Elementary School Teacher salary in Columbia, SC

Based on 79 certified H-1B filings in the Columbia, SC metro area, FY2025–FY2026. Includes Lexington, Hopkins, Winnsboro, St. Matthews, West Columbia.

Also listed as: Elementary Bilingual Teacher

Median salary$61,458
Middle 50%$56k–$66.6k
vs. national median−0%comparison median $61,479
Filings79FY2025–FY2026 · latest two fiscal years

Salary range

Box: middle 50% of filings. Whiskers: 10th–90th percentile. 99% of filings are between $45,040 and $80,051.
PercentileSalary
10th$48,208
25th$56,010
50th (median)$61,458
75th$66,582
90th$71,699

Salary by year

Median salary

$40k $55k $70k FY2020: median $48,684 (15 filings) FY2021: median $51,039 (21 filings) FY2022: median $50,120 (26 filings) FY2023: median $51,946 (42 filings) FY2024: median $54,264 (51 filings) FY2025: median $58,221 (53 filings) FY2026: median $64,179 (26 filings) FY20 FY21 FY22 FY23 FY24 FY25 FY26

Filings per year

FY2020: 15 filings FY20 FY2021: 21 filings FY21 FY2022: 26 filings FY22 FY2023: 42 filings FY23 FY2024: 51 filings FY24 FY2025: 53 filings FY25 FY2026: 26 filings FY26 53
Shaded: FY2025–FY2026, the years behind the figures above. Median shown for years with at least 10 filings. FY2026 covers Q1–Q3 only.
Show as table
Fiscal yearMedianP25P75Filings
FY2020$48,684$41,708$55,38815
FY2021$51,039$46,436$53,71321
FY2022$50,120$43,587$54,10326
FY2023$51,946$46,904$56,50142
FY2024$54,264$49,423$59,22951
FY2025$58,221$52,000$64,88453
FY2026$64,179$61,634$67,91426

Cost of living

Columbia's median Elementary School Teacher salary of $61,458 is worth about $65,600 at national average prices.

Source: BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024 (U.S. = 100; Columbia = 93.7).

Compared with all workers here

All Elementary School Teachers, Except Special Education in the Columbia, SC area earned a median of $60,050 in May 2025 (4,360 employed). The H-1B median here is $61,458, 2% higher.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS metropolitan area estimates. BLS wages include some incentive pay; H-1B figures are base salary.

Top employers filing

EmployerMedianFilings
Richland County School District One$60,30933
Lexington County School District One$63,50030
Fairfield County School Districttoo few6
Allendale County School Districttoo few2
East Point Academytoo few2
Lexington Country School District Onetoo few2

Employers with at least 2 filings here. Median shown at 10+ filings.

By experience level

Wage levelMedianFilings
Entry-level · Level I $57,470 55
Mid-level · Level II $62,787 18
Senior · Level III too few 3
Expert · Level IV – 0

Median shown when a level has at least 10 filings.

Minimum H-1B salary by level

Wage levelPrevailing wage (most common)Median offered salaryFilings
Entry-level · Level I$42,740$57,47055
Mid-level · Level II$57,677$62,78718

The prevailing wage is the minimum an employer must pay for this job and area. Amounts vary by county within a metro and by wage source.