Sonoma Valley Unified School District teacher salaries

Sonoma Valley Unified School District is a unified school district in Sonoma County, with its district office in Sonoma. Pay starts at $62,020 on the first step. The largest group (72%) is on the BA+60 OR MA column, which climbs to $110,107 by step 16.

What is the average teacher salary at Sonoma Valley Unified?

Lowest

$62,020

BA+30, step 1

Average salary on the teacher schedule1

$95,787

  • $969 below Sonoma County average
  • $7,765 below California average

Highest

$110,107

BA+60 OR MA, step 16

Sonoma Valley Unified average

AveragesSonoma County $96,756, California $103,552

Full-time equivalents on the schedule
176
Starting salary
$62,020
BA+30, step 1
Median salary
$104,254
Half earn more, half earn less
Average pay rank in California
387th of 828 reporting
of 828 reporting

Sonoma Valley Unified's full salary schedule, 2024-252

Shading shows where teachers actually sit. 53% of Sonoma Valley Unified's full-time equivalents are on step 15 or higher.

StepBA+30BA+45BA+60 OR MA
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

Swipe the table sideways for more columns.

Tap any salary to see how many full-time equivalents are paid it and follow it on the chart above.

Full-time equivalents in a cell
  1. 5+
  5. 79
Cells with fewer than 5 stay unshaded. Bold figures sit in the three darkest shades.Striped cells: this column has no salary at that step.

What BA+98, steps and credentials mean at Sonoma Valley Unified

Two things place a teacher on Sonoma Valley Unified's grid: years of service (the step) and college units since the bachelor's degree (the column). How we read the schedules.

Step
One per year of service; step 5 on Sonoma Valley Unified's BA+30 column pays $70,407. Experienced teachers joining Sonoma Valley Unified can be placed as high as step 16.
Column, such as BA+98
A bachelor's plus 98 semester units since. Sonoma Valley Unified's columns run from BA+30 to BA+60 OR MA, 3 in all.

How fast does a teacher's salary grow at Sonoma Valley Unified?

On the BA+60 OR MA column, pay passes $100,000 at step 13, with $101,326. Pick a column and a step to see the salary, and how far it is from the top.

$91,018

a year at step 10. This column tops out at $110,107 on step 16.

$110,107$62,020
Step 1Step 16
Chosen columnOther columns, same type

Does Sonoma Valley Unified pay teachers more than the median California district?

Line up all 828 reporting California districts from the lowest average salary to the highest. The one in the middle is the median district: half the districts pay a lower average, half pay a higher one. A median isn't pulled up or down by a few unusually high- or low-paying districts, so it shows what a typical district pays.

Yes

Sonoma Valley Unified's average of $95,787 is above the middle California district's $94,573.

All 828 reporting districts in California

Sonoma Valley Unified ranks 387th of 828.

Sonoma Valley Unified
$50k$100k$150k

Middle district: $94,573

The 28 reporting districts in Sonoma County

Sonoma Valley Unified ranks 17th of 28, below the middle district.

Sonoma Valley Unified
$80k$100k

Middle district: $96,755

Each bar counts the districts whose average salary falls in a $5,000 band. The dashed line marks the median district.

Bonuses, health cover and work days at Sonoma Valley Unified

Bonuses are paid on top of the schedule, in the amounts the district reported.2 Teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.3 Extra pay for coaching, clubs and similar duties isn't part of this report.

Questions about teacher pay at Sonoma Valley Unified

How much do Sonoma Valley Unified teachers make?

The average salary on Sonoma Valley Unified's teacher schedule is $95,787 a year (2024-25). The salary schedule runs from $62,020 (BA+30, step 1) to $110,107 (BA+60 OR MA, step 16).

What does a new teacher earn at Sonoma Valley Unified?

The schedule starts at $62,020 (BA+30, step 1). Teachers who bring experience from another district can start as high as step 16.

How long does it take to reach the top of the Sonoma Valley Unified pay scale?

On the BA+60 OR MA column, where 72% of full-time equivalents are paid, pay keeps rising until step 16, where it reaches $110,107. Steps go up with years of service.

Does a master's degree raise pay at Sonoma Valley Unified?

Yes, in two ways. The college units from a master's move you to a higher column on the schedule, and Sonoma Valley Unified reports a master's bonus of $1,275 on top. For a doctorate it reports $2,091.

Is Sonoma Valley Unified teacher pay high for California?

Sonoma Valley Unified's average salary on the teacher schedule ranks 387th of the 828 California school districts and county offices of education that reported and 17th of 28 in Sonoma County. Across all of them, the average salary on teacher schedules is $103,552 statewide and $96,756 in Sonoma County.

Keep exploring teacher pay in Sonoma County

Sources for the Sonoma Valley Unified figures

Salaries are the annual amounts on the district's certificated salary schedule. Following the state's definitions, they leave out extended-year pay, bonuses and extra-curricular pay such as coaching. Counts are full-time equivalents, so two half-time teachers count as one, and they can include counselors, nurses and librarians paid on the same schedule. County averages, ranks and percentages are our own arithmetic on these figures; our statewide average matches the state's published $103,552.

  1. California Department of Education, Selected Certificated Salaries and Related Statistics, 2024-25, Table I: average salary paid, raise on last year, highest starting step. The median salary is our own calculation from source 2.
  2. Sonoma Valley Unified's report to the California Department of Education, Form J-90 database, 2024-25: salary schedule, full-time equivalents per cell, bonuses, health contributions, work days.
  3. U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet #17D: Exemption for Professional Employees Under the FLSA: teachers are exempt from federal overtime pay.

How we read the data