Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary Salary in Washington, DC (2024)
Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area earn a median of $38,580 per year based on 27,250 jobs counted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2024. That is +9.5% against the national median of $35,240 for this occupation.
Pay distribution
The median is a single point on a wide curve. The table below shows where teaching assistants, except postsecondary actually sit across the pay range in Washington, DC, from the bottom decile to the top.
| Percentile | Hourly | Annual | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10th percentile | $15.00 | $31,200 | |
| 25th percentile | $16.76 | $34,870 | |
| Median | — | $38,580 | half earn more, half earn less |
| 75th percentile | $22.81 | $47,440 | |
| 90th percentile | $28.57 | $59,430 | |
| Average (mean) | — | $42,480 |
How Washington, DC compares
The local median of $38,580 runs +9.5% above the US median of $35,240 for this occupation; it pays 43.6% less than the metro-wide median across all jobs ($68,430); within the metro it ranks 644th of 703 detailed occupations by median pay.
| Benchmark | Median annual | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Washington, DC — this occupation | $38,580 | — |
| US median, same occupation (all areas) | $35,240 | +9.5% |
| Washington, DC — all occupations | $68,430 | -43.6% |
| Highest metro in the US for this job | $49,980 | -22.8% |
The location quotient of 0.98 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
High confidence The relative standard error on this estimate is 1.3%, which is a tight margin — the figure is stable enough to plan around.
Ranked 644th of 703 detailed occupations in the metro by median annual wage.
Highest-paying jobs in Washington, DC
To put $38,580 in context, these are the best-paid detailed occupations in the same metro area. This occupation sits 644th.
| Occupation | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Nurse Anesthetists | $225,340 | 390 |
| Family Medicine Physicians | $224,330 | 1,900 |
| General Internal Medicine Physicians | $223,030 | 1,740 |
| Psychiatrists | $219,970 | 570 |
| Ophthalmologists, Except Pediatric | $218,490 | 230 |
| Dentists, All Other Specialists | $199,990 | 150 |
| Computer and Information Systems Managers | $191,880 | 20,770 |
| Lawyers | $191,880 | 48,170 |
| Physicians, All Other | $191,880 | 11,170 |
| Nuclear Engineers | $189,770 | 300 |
Where teaching assistants, except postsecondary earn the most
Across the 25 metro areas with released data for this occupation, medians run from $27,540 to $49,980. These are the top markets.
| Metro area | Median annual | Employment |
|---|---|---|
| Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | $49,980 | 20,120 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA | $47,630 | 17,140 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | $46,070 | 21,130 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | $45,420 | 50,760 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA | $43,010 | 11,530 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI | $42,010 | 22,780 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV | $38,580 | 27,250 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA | $38,060 | 12,770 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH | $37,980 | 25,480 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ | $37,070 | 123,210 |
See the full national picture on the Teaching Assistants, Except Postsecondary salary by metro page.
Frequently asked questions
What is the median salary for teaching assistants, except postsecondary in Washington, DC?
The median annual wage is $38,580. That means half of the teaching assistants, except postsecondary working in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV metro area earn more than this figure and half earn less. The average is $42,480.
What do the highest and lowest paid teaching assistants, except postsecondary in Washington, DC earn?
The bottom 10% earn $31,200 or less, while the top 10% earn $59,430 or more — a spread of $28,230 between the two ends of the distribution. The middle half of workers sit between $34,870 and $47,440.
Is teaching assistants, except postsecondary pay in Washington, DC above the local average?
Yes, it is 43.6% below the all-occupation median for the metro, which is $68,430. That comparison is the fairer one for judging local purchasing power, because it holds the metro's overall cost and wage level constant.
How does Washington, DC pay compare with the rest of the US for this job?
At $38,580 the metro median is 9.5% higher than the US median of $35,240 for teaching assistants, except postsecondary. Across the 25 metro areas covered here, this occupation ranges from $27,540 to $49,980.
How many teaching assistants, except postsecondary work in Washington, DC?
BLS counts about 27,250 people in this occupation in the metro area, or 8.74 jobs per 1,000 total jobs. The location quotient of 0.98 is close to 1.0: the occupation's share of local employment tracks the national average.
About these figures
Figures come from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) survey for 2024 (employment relative standard error 3.2%). OEWS measures what employers pay, not what any individual earns; it excludes self-employed workers, and it does not adjust for local cost of living.
Read the full methodology, or the original data at bls.gov/oes.