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Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education pay in El Centro, CA and Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA
The May 2025 BLS OEWS median for Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education is $100,390 per year in El Centro, CA. It is $104,650 per year in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA. El Centro, CA is 4.1% below Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA on the published median.
Both rows use SOC 25-2021 and the same annual wage metric. Median means the middle of each area's published wage spread. It is not one worker's pay. The larger median is not proof that one place gives a better job or a better result. It is one wage fact from one source period.
BLS lists 860 wage and salary jobs in El Centro, CA and 950 in Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA. Those are survey job counts, not open posts. Read pay, job scale, local share, and price level as separate facts before you make a choice.
Evidence: bls-oews-may-2025 · Rule: same-soc-same-metric-pair · nominal-median-gap · employment-not-openings