Hawaii Is 2026’s 2nd Worst State for Teachers

from WalletHub, Sept 14, 2026

With World Teachers’ Day around the corner and teachers making an average of 5% less per year than they did 10 years ago after adjusting for inflation, the personal-finance company WalletHub today released its report on the Best & Worst States for Teachers in 2026, as well as expert commentary, in order to help educators find places to work with good teaching environments and above-average compensation.

WalletHub analyzed the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 24 key metrics, ranging from teachers’ income growth potential to the pupil-teacher ratio to public-school spending per student.

Teacher-Friendliness of Hawaii (1=Best; 25=Avg.):

Overall rank for Hawaii: 50th
51st – Avg. Starting Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
51st – Avg. Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
42nd – Quality of School System
23rd – Pupil-Teacher Ratio
18th – Public-School Spending per Student
21st – Teachers’ Income Growth Potential
37th – Projected Competition in Year 2034

LINK: FULL REPORT