Can a K-12 Teacher afford to live in Houston?

Comfortable24% of take-home left to save — solid margin to save and invest.
Median salary (gross)
K-12 Teacher · Houston
$51,722
Income tax (~17% effective)
United States
– $8,668
Take-home pay
$3,588/mo
$43,054
Living costs (1 person)
$2,740/mo · derived
– $32,880
Savings potential
$848/mo · 24% of take-home
$10,174

Single professional, after-tax. Salary − tax − living costs = what you could save each year.

Full salary breakdown →Is this a good salary in Houston? →Compare Houston with another city →

How we calculated this

• Salary: BLS OES median for K-12 Teacher, adjusted for Houston.

• Tax: United States single-filer effective rate (~17%). Official calculator.

• Living costs: derived from cost-of-living index for a single professional.

Planning estimates, not financial or tax advice. Updated 2026. Your situation will differ.