Teaching in Utah just keeps getting better. 

A new WalletHub report ranks Utah the second-best state in America for teachers, a jump from fourth place in 2024. 

In conducting the study, WalletHub looked at a number of factors from teacher salaries and turnover rates to the quality of school systems. State spending per student also factored into the rankings, which goes to show how well Utah performed in other categories, considering Utah has the lowest per-pupil spending in the country.

Utah was second only to Virginia in the WalletHub analysis, followed by Washington, New York, and Illinois. 

The Beehive State boasts the second-highest average annual starting salary ($53,748) after being adjusted for the cost of living, notes the financial services company. “Teachers in Utah also enjoy the second-best 10-year change in teacher salaries, with incomes increasing by an impressive 50 percent over the past decade.” 

The push to bring Utah’s teacher salaries commensurate with other professionals has been traced back to a decision in 2019 by the Canyons Board of Education to bump the starting teacher pay to $50,000 — an action that prompted school districts throughout the state to follow suit. 

To date, Canyons District has among the state’s highest starting teacher salaries at $64,200. “We invest taxpayer dollars where it matters — in hiring and retaining the best teachers for our classrooms,” said Lori Reynolds, a recruiter in Canyons Human Resources Department. “Because nothing has a more pronounced impact on student achievement than having great teachers.”

Job satisfaction is on the rise in Canyons, which has a 90 percent teacher retention rate. About 62 percent of CSD’s teachers have 1-7 years of experience and half have master’s or doctoral degrees.  

“Teaching isn’t just a career. It’s a calling,” Reynolds said. “When we invest in teachers, we invest in every student’s future.”