Annual salary
$41,801
Ohio · salary schedule · 2025-26
Columbus City Schools salary schedule, 2025-26
Teacher salary schedule (2025-26). The grid below is the schedule as published, every cell; pick a column and steps/years experience to see the annual, monthly and per-day figure and the next five steps.
- Columbus City Schools's 2025-26 salary schedule starts at $41,801 (Pre-License Bachelor's Degree, steps/years experience 0) and tops out at $123,966 (Ph.D., steps/years experience 31), per Columbus Education Association (effective ).
- A teacher on the bachelor's column (Pre-License Bachelor's Degree) starts at $41,801 and reaches $50,859 at the top of that column.
- On the master's column (Master's Degree) the range is $58,165 to $115,475.
- The schedule is built on 195 work days, which makes the starting cell about $214.36 per day.
- The grid has 6 column columns and 32 steps/years experience rows; the highest cell is reached at steps/years experience 31.
- Columbus City Schools District enrolled 45,181 students in 2023-24, the 1st-largest district in Ohio by NCES enrollment.
Teacher salary schedule (2025-26)
| Steps/Years Experience \ Column | Pre-License Bachelor's Degree | Bachelor's Degree | 150 Hours and Bachelor's Degree | Master's Degree | Master's Degree + 30 Semester Hours | Ph.D. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | $41,801 | $52,448 | $53,969 | $58,165 | $59,266 | $63,058 |
| 1 | $41,801 | $52,448 | $53,969 | $59,329 | $60,452 | $64,322 |
| 2 | $43,474 | $54,546 | $56,125 | $60,515 | $61,658 | $65,607 |
| 3 | $45,210 | $56,728 | $58,370 | $62,938 | $64,128 | $68,230 |
| 4 | $47,020 | $58,999 | $60,709 | $65,455 | $66,693 | $70,957 |
| 5 | $48,903 | $61,359 | $63,132 | $68,072 | $69,357 | $73,800 |
| 6 | $50,859 | $63,814 | $65,660 | $70,794 | $72,132 | $76,747 |
| 7 | $50,859 | $66,363 | $68,287 | $73,627 | $75,017 | $79,821 |
| 8 | $50,859 | $69,016 | $71,020 | $76,569 | $78,017 | $83,015 |
| 9 | $50,859 | $71,780 | $73,857 | $79,632 | $81,137 | $86,335 |
| 10 | $50,859 | $74,649 | $76,810 | $82,821 | $84,384 | $89,786 |
| 11 | $50,859 | $77,634 | $79,884 | $86,130 | $87,761 | $93,379 |
| 12 | $50,859 | $80,744 | $83,083 | $89,576 | $91,270 | $97,113 |
| 13 | $50,859 | $83,969 | $86,403 | $93,158 | $94,921 | $100,999 |
| 14 | $50,859 | $87,331 | $89,859 | $96,887 | $98,718 | $105,038 |
| 15 | $50,859 | $90,824 | $93,452 | $101,005 | $102,914 | $109,501 |
| 16 | $50,859 | $91,050 | $93,688 | $101,256 | $103,171 | $109,774 |
| 17 | $50,859 | $91,275 | $93,924 | $101,508 | $103,428 | $110,052 |
| 18 | $50,859 | $91,275 | $93,924 | $101,508 | $103,428 | $110,052 |
| 19 | $50,859 | $92,188 | $94,863 | $102,526 | $104,466 | $111,148 |
| 20 | $50,859 | $93,111 | $95,812 | $103,548 | $105,510 | $112,260 |
| 21 | $50,859 | $93,111 | $95,812 | $103,548 | $105,510 | $112,260 |
| 22 | $50,859 | $93,111 | $95,812 | $103,548 | $105,510 | $112,260 |
| 23 | $50,859 | $94,742 | $97,249 | $105,101 | $107,089 | $113,944 |
| 24 | $50,859 | $96,400 | $98,707 | $106,679 | $108,699 | $115,370 |
| 25 | $50,859 | $96,400 | $98,707 | $106,679 | $108,699 | $115,370 |
| 26 | $50,859 | $96,400 | $98,707 | $106,679 | $108,699 | $115,370 |
| 27 | $50,859 | $98,571 | $100,926 | $108,814 | $110,870 | $117,389 |
| 28 | $50,859 | $100,784 | $102,945 | $110,991 | $113,089 | $119,445 |
| 29 | $50,859 | $100,784 | $102,945 | $110,991 | $113,089 | $119,445 |
| 30 | $50,859 | $103,055 | $105,263 | $113,209 | $115,349 | $121,832 |
| 31 | $50,859 | $105,374 | $107,367 | $115,475 | $117,657 | $123,966 |
highest celllowest cell32 steps/years experience rows x 6 column columnshover or tap a cell to trace its row and column
Find my cell
Per month (12)
$3,483.42
Per work day
$214.36 / 195 days
Next 5 steps in this column
| Steps/Years Experience | Salary | vs. selected |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $41,801 | +$0 |
| 2 | $43,474 | +$1,673 |
| 3 | $45,210 | +$3,409 |
| 4 | $47,020 | +$5,219 |
| 5 | $48,903 | +$7,102 |
Worked example as rendered: Pre-License Bachelor's Degree, steps/years experience 0 = $41,801 a year, $3,483.42 a month spread over 12 months, $214.36 per work day on a 195-day year. Monthly and daily figures are arithmetic on the published annual cell, before any supplement, stipend or deduction.
