International teacher salaries by country
What teachers actually reported earning at 674 international schools, not recruiter estimates, not job-advert ranges.
Every figure comes from teachers who worked the job, submitted anonymously and checked before publication. Treat a median as a signal for comparing countries, not a quoted market rate.
How to read this
- Base pay is not the package. A Gulf posting with housing provided and no income tax can leave you thousands better off than a European one paying more on paper.
- These are gross figures. Normally base pay before tax and before allowances. Each country guide explains how that country taxes teaching income.
- Compare, don't quote. These medians are built to rank countries against each other. Use a country guide to see what the package actually covers before you negotiate.
Median monthly pay, 50 countries
Highest first · USD figures approximate, rates as of 2026-07-16
| Country | Median / month | ≈ USD | Typical range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | 7,500 CHF | $8,523 | Members |
| Luxembourg | 6,000 EUR | $6,522 | Members |
| Saudi Arabiaguide | 22,500 SAR | $6,000 | Members |
| United States | 5,500 USD | $5,500 | Members |
| Singapore | 7,000 SGD | $5,224 | Members |
| Netherlands | 4,607 EUR | $5,008 | Members |
| Hong Kongguide | 39,000 HKD | $5,000 | Members |
| South Koreaguide | 5,000 USD | $5,000 | Members |
| Belgium | 4,584 EUR | $4,983 | Members |
| Germany | 4,492 EUR | $4,883 | Members |
| Oman | 1,771 OMR | $4,600 | Members |
| Argentina | 4,500 USD | $4,500 | Members |
| Chinaguide | 32,000 CNY | $4,476 | Members |
| Jordan | 4,314 USD | $4,314 | Members |
| United Kingdom | 3,375 GBP | $4,272 | Members |
| Austria | 3,780 EUR | $4,109 | Members |
| Brunei | 5,418 BND | $4,043 | Members |
| Peru | 4,000 USD | $4,000 | Members |
| Sweden | 41,500 SEK | $3,915 | Members |
| Qatarguide | 14,150 QAR | $3,887 | Members |
| United Arab Emiratesguide | 13,955 AED | $3,802 | Members |
| India | 3,750 USD | $3,750 | Members |
| Uzbekistan | 3,600 USD | $3,600 | Members |
| Bahrain | 1,334 BHD | $3,548 | Members |
| Portugal | 3,250 EUR | $3,533 | Members |
| France | 3,247 EUR | $3,529 | Members |
| Kuwait | 1,080 KWD | $3,518 | Members |
| Bulgaria | 3,167 EUR | $3,442 | Members |
| Egypt | 2,700 GBP | $3,418 | Members |
| Turkey | 3,400 USD | $3,400 | Members |
| Cambodia | 3,368 USD | $3,368 | Members |
| Vietnamguide | 3,345 USD | $3,345 | Members |
| Myanmar | 3,200 USD | $3,200 | Members |
| Georgia | 3,125 USD | $3,125 | Members |
| Romania | 2,869 EUR | $3,118 | Members |
| Japan | 462,893 JPY | $3,045 | Members |
| Zambia | 3,000 USD | $3,000 | Members |
| Russia | 2,750 EUR | $2,989 | Members |
| Thailandguide | 105,000 THB | $2,958 | Members |
| Czechia | 68,000 CZK | $2,931 | Members |
| Malaysia | 13,000 MYR | $2,921 | Members |
| Malta | 2,660 EUR | $2,891 | Members |
| Spainguide | 2,625 EUR | $2,853 | Members |
| Taiwanguide | 91,500 TWD | $2,842 | Members |
| Mongolia | 2,800 USD | $2,800 | Members |
| Poland | 10,000 PLN | $2,532 | Members |
| Cyprus | 2,250 EUR | $2,446 | Members |
| Italy | 2,229 EUR | $2,423 | Members |
| Mexico | 40,000 MXN | $2,162 | Members |
| Colombia | 4,953,737 COP | $1,208 | Members |
Median is the middle reported salary, with the top and bottom 5% trimmed. Typical ranges (25th–75th percentile) and school-by-school packages are members-only. Where teachers reported in more than one currency for a country, the most-reported currency is used and the others are not mixed in. USD figures are converted at rates from 2026-07-16 and are for comparison only, read the methodology.
Common questions
- How much do international school teachers earn?
- It depends far more on the country and the package than on the job title. Median reported pay on this site ranges from roughly USD 1,500 a month at the lower end to over USD 6,000 in parts of the Gulf and East Asia. Base salary alone is a poor guide: a lower headline figure with housing provided and no income tax often leaves you better off than a higher one without.
- Which country pays international teachers the most?
- On headline pay, the Gulf states and tier-1 China are usually highest. On money actually kept, the ranking shifts, because the Gulf packages tend to include housing and levy no income tax while high-paying European postings are taxed and rarely include housing. Sort by the USD column below for headline pay, then open a country guide to see what the package covers.
- Are these salaries before or after tax?
- They are the monthly figures teachers reported, which are normally gross base pay before tax and before allowances. Each country guide explains how that country taxes teaching income, since that gap matters more than most salary differences.
- Where does this data come from?
- Salary reports submitted by teachers who worked at these schools. It is not scraped from job adverts or recruiter guidance. Medians are a signal to compare countries against each other, not a quoted market rate.
- Why is my country not listed?
- A country only appears once at least three teachers have reported a salary in the same currency there. Below that, a median is more misleading than useful. If your country is missing, adding your own report is what fixes it.