Paraeducator and instructional aide pay in California, by district (2026–27)

Updated 2026-09-29

The typical California district pays paraeducators and instructional aides about $20 to $26.67 an hour this school year. The highest posted pay right now is at Weaver Union School District ($18–$57.11/hr), Mountain View Los Altos High ($41.06–$52.14/hr) and San Marcos Unified School District ($18.41–$51.46/hr).

The tables below cover 770 districts and schools, including charter and private schools, based on 5,474 job postings since July 1. They update every day.

Why pay varies so much

New aides usually start at the bottom of a district's range. Districts pay from a salary schedule, a chart where you start at step 1 and move up a step each year.

A wide range usually means the district posted more than one kind of aide