What Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education earn in Fulton County, GA
The median pay for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in Fulton County, GA is $77,210 per year, which works out to $37.12 per hour. The figure comes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics wage survey for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metropolitan area, the labor market that Fulton County, GA belongs to. Half of the workers in this occupation earn more than the median and half earn less, which makes it a sturdier yardstick than an average that a few very high earners can pull upward.
The mean wage is $73,690, which is 4.6% below the median, which suggests many workers sit near the top of the pay scale. The survey counts about 14,830 people working in this occupation across the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metropolitan area, so the estimate rests on a substantial pool of workers. Fulton County, GA has roughly 1,076,561 residents, according to the population figures used by the rent data.
The salary range, from entry level to top earners
Pay for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metropolitan area is not one number. The lowest-paid tenth of workers earn up to $49,450 a year ($23.77 an hour), while the highest-paid tenth earn $96,860 or more ($46.57 an hour). That is a gap of $47,410 between the bottom and the top of the scale. The middle half of workers falls between $61,630 at the 25th percentile and $79,460 at the 75th percentile. A top-tier earner makes 2.0 times what someone at the bottom makes, so experience, certification and employer all matter.
What the hourly rate looks like
Employers quote this occupation by the hour or by the year, so here are both: $37.12 an hour or $77,210 a year at the median for Fulton County, GA. Before any deductions, that is $6,434 a month, $2,970 every two weeks and $1,485 each week. After taxes the same job pays $28.60 per hour of take-home income, which is the number that actually has to cover rent and groceries.
How pay in Fulton County, GA compares
Compared with the Georgia average
A worker in this occupation in Fulton County, GA earns $4,652 more than the Georgia average of $72,558, a premium of 6.4%. Over a year that premium is worth $4,652 before tax and roughly $3,584 after tax. Within Georgia, Fulton County, GA already has the highest median we track for this job.
Compared with the national average
The national employment-weighted average for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education is $75,178 across the contiguous United States. At $77,210, Fulton County, GA pays $2,032 more, which is 2.7% above that benchmark. Keep in mind that a higher salary only helps if living costs do not rise faster, which is why the cost sections below matter as much as the headline number.
Where this job ranks in Fulton County, GA
Among the 585 occupations with published wages in Fulton County, GA, Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education ranks number 180 by median pay, ahead of about 69% of them. The best-paying occupation we track here is Computer and Information Systems Managers at $177,970 a year, which is $100,760 more than the median for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education.
From gross pay to take-home pay
Three separate tax bills sit between the gross salary and the bank account: federal income tax, FICA, and state income tax. For Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education earning the Fulton County, GA median of $77,210, they add up to $17,726. The result is $59,484 of take-home pay a year ($4,957 a month), based on a single filer using the standard deduction.
Put another way, of every $100 earned, about $23 goes to taxes and $77 reaches the paycheck. The overall effective tax rate is 23.0%.
Federal income tax
After the $15,750 standard deduction, taxable income is $61,460. Federal brackets are marginal, so only the slice of income above each threshold is taxed at the higher rate; the last dollars of this salary fall in the 22% bracket. The resulting federal income tax is $8,435, an effective 10.9% of gross pay, well below the 22% marginal rate because the lower brackets are cheaper.
Social Security and Medicare (FICA)
Payroll taxes are a flat percentage of wages. Social Security takes 6.2% up to a wage base of $176,100, which costs $4,787 on this salary. Medicare takes 1.45%, or $1,120. FICA totals $5,907, which is 7.6% of gross pay.
State income tax in Georgia
Georgia income tax on this salary is $3,384 a year, or 4.4% of gross pay, after the state's own deductions and exemptions are applied. That is 40% of the federal income tax bill, and it comes out to $282 a month. Local taxes such as county or city income taxes are not included, so a few jurisdictions may withhold slightly more.
A cross-check with IRS data for Fulton County, GA
IRS Statistics of Income data for Fulton County, GA show an average adjusted gross income of $140,806 per return and an average effective federal income tax rate of 19.4% across all filers. Filers in the $75,000 to under $100,000 bracket, where this salary falls, paid an average of 10.7%, compared with the 10.9% estimated here for a single filer taking the standard deduction. Gaps between the two reflect filing status, dependents, credits and other income, none of which a single-person wage estimate includes.
Cost of living in Fulton County, GA
Take-home pay only means something next to what life costs. We price four basics for one adult in Fulton County, GA: a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline. All of them are converted to annual figures first, then compared with the $59,484 of take-home pay.
Rent
Housing is the largest line in most budgets. For Fulton County, GA, HUD sets the Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom unit at $1,619 a month ($19,428 a year), and at $1,762 for two bedrooms. For Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education, a one-bedroom absorbs 32.7% of take-home pay and 25.2% of gross pay.
Food
The USDA Thrifty Food Plan (August 2026) puts the cost of a nutritious home-cooked diet for an adult at about $3,436 a year, which is $286 a month or $66.07 a week. That equals 4.4% of gross pay for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in Fulton County, GA. It is a thrifty budget with no restaurant meals, so treat it as a floor.
Energy and gasoline
Using Georgia residential prices from the Energy Information Administration and national household averages for consumption, electricity costs about $1,488 a year and other home energy such as natural gas about $720, for $2,207 in total. Gasoline in Georgia averages $2.95 per gallon; at about 463 gallons a year (11,106 miles at 24 miles per gallon) fuel adds $1,366.
What is left over
Rent, food, energy and gasoline cost $26,437 a year in Fulton County, GA. Subtract that from $59,484 of take-home pay and $33,047 remains, which is $2,754 a month of breathing room. That margin equals 42.8% of gross pay, a comfortable cushion by common budgeting rules.
Can Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education afford to live in Fulton County, GA?
The 30% rent guideline
A common rule of thumb says rent should stay under 30% of gross income. For a gross salary of $77,210 that ceiling is $1,930 a month. The one-bedroom Fair Market Rent of $1,619 is $311 under it, so rent fits the guideline. Put as a wage, covering a one-bedroom at the 30% guideline takes $31.13 an hour; the median for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education is $37.12, which is 19% above that mark. Another way to see it: at $28.60 of take-home pay an hour, a one-bedroom takes about 13.1 working hours every week.
Splitting a two-bedroom
Sharing a two-bedroom at $1,762 a month means $881 each. Compared with renting a one-bedroom alone, that saves $8,856 a year. With a roommate, the yearly margin after the basics becomes $41,903.
How fast you can save
At $2,754 a month of margin, building a $10,000 emergency fund would take about 4 months. Setting aside half of the margin stretches the same goal to about 8 months. These figures ignore interest, raises and any spending beyond the four basics.
Frequently asked questions about Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education pay in Fulton County, GA
How much do Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education make per hour in Fulton County, GA?
The median is $37.12 per hour, based on $77,210 a year over 2,080 hours. Hourly pay runs from about $23.77 at the 10th percentile to $46.57 at the 90th percentile.
How much do Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education take home after taxes in Fulton County, GA?
After federal income tax, FICA and state income tax, the median salary of $77,210 becomes $59,484 a year. That is $4,957 a month, $2,288 every two weeks or $1,144 a week.
How much tax do Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education pay in Fulton County, GA?
Total taxes are $17,726 a year, an effective rate of 23.0%: $8,435 federal income tax, $5,907 FICA and $3,384 Georgia income tax.
Do Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education earn more in Fulton County, GA than elsewhere in Georgia?
Yes. The local median of $77,210 is +6.4% versus the Georgia average of $72,558, a difference of $4,652 a year.
Can Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education afford a one-bedroom apartment in Fulton County, GA?
A one-bedroom costs $1,619 a month against take-home pay of $4,957, which is 32.7% of take-home pay. That meets the 30%-of-gross guideline, which allows up to $1,930 a month.
What is the monthly budget margin for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education in Fulton County, GA?
About $2,754 a month ($33,047 a year) remains after a one-bedroom apartment, food, home energy and gasoline, which together cost $26,437 a year.
What hourly wage covers a one-bedroom in Fulton County, GA at the 30% guideline?
$31.13 an hour for a full-time schedule, calculated as the $19,428 annual rent divided by 0.30 and by 2,080 hours. The median for Secondary School Teachers, Except Special and Career/Technical Education is $37.12.
How we calculated these numbers
Wages are May 2025 medians from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey for the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA metropolitan area; hourly-only values are annualized at 2,080 hours. Rents are HUD Fair Market Rents, food costs come from the USDA Thrifty Food Plan, and energy prices come from the Energy Information Administration. County-level tax statistics come from the IRS Statistics of Income.
Taxes use tax-year 2025 federal brackets, FICA rates and the Georgia rules for a single filer with wage income only. Figures are estimates for planning and comparison, not tax or financial advice, and they exclude local income taxes, benefits, retirement contributions and individual circumstances.