Article 902.02 of the CEA Master Agreement 2025-2028 between the Columbus board of education and the Columbus Education Association. The article states the schedule is effective August 18, 2025 and prints Base Pay: $52,448.
It applies to teachers and to school nurses holding a valid school nurse certificate, who may not be paid below the Bachelor's Degree, three-years-experience rate.
Article 902.01 prints the matching index table (multipliers of the $52,448 base) for the same lanes and steps.
The 195-day work year comes from the standard teacher contract form reproduced in the agreement.
Not included in the grid: the supplemental hourly rate of $41.04 for board-authorized supplemental services, and the extra-duty percentages of the BA minimum in Article 905.
Placement on the schedule is based on acceptable verified experience; new hires may not be placed beyond the year 14 step.
- Soft spot: The 2025-2028 agreement prints only this one teacher schedule, so the 2026-27 and 2027-28 rates had not been published as a grid when this was collected.
- Soft spot: The Pre-License Bachelor's Degree lane flattens at $50,859 from step 6 upward, which is how the document prints it.
How this schedule moves
On the Pre-License Bachelor's Degree column a teacher moves from $41,801 at steps/years experience 0 to $50,859 at steps/years experience 6: 6 steps/years experience increases worth $1,510 each on average, 22% in total.
The largest single increase on that column is $1,956, between steps/years experience 5 and steps/years experience 6.
26 of the 31 steps/years experience moves on that column carry no increase: the schedule prints the same figure for consecutive steps/years experiences.
A master's degree is worth $16,364 more than a bachelor's at the first steps/years experience (39.1%) and $64,616 more at the top of the column (127.0%).
The highest-paid column, Ph.D., starts at $63,058 and tops out at $123,966, 144% above the top of the Pre-License Bachelor's Degree column.
Among the 235 Ohio district schedules indexed here, Columbus City Schools's starting pay ranks 174th and its top cell ranks 7th; the state medians are $44,468 to start and $94,897 at the top.
Across all 3,959 district grids indexed nationally, that starting figure sits at the 20th percentile and the top cell at the 86th percentile.
Column by column
| Column | First steps/years experience | Top | Steps/Years Experience moves to top | Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-License Bachelor's Degree | $41,801 | $50,859 | 6 | 22% |
| Bachelor's Degree | $52,448 | $105,374 | 31 | 101% |
| 150 Hours and Bachelor's Degree | $53,969 | $107,367 | 31 | 99% |
| Master's Degree | $58,165 | $115,475 | 31 | 99% |
| Master's Degree + 30 Semester Hours | $59,266 | $117,657 | 31 | 99% |
| Ph.D. | $63,058 | $123,966 | 31 | 97% |
Against Ohio districts of similar size
| District | Students | Year | Starting | Master's start | Top cell |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus City Schools | 45,181 | 2025-26 | $41,801 | $58,165 | $123,966 |
| Cincinnati Public Schools | 34,860 | 2024-25 | $51,203.77 | $55,996.96 | $113,191.98 |
| Cleveland Metropolitan School District | 33,841 | 2026-27 | $54,830 | – | $110,484 |
| Olentangy Local School District | 23,806 | 2026-27 | $50,217 | $56,720 | $131,117 |
| South-Western City Schools | 21,873 | 2025-26 | $50,290.00 | $55,319.00 | $113,957.14 |
| Toledo Public Schools | 21,047 | 2025-26 | $45,671 | $49,266 | $101,877 |
Starting pay is the first steps/years experience of the bachelor's column where the schedule has one, otherwise the lowest first-steps/years experience cell. Enrollment is NCES 2023-24. Years differ where districts publish on different cycles.
Questions people ask
What is the starting teacher salary in Columbus City Schools?
$41,801 on the column Pre-License Bachelor's Degree at steps/years experience 0 of the 2025-26 schedule (Columbus Education Association). The lowest cell on the whole grid is $41,801 (Pre-License Bachelor's Degree).
What is the top of the Columbus City Schools salary schedule?
$123,966, at steps/years experience 31 on Ph.D. (2025-26). That is the highest published cell before any stipend, longevity or supplement not printed on the grid.
How long does it take to reach the top of the Columbus City Schools salary schedule?
On the Pre-License Bachelor's Degree column the top figure, $50,859, is reached at steps/years experience 6, 6 steps/years experience increases after steps/years experience 0 (2025-26 schedule).
How much more does a master's degree pay in Columbus City Schools?
$16,364 more at the first steps/years experience: $58,165 on Master's Degree against $41,801 on Pre-License Bachelor's Degree (2025-26 schedule).
Other Ohio districts with schedules
- Cincinnati Public Schoolsstarts $51,203.77
- Cleveland Metropolitan School Districtstarts $54,830
- Olentangy Local School Districtstarts $50,217
- South-Western City Schoolsstarts $50,290.00
- Toledo Public Schoolsstarts $45,671
- Dublin City Schoolsstarts $52,078
- Hilliard City Schoolsstarts $49,880
- Dayton City Schoolsstarts $53,339
- Worthington City Schoolsstarts $55,070
- Mason City Schoolsstarts $50,922
See every Ohio district on the Ohio page. Compare this district on the comparison pages or the rankings.