How much do Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School make in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC?

Percentile spread

For Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School, the published 10th percentile is $44,150 and the 90th percentile is $59,270. The difference is $15,120, which is 27.8% of the median. Ten percent of measured wages fall below the 10th percentile and ten percent fall above the 90th. How to read a percentile.

The middle half of the distribution, from the 25th percentile at $44,510 to the 75th at $57,630, covers $13,120.

The mean annual wage is $51,830, which sits below the median of $54,350. Median and mean measure different points in the same distribution.

Hourly wages are not published because BLS reports this occupation on an annual basis. Hourly and annual wages.

National and state comparison

The Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC median is 16.5% lower than the national median of $65,120 for Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School. In 2024 national prices the local median is $61,422, which is 5.7% lower than that same national median. The national figure is already in national prices because the United States parity is 100.

It is 6.7% lower than the North Carolina median of $58,260.

Price-adjusted pay

The 2024 all-items regional price parity for Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC is 88.486, with the United States at 100. The Bureau of Economic Analysis released those parities on February 19, 2026. Dividing the May 2025 median of $54,350 by that parity and multiplying by 100 puts Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School at $61,422 in national prices. The wage year and the price year are different. Compare this wage after prices.

Nearby metros

26 other metropolitan areas within 200 miles publish a annual median for Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School. Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC ranks 21st of 27 on that median, counting itself. Distance is the great-circle mileage between Census Bureau internal points (U.S. Census Bureau, 2024 Gazetteer Files, Core Based Statistical Areas, internal points (INTPTLAT, INTPTLONG).).

• Johnson City, TN is 58 miles away, with a median of $62,560 and employment of 80. That median is 15.1% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $71,149, against $61,422 here.
• Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC is 58 miles away, with a median of $61,050 and employment of 1,390. That median is 12.3% higher than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $62,713, against $61,422 here.
• Asheville, NC is 64 miles away, with a median of $49,030 and employment of 80. That median is 9.8% lower than the median here. In 2024 national prices it is $50,805, against $61,422 here.

Employment share

Special Education Teachers, Kindergarten and Elementary School accounts for 0.08% of wage-and-salary employment in Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC (120 of 154,090). Nationally the occupation is 0.17% of employment (260,870 of 155,495,730). The local share is 0.46 times the national share. That ratio is the location quotient computed from these May 2025 employment counts. It is not copied from the location-quotient column in the BLS bulk file.