Pay by state · 50 states
Art, Drama, and Music Teacher, Postsecondary Salary by State (2026)
Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary earn the most in Delaware at $103,320 a year and the least in Nevada at $52,870 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The national median is $78,620. All 50 states and territories with reported data are ranked below, with a cost-of-living adjusted column.
- Highest median
- $103,320Delaware
- National median
- $78,620BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Lowest median
- $52,870Nevada
- States reporting
- 50of 54 OEWS areas
All states
Art, Drama, and Music Teacher, Postsecondary salary in every state
Sort by any column. Employment is the number of art, drama, and music teachers, postsecondary OEWS estimates in that state; blank cells are estimates BLS suppressed because the sample was too small.
| # | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DEDelaware | $103,320 | $61,510 | $129,660 | 150 | $103,519 |
| 2 | CACalifornia | $99,410 | $74,960 | $143,070 | 9,820 | $89,785 |
| 3 | NYNew York | $98,850 | $72,380 | $166,070 | 14,920 | $91,595 |
| 4 | VTVermont | $97,980 | $67,070 | $126,390 | 180 | $100,022 |
| 5 | RIRhode Island | $97,580 | $77,300 | $127,100 | 440 | $95,405 |
| 6 | DCDistrict of Columbia | $96,900 | $76,500 | $119,340 | 350 | $88,170 |
| 7 | MAMassachusetts | $85,820 | $65,760 | $111,710 | 4,960 | $81,148 |
| 8 | MDMaryland | $85,590 | $66,500 | $110,800 | 1,280 | $81,546 |
| 9 | MIMichigan | $82,990 | $62,100 | $107,610 | 2,410 | $86,253 |
| 10 | NJNew Jersey | $80,100 | $62,780 | $126,520 | 3,300 | $73,618 |
| 11 | GAGeorgia | $79,870 | $59,560 | $99,710 | 1,910 | $82,945 |
| 12 | MEMaine | $79,860 | $61,530 | $108,730 | 340 | $82,287 |
| 13 | NHNew Hampshire | $79,090 | $61,210 | $101,940 | 440 | $75,928 |
| 14 | LALouisiana | $78,710 | $60,360 | $102,020 | 720 | $89,233 |
| 15 | CTConnecticut | $78,600 | $61,270 | $106,400 | 1,430 | $75,861 |
| 16 | MTMontana | $78,420 | $61,320 | $98,830 | 190 | $82,857 |
| 17 | OHOhio | $78,050 | $58,280 | $100,630 | 3,940 | $84,129 |
| 18 | WAWashington | $77,950 | $62,030 | $96,750 | 1,400 | $72,842 |
| 19 | MNMinnesota | $77,760 | $61,900 | $95,490 | 1,310 | $78,847 |
| 20 | IAIowa | $77,740 | $61,370 | $102,090 | 910 | $88,580 |
| 21 | TXTexas | $77,560 | $59,410 | $99,890 | 6,730 | $79,912 |
| 22 | WIWisconsin | $77,560 | $63,050 | $80,470 | 1,840 | $82,427 |
| 23 | PAPennsylvania | $77,280 | $58,300 | $94,300 | 4,170 | $79,203 |
| 24 | OROregon | $76,770 | $65,500 | $113,030 | 1,440 | $74,274 |
| 25 | NMNew Mexico | $76,240 | $62,880 | $103,350 | 380 | $82,679 |
| 26 | INIndiana | $76,050 | $59,660 | $105,930 | 1,920 | $81,486 |
| 27 | MOMissouri | $75,960 | $60,510 | $99,250 | 1,450 | $83,641 |
| 28 | NENebraska | $75,200 | $58,510 | $93,700 | 490 | $83,460 |
| 29 | VAVirginia | $74,870 | $52,900 | $96,300 | 2,840 | $74,052 |
| 30 | NCNorth Carolina | $73,800 | $55,390 | $84,710 | 2,880 | $78,239 |
| 31 | WVWest Virginia | $73,280 | $61,890 | $75,930 | 340 | $81,880 |
| 32 | IDIdaho | $72,300 | $60,090 | $83,220 | 250 | $75,712 |
| 33 | AZArizona | $72,060 | $71,230 | $79,190 | 1,040 | $71,575 |
| 34 | TNTennessee | $72,030 | $58,060 | $81,830 | 1,370 | $78,404 |
| 35 | COColorado | $70,060 | $51,880 | $91,620 | 1,950 | $67,985 |
| 36 | NDNorth Dakota | $67,190 | $55,450 | $81,010 | 130 | $75,529 |
| 37 | UTUtah | $66,220 | $59,470 | $95,700 | 790 | $66,981 |
| 38 | KYKentucky | $64,440 | $47,510 | $83,410 | 900 | $71,474 |
| 39 | FLFlorida | $63,820 | $60,700 | $90,520 | 2,490 | $61,713 |
| 40 | ALAlabama | $63,540 | $59,990 | $77,540 | 900 | $71,536 |
| 41 | PRPuerto Rico | $63,500 | $55,020 | $104,500 | 110 | N/A |
| 42 | SDSouth Dakota | $63,380 | $61,080 | $76,290 | 200 | $71,546 |
| 43 | ILIllinois | $62,960 | $47,230 | $85,620 | 4,170 | $62,986 |
| 44 | SCSouth Carolina | $62,420 | $48,320 | $82,520 | 1,290 | $66,582 |
| 45 | OKOklahoma | $62,200 | $40,120 | $74,160 | 760 | $70,808 |
| 46 | KSKansas | $61,260 | $49,150 | $83,880 | 640 | $68,015 |
| 47 | ARArkansas | $60,650 | $49,950 | $78,340 | 360 | $69,763 |
| 48 | MSMississippi | $60,580 | $50,490 | $74,110 | 540 | $69,670 |
| 49 | WYWyoming | $59,190 | $52,150 | $75,830 | 180 | $63,857 |
| 50 | NVNevada | $52,870 | $52,870 | $78,950 | 260 | $52,881 |
Method
How the cost-of-living adjustment works
The adjusted column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity (RPP) and multiplies by 100. RPPs measure how much a fixed basket of goods, services and rents costs in one state relative to the national average, so the result restates local pay in national-average dollars.
For Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary, that changes the ranking: Delaware leads on raw pay at $103,320, while Delaware leads once prices are taken into account at $103,519.
Source: BEA Regional Price Parities by State, 2024 (public domain). The adjustment is NueCareer's calculation, not a BLS or BEA published statistic.
Questions
Art, Drama, and Music Teacher, Postsecondary pay by state: FAQ
Which state pays Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary the most?
Delaware reports the highest median wage for Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary at $103,320 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), followed by California ($99,410) and New York ($98,850).
Which state pays Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary the least?
Nevada reports the lowest median for Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary at $52,870 a year, $50,450 below the highest-paying state (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Where do Art, Drama, and Music Teachers, Postsecondary earn the most after cost of living?
Dividing each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity puts Delaware first at $103,519 in national-average dollars, from a raw median of $103,320. BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024.