Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education Salary

Yes — at the median salary of $61K, rent takes 27.9% of take-home pay. A 2-bedroom at the HUD Fair Market Rent runs $1,129/month. That stays under the 30% guideline most financial planners use.

The 10th-percentile wage — what new secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical educations typically earn — is $38K/year. Take-home on that works out to about $2,287/month. At HUD’s $1,129/month FMR, rent would take 49% of that take-home — above the 30% guideline, so a 1-bedroom or shared housing is likely necessary starting out.

Local pay runs 15% below the national median — $61K here vs. $72K nationally.

Montana pays $61K median vs. the U.S. average of $72K — that’s -15%. After adjusting for local cost of living (RPP 97), the purchasing-power equivalent is $63K — below the national median.

The median is $60,990 a year. But the range is wide: entry-level workers start around $38,120, and experienced secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical educations can clear $81,270. These are BLS numbers, based on employer-reported data, not self-reported surveys.

On that salary, you'd take home roughly $4,046/month after taxes. A 2-bedroom here rents for about $1,129/month, which eats 27.9% of your paycheck. That's under the 30% guideline most financial planners use, so the numbers work.

Montana has a Regional Price Parity of 97 (100 is the national average). That's below average, your money stretches further here than the raw salary number suggests. After cost-of-living adjustment, the median secondary school teachers, except special and career/technical education salary is worth about $62,876 in national-average purchasing power.

The table above ranks every state by median pay for this role. Keep in mind that the highest-paying states tend to have the highest costs of living, so the top salary doesn't always mean the most money in your pocket.