Preschool Teacher, Except Special Education Salary (2026), outlook and how to become one

Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education earn a median of $38,140 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025), 25% below the $50,980 median for all US occupations. That works out at $18.34/hr. The middle half earn between $34,530 and $47,550. The top 10% earn $61,390 or more.

The median hourly wage for preschool teachers, except special education is $18.34 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). On a full-year basis the $38,140 annual median works out to about $3,180 a month before tax.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The nearest measure is the low end of the pay range: the lowest-paid 10% of preschool teachers, except special education earn less than $28,990 a year and the bottom quarter less than $34,530 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). New workers often start near that end, but where a particular job starts depends on the employer, the state and the credentials you bring, so read these as the bottom of the range rather than a guaranteed entry wage.

The highest state medians for Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education are District of Columbia ($62,150), Vermont ($49,730), Hawaii ($48,780) (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

BLS does not split preschool teachers, except special education' pay by specialty or employer, but its range shows how far the top end runs: the highest-paid 10% earn more than $61,390, against a median of $38,140 (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Location moves pay the most in the published data: the best-paying states are District of Columbia ($62,150), Vermont ($49,730), Hawaii ($48,780).

Usually a two-year degree rather than a four-year one. BLS lists an associate's degree as the typical entry-level education for Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education. In O*NET's survey of people already doing the job, 28.8% hold high school diploma or the equivalent (such as a ged).

Yes. Employment is projected to grow 4.5% over 2025–2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 66,700 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.

Preschool teachers educate and care for children younger than age 5 who have not yet entered kindergarten. A core O*NET task: read books to entire classes or to small groups. Employers most often ask for Office suite software, Spreadsheet software, Word processing software.

Most work fewer than 40. In O*NET's survey of people in the job, 15% of preschool teachers, except special education usually work more than 40 hours a week, 33% work exactly 40 and 52% work fewer. 100% say their schedule is regular and 0% irregular. Source: O*NET 31.0 Database, Work Context.

O*NET scores Preschool Teachers, Except Special Education highest on the Social, Artistic and Conventional interest areas, so the work mixes teaching, helping and working directly with other people with creating, designing and working without a fixed set of rules. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESFP, ENFJ, ESFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.

Around a year for a CDA route, or 2 to 4 years of college for a degree-based route. The CDA's own requirements set the floor: 120 clock hours of training plus 480 hours of work experience with the right age group. Public-school preschool generally requires a bachelor's degree, four years, plus state licensure.

Yes, and it is issued by the state you work in, not nationally. Education and training requirements vary based on setting and state regulation, which is why two people can both be preschool teachers and face completely different requirements. In public schools a state licence to teach early childhood education, typically covering preschool through third grade, is required; private-school and childcare teachers generally are not licensed that way. Some states require preschool teachers to hold a professional credential, and a few require prior childcare work experience. States also design their own credentials on top: California has created an optional PK-3 Early Childhood Education Specialist Instruction credential for teachers who want to show particular expertise in early learning, care and development, but it is explicitly not intended to replace the Multiple Subject credential, which already authorises its holders to teach PK and transitional kindergarten.

The CDA Exam. A 65-question computer-based exam taken at a local Pearson VUE testing site. It is only half of the CDA assessment: the other half is the Verification Visit, in which a Council-approved CDA Professional Development Specialist observes you at your own place of work, reviews your Professional Portfolio and holds a reflective dialogue about your strengths and areas of growth. The credential is awarded on a cumulative score across both, so a strong exam does not rescue a weak observation.

Women make up 97.1% of preschool teachers, except special education, against 47.1% of all employed people: a female-dominated occupation. Only 15.8% are 55 or older (23.2% across all jobs): a young workforce. The median worker is 39.3 years old (all workers: 42.1). Source: BLS Current Population Survey, 2025 annual averages, for the Census group "Preschool and kindergarten teachers".