Special Education Teachers, Preschool in Pennsylvania
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$65,016
after federal, FICA and Pennsylvania tax
Tax takes
$18,494
22.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$66,683
Pennsylvania costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in Pennsylvania — 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
$83,510
Kept after tax
$65,016
Worth in national money
$66,683
State rank
6
of 45 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- This is a good state for the work. Pennsylvania pays this job a middle wage of $83,510, ranking 6 of 45 states and sitting about 28.81% above the national middle.
- Within Pennsylvania this is well-paid work. Of 492 occupations with published figures in the state, this job ranks 102 — in the top quarter of everything people do there.
- Prices here sit close to the national average, so the adjustment changes little. From $83,510 the take-home is $65,016, which is worth about $66,683 in comparable money. Tax does most of the work here, not cost of living. The average is higher, $84,680, because the best-paid pull it up.
- Pennsylvania's median for special education teachers, preschool is $83,510, about 28.81% above the national figure and 6 of 45 states reporting. Whether that premium reaches the worker depends on the two adjustments below, which is the part a wage table cannot tell you.
- Ranked against every occupation Pennsylvania publishes a median for, special education teachers, preschool sits 102 of 492 — the upper quartile of the state's wage distribution. National standing and within-state standing are separate questions, and a job can occupy very different positions on each.
- Pennsylvania's price level is near the national average, so price deflation is close to neutral for special education teachers, preschool on its $83,510 median: $65,016 retained after tax becomes $66,683 in national-average terms. Where the price adjustment is small, the tax stack is the dominant determinant of the real outcome. The mean of $84,680 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
Compare this career across states
Choose your filing status and local taxes, compare pay, and keep a shortlist.Compare wage and personal-pay outcomes by state, with selected resident local taxes and saved career choices.
Pay band: Special Education Teachers, Preschool
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $49,510 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $83,510 |
| Top tenth earn over | $121,750 |
| This salary | $83,510 |
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 Pennsylvania | $65,016 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $67,579 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | +$2,861 |
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 | $79,866 |
|---|---|
| You could take a cut of | −$3,952 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 98 |
State taxes and state price levels only. No city tax, and no housing market.
Sources and assumptions
- Half the people doing this work in Pennsylvania earn less than $83,510. The published range is $49,510 up to $121,750, so an individual figure can sit a long way from the middle in either direction.
- In Pennsylvania the take-home figure of $65,016, from $83,510, 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 102 of 492 occupations here.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $66,683 uses one figure for the whole of Pennsylvania. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 492 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 102.
- Reported values are medians; for special education teachers, preschool in Pennsylvania the tenth-to-ninetieth percentile band is $49,510 to $121,750. Neither the median nor the band is an offer rate, and neither accounts for hours, shift differentials or overtime.
- Take-home for Pennsylvania is computed for a single filer taking the standard deduction with no dependants and no pre-tax contributions, giving $65,016 from $83,510. 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 102 of 492 locally.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $66,683, worked from $83,510, 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 Pennsylvania address, on work sitting at 102 of 492 locally.
Questions people ask
Why is the pay range for this job so wide?
Because one job title covers very different work. The bottom tenth here earn $49,510 and the top tenth $121,750 — experience, employer and specialism separate them, and a single figure hides all three.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
Further than the number implies. Pennsylvania is cheaper than the national average, so this take-home behaves like $66,683 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; Pennsylvania then takes its own share, leaving $65,016.
Why is this job missing from some states?
The survey withholds small samples rather than publish an unreliable number. Pay appears for 45 states here, and a missing state means too few reports, not no jobs.
What drives the percentile dispersion in this occupation?
Dispersion between the tenth percentile ($49,510) and the ninetieth ($121,750) exceeds the family median dispersion. SOC codes aggregate roles differing in seniority, industry and specialisation, and BLS does not disaggregate below the detailed occupation level, so within-title variance is not separable from the published series.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
Pennsylvania'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 $66,683 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 $65,016 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and Pennsylvania 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.
Why does this occupation lack published estimates in every state?
BLS suppresses estimates failing disclosure or reliability criteria. This occupation has published state-level estimates in 45 of the fifty-one jurisdictions. Suppression reflects sample size and confidentiality rules, and cannot be read as an absence of employment.