teachers, except special education at $36,360. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Against every occupation Delaware reports, preschool teachers, except special education ranks 404 of 445, in the lowest quartile of the state's distribution. That position is set by the local labor market and is independent of how the state compares nationally for this work.
- Price parity in Delaware is near the national base, so for preschool teachers, except special education, whose median is $36,360, the adjusted figure of $30,170 differs little from $29,944 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $37,240 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $31,200 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $36,360 |
| Top tenth earn over | $44,270 |
| This salary | $36,360 |
Positions between the published tenth, quarter, half, three-quarter and ninetieth points are estimated by straight line.
The same pay, somewhere else
The state median for this job
| Take-home in Delaware | $29,944 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $31,395 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,138 |
State income tax and state price levels only. No city income tax, and no housing market.
What you would need there
The state median for this job
| To match take-home only | $34,554 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$2,586 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 99 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- A median is the middle, not an offer. Half of preschool teachers, except special education in Delaware earn under $36,360 and half over. The published range runs $31,200 at the tenth percentile to $44,270 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- That $29,944 take-home in Delaware comes from $36,360. It is the no-frills case: single filer, standard deduction, nothing set aside before tax. Real circumstances almost always reduce the tax. City and school-district taxes are not counted at all. Locally the work ranks 404 of 445.
- One number stands for prices across all of Delaware, which is a simplification — big cities cost far more than small towns. Read $30,170, the adjusted value of that $36,360 median, as a way to compare states fairly, not as a quote for any particular place. The two datasets are also from different years. This job sits at 404 of 445 in the state.
- Figures are distribution medians for preschool teachers, except special education in Delaware, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $31,200 to $44,270; within-state dispersion of that width routinely exceeds the dispersion between states, so tenure, employer and metropolitan area predict an individual's pay better than geography does.
- Retained pay of $29,944, from $36,360, assumes a single Delaware filer with the standard deduction and no elective deferrals. Pre-tax retirement or HSA contributions, dependants and itemized deductions all reduce it further; local income taxes, excluded here, would increase it in the states that levy them. This occupation ranks 404 of 445 locally, and the state ranks 31 of 51 for it.
- Price deflation uses one statewide parity for Delaware, so $30,170 — the adjusted value of that $36,360 median — establishes comparability between states rather than accuracy within one. The wage and parity series are dated independently, each following its own publication cycle, and neither is projected forward. This occupation sits at 404 of 445 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $31,200 and the top tenth $44,270, so most people doing this work in Delaware sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
More than the figure suggests. Prices in Delaware sit below the national level, so take-home here stretches like $30,170 would elsewhere. The wage is the same; the ground it covers is larger.
Where does the difference between the wage and my paycheck go?
Four deductions, stacked. The federal layer and the two payroll taxes apply wherever you work; Delaware then takes its own share, leaving $29,944.
Can I compare this job across every state?
All 51 jurisdictions report this work, which makes the ranking a like-for-like one.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($31,200 to $44,270) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Delaware rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Delaware's regional price parity is at or below the national average, so nominal wages understate purchasing power. Take-home deflated by the state price level is $30,170 in national-average terms. The adjustment uses an all-items index and does not isolate housing.
What accounts for the gap between gross wage and take-home here?
Take-home of $29,944 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Delaware income tax for a single filer with no adjustments. The state layer is levied in addition to the federal one; only its rate and base differ between states.
Is this occupation's state coverage complete?
State-level estimates are published for all 51 jurisdictions for this occupation, so cross-state comparison is not confounded by suppression. ⚠️ Estimates remain survey-based and carry sampling error; small differences between adjacent states should not be over-read.