Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School in Alaska
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$65,272
after federal, FICA and Alaska tax
Tax takes
$14,958
18.6% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$64,171
Alaska costs more than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Alaska — 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
$80,230
Kept after tax
$65,272
Worth in national money
$64,171
State rank
8
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Alaska pays this job a middle wage of $80,230, ranking 8 of 51 states and sitting about 23.2% above the national middle.
- Middle of the local pack. Of 430 occupations Alaska reports figures for, this is number 149.
- No great distortion either way. Alaska costs about what the country costs, so from $80,230, take-home of $65,272 is worth roughly $64,171 in national money. The average lands at $80,110, below the middle of the range.
- Alaska's median for special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary school is $80,230, about 23.2% above the national figure and 8 of 51 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- In Alaska's occupational distribution, special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary school sits at 149 of 430 — neither quartile. This local position is what a resident compares against, and it is determined by the state's own labor market rather than by national patterns for this occupation.
- Price parity in Alaska is near the national base, so for special education teachers, kindergarten and elementary school, whose median is $80,230, the adjusted figure of $64,171 differs little from $65,272 retained after tax. The state's position for this occupation is therefore set by wage and tax rather than by living costs. At $80,110 the mean undershoots the median, an inversion of the usual skew.
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Pay band: Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $58,690 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $80,230 |
| Top tenth earn over | $97,820 |
| This salary | $80,230 |
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 Alaska | $65,272 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $65,272 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,998 |
The raise and the real gain point in opposite directions here.
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 | $80,230 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$4,141 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 102 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Treat $80,230 as a midpoint for Alaska, not a promise. The tenth percentile is $58,690 and the ninetieth is $97,820 — a wide band, and where you land in it depends on far more than the state.
- In Alaska the take-home figure of $65,272, from $80,230, assumes one filer, no dependants, and nothing paid into a pension before tax. Each of those lowers the bill, so treat it as the plain case. City and school-district income taxes are not included either, and in a few states those are real money. It ranks 149 of 430 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $64,171 uses one figure for the whole of Alaska. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 430 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 149.
- The Alaska median of $80,230 describes the midpoint of a distribution spanning $58,690 to $97,820. Because that spread is typically larger than the interstate spread, a state median is a weak predictor for any individual worker in this occupation.
- Take-home for Alaska is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $65,272 from $80,230. Each omitted item reduces taxable income, so the figure is a lower bound on retained pay for this household shape. Municipal and school-district income taxes are excluded, which understates the burden materially in Ohio, Pennsylvania and Maryland. The occupation ranks 149 of 430 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $64,171, worked from $80,230, 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 Alaska address, on work sitting at 149 of 430 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
Less than you might expect. The bottom tenth earn $58,690 and the top tenth $97,820, so most people doing this work in Alaska sit within a fairly tight band.
Does a bigger number here mean I am better off?
Not on its own. Prices in Alaska run above the national level, so the same dollars buy less here. Adjusted for that, this pay is worth $64,171 — the wage did not change, only what it covers.
Is most of this wage taxed away?
No. $65,272 survives, because Alaska levies no wage income tax. The federal share does not change with the state you work in.
Can I compare this job across every state?
Yes for this one. Pay is published in all 51 jurisdictions, so a state-to-state comparison here rests on the same survey everywhere rather than on a patchwork.
What is the dispersion of this occupation's wage distribution?
The tenth-to-ninetieth percentile span ($58,690 to $97,820) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to Alaska rather than a national figure.
How does the state price level affect real compensation?
Alaska's regional price parity sits above the national average, so nominal wages overstate purchasing power. Deflating take-home by the state price level gives $64,171 in national-average terms. ⚠️ RPPs are an all-items index; housing parities vary far more widely than the headline figure.
Why is the take-home ratio comparatively high in this state?
Alaska levies no personal income tax on wages, so take-home of $65,272 reflects the federal layer and FICA alone. Federal income tax and FICA are unchanged; states without a wage income tax generally recover revenue through consumption and property bases instead.
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.