Teachers made between $62,900 and $73,500 per year in 2025, depending on the role. These figures represent the annual median wage for Colorado pre-K–12 teachers. Kindergarten teachers tend to be at the lower end of the range, while high school teachers tend to be at the higher end, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates. The median wage is the midpoint — half of teachers in each role earn more, and half earn less.
For comparison, in Colorado, the median wage across all occupations was $59,800 in 2025 — about 5% lower than the median Kindergarten wage.
$66.9K
median annual wage for preschool teachers in Colorado (2025)
$63.8K
median annual wage for middle school teachers in Colorado (2025)
Among teachers working in elementary, middle, and high schools, annual pay varied by the grade level taught. In Colorado in 2025, Kindergarten teachers earned the least, earning around $62,870 annually. High school teachers made the most at around $73,500 per year. In other words, high school teachers earned about 17% more than Kindergarten teachers.
High school teachers earn $73,500 annually, more than any other CO teachers
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers, excluding teachers of students with disabilities and technical teachers (CO, 2025)
Do Colorado teachers make more or less than the US average?
Teacher salaries vary nationwide. In 2025, Colorado teachers earned more than the national median for every grade level reported. The largest percentage difference was among preschool teachers, who earned 18% more than the national median. Preschool teachers — typically the lowest-paid group — earned about 18% more than their counterparts nationwide.
Colorado teachers earn more than the national average at 3 of 5 levels.
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers, excluding teachers of students with disabilities and technical teachers (CO, 2025)
How much do special education teachers make in Colorado? What about technical education teachers?
Pay also varies by specialization. Teachers of students with disabilities (collected in the data as “special education”), earn about the more than general education teachers at 5 of 5 levels in Colorado. In 2025, the median wages for teachers of students with disabilities ranged from 4% to 19% higher than those of other teachers at the same grade level.
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The largest difference for teachers of students with disabilities was at the kindergarten level, where they earned $74,600 per year compared to $62,900 for other kindergarten teachers, a 19% difference.
Some schools, primarily middle and high schools, also employ technical teachers. These teachers provide vocational and technical training in fields such as automotive repair, culinary arts, cosmetology, and information technology, to help students develop career skills. In Colorado, their median wages were $66,300 at the middle school level and $75,100 at the high school level in 2025, 4% higher and 2% higher, respectively, than those of general education teachers at the same levels.
In Colorado, teachers of students with disabilities earned more than other teachers at several grade levels.
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers (CO, 2025)
How does the government help low-income students?
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
Page sources
USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.
