Get some facts to back up your campaign for professional pay. The calculators below can help you determine what teachers really make, as well as illustrate what it takes to make ends meet in your community. Then take your information to your school board, your governor, or the bargaining table and show them why teachers are worth professional pay.

Calculate Your ‘True’ Salary

Tired of hearing critics argue that teachers are well-paid considering they "only work six hours a day and have their summers off"? (And where did that piece of fiction come from, anyway?) Use the calculator below to figure out your true hourly wage when all the essential but off-the-clock duties are counted.

How'd you do? Did you find that when you count in all those extra hours, you make less than you could at Saturday night babysitting ($15/hr in some communities)? Does the difference between your contracted hourly wage and your real hourly wage make you think someone's getting a really good deal -- and it's not you? Share your results on our discussion board and learn how you can support professional pay for educators.

EPI’s Basic Family Budget Calculator

How much does it cost to live in your community? The Economic Policy Institute’s Basic Family Budget calculator lets you determine the income needed for a family of your size to make ends meet in your community. The calculator also shows the number of families in your state living below the family budget level.

Penn State Living Wage Calculator

The Poverty in America Project at Penn State has developed a calculator to estimate the living wage in your community. Enter your location, and you’ll see living wages for various family sizes in your community, how your local living wage compares to the minimum wage and the federal poverty wage, as well as typical wages for a number of jobs in your community.

Self-sufficiency Wages

The Organizing Project-Six Strategies has "self-sufficiency" studies for 35 states, which include data on wages needed for economic stability.