Special Education Teachers, Secondary School in North Dakota
May 2025 wages · tax year 2026
You keep
$51,362
after federal, FICA and North Dakota tax
Tax takes
$9,848
16.1% of the whole
Worth, in national money
$57,989
North Dakota costs less than average
On that salary you would be around the 25th percentile for this work in North Dakota — 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
$61,210
Kept after tax
$51,362
Worth in national money
$57,989
State rank
37
of 51 states
What this pays, and what it is worth
- The nominal figure here is modest. North Dakota pays this job a middle wage of $61,210, 37 of 51 states and about 17.57% below the national middle. Hold that thought until the adjusted numbers.
- Against other work in North Dakota, this sits in the middle: 217 of 460 occupations with published pay. Solidly ordinary for the state, which is not the same as ordinary nationally.
- Here is where North Dakota does better than its wage suggests. From a median of $61,210 you keep $51,362, and because things cost less here than the national average, that behaves like $57,989 would elsewhere. The average is higher, $62,880, because the best-paid pull it up.
- North Dakota's $61,210 median for special education teachers, secondary school places it 37 of 51 states, about 17.57% below national. Because both the tax and price adjustments tend to favor lower-nominal states, this ranking is the least stable of the three reported here.
- Special education teachers, secondary school ranks 217 of 460 occupations in North Dakota 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.
- After federal, FICA and North Dakota income tax, retained pay for special education teachers, secondary school on $61,210 is $51,362. Deflating by the state's price level — below the national average — gives $57,989 in national-average terms. ⚠️ That figure is purchasing power, not a wage, and nobody is paid it; it is what the take-home buys. The mean of $62,880 sits above the median, the right skew typical of wage data.
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Pay band: Special Education Teachers, Secondary School
The state median for this job
| Lowest tenth earn under | $47,280 |
|---|---|
| Half earn under | $61,210 |
| Top tenth earn over | $80,320 |
| This salary | $61,210 |
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 North Dakota | $51,362 |
|---|---|
| Take-home in Texas | $51,362 |
| Once local prices are leveledBEA price parity | −$5,134 |
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 | $61,210 |
|---|---|
| Raise you would need | +$6,339 |
| Prices in Texas | 97 vs 89 |
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 special education teachers, secondary school in North Dakota earn under $61,210 and half over. The published range runs $47,280 at the tenth percentile to $80,320 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 North Dakota's $51,362, worked from $61,210. 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 217 of 460.
- The wage data and the price data come from different years. That is how each is published. The price adjustment behind $57,989 uses one figure for the whole of North Dakota. A city and a rural county there can differ by more than two states do. Out of 460 occupations the state publishes, this one sits at 217.
- Figures are distribution medians for special education teachers, secondary school in North Dakota, not entry or offer rates. The published band runs $47,280 to $80,320; 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 North Dakota take-home of $51,362, on $61,210 for work ranking 217 of 460 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 217 of 460 in the state.
- Wage and price series carry different reference periods, each published on its own schedule. The real-terms figure of $57,989, worked from $61,210, 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 North Dakota address, on work sitting at 217 of 460 locally.
Questions people ask
How much does pay for this job actually vary?
The range here is narrow. From $47,280 at the bottom tenth to $80,320 at the top, pay for this work clusters rather than spreads.
What does this pay actually buy where I live?
A smaller wage in a cheaper place is not automatically less. Adjusted for local prices, this is worth $57,989.
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; North Dakota then takes its own share, leaving $51,362.
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 ($47,280 to $80,320) sits at or below the family's median dispersion, indicating relatively standardized compensation. Percentiles are published per state, so this dispersion is specific to North Dakota rather than a national figure.
What is this occupation's price-adjusted compensation in this state?
North Dakota'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 $57,989 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 $51,362 reflects federal income tax, OASDI, Medicare and North Dakota 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.