How much do teachers get paid in Rhode Island?
Refreshed annually
Teachers made between $46,300 and $93,000 per year in 2025, depending on the role. These figures represent the annual median wage for Rhode Island pre-K–12 teachers. Preschool teachers tend to be at the lower end of the range, while middle 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 Rhode Island, the median wage across all occupations was $56,800 in 2025 — about 23% higher than the median preschool teacher wage.
$46.3K
median annual wage for preschool teachers in Rhode Island (2025)
$92.8K
median annual wage for middle school teachers in Rhode Island (2025)
Among teachers working in elementary, middle, and high schools, annual pay varied by the grade level taught. In Rhode Island in 2025, preschool teachers earned the least, earning around $46,250 annually. Middle school teachers made the most at around $93,040 per year. In other words, middle school teachers earned about 101% more than preschool teachers.
Middle school teachers earn $93,000 annually, more than any other RI teachers
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers, excluding teachers of students with disabilities and technical teachers (RI, 2025)
Do Rhode Island teachers make more or less than the US average?
Teacher salaries vary nationwide. In 2025, Rhode Island teachers earned more than the national median for 4 of 5 grade levels reported. The largest percentage difference was among middle school teachers, who earned 44% more than the national median. Preschool teachers — typically the lowest-paid group — earned about 19% less than their counterparts nationwide.
Rhode Island teachers earn more than the national average at 4 of 5 levels.
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers, excluding teachers of students with disabilities and technical teachers (RI, 2025)
How much do special education teachers make in Rhode Island? 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 same or less than general education teachers at all levels except preschool in Rhode Island. In 2025, the median wages for teachers of students with disabilities ranged from 8% lower to 81% 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 preschool level, where they earned $83,900 per year compared to $46,300 for other preschool teachers, an 81% 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 Rhode Island, their median wages were $97,200 at the middle school level and $81,800 at the high school level in 2025, 5% higher and 11% lower, respectively, than those of general education teachers at the same levels.
In Rhode Island, teachers of students with disabilities earned more than other teachers at several grade levels.
Median annual salary of elementary and secondary school teachers (RI, 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.
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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.
