Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in Maine
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$51,252
after federal, FICA and Maine tax
Tax takes
$13,628
21.0% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$52,784
Maine costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Maine — 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
$64,880
Kept after tax
$51,252
Worth in national money
$52,784
State rank
27
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- Neither high nor low. Maine is 27 of 51 states for this job, with a middle wage of $64,880. What that is worth is the question the rest of this page answers.
- Against other work in Maine, this sits in the middle: 181 of 484 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- No great distortion either way. Maine costs about what the country costs, so from $64,880, take-home of $51,252 is worth roughly $52,784 in national money. The average comes to $66,820, above the middle, thanks to the top of the range.
- Maine ranks 27 of 51 for secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education at $64,880. The nominal figure is unremarkable; the adjusted figures are where the state's actual position for this occupation is determined.
- Secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education ranks 181 of 484 occupations in Maine by median pay, in the middle bands. Within-state and national positions are separate measurements and a job commonly sits in different quartiles on each.
- Price parity in Maine is near the national base, so for secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education, whose median is $64,880, the adjusted figure of $52,784 differs little from $51,252 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $66,820 the mean overshoots the median — the usual right-skewed shape.
Compare this career across states
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Pay band: Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $47,520 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $64,880 |
| Top tenth earn over | $83,450 |
| This salary | $64,880 |
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 Maine | $51,252 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $54,311 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$3,106 |
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 | $61,072 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,756 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 97 |
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 secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education in Maine earn under $64,880 and half over. The published range runs $47,520 at the tenth percentile to $83,450 at the ninetieth. Experience and employer move an individual a long way inside that.
- One filer, no dependants, no pension contributions — that is the household behind Maine's $51,252, worked from $64,880. That is on purpose. It lets states be compared with each other, not with each other's family circumstances. Local city taxes are left out. Locally this work ranks 181 of 484.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $52,784 uses one figure for the whole of Maine. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 484 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 181.
- Figures are distribution medians for secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education in Maine, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $47,520 to $83,450; 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.
- The Maine take-home of $51,252, on $64,880 for work ranking 181 of 484 locally, models the simplest household deliberately: holding it constant is what makes the interstate comparison meaningful. It also means the absolute figure overstates liability for most real filers, and municipal income taxes are outside the model entirely. The occupation ranks 181 of 484 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $52,784, worked from $64,880, deflates by a statewide parity that conceals substantial intra-state variation, concentrated in housing — so it supports comparison between states rather than the pricing of a move to a particular Maine address, on work sitting at 181 of 484 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $47,520 and the top tenth $83,450, so most people doing this work in Maine sit within a fairly tight band.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Maine is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $52,784 in national terms.
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; Maine then takes its own share, leaving $51,252.
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 ($47,520 to $83,450) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Maine rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Maine'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 $52,784 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 $51,252 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Maine 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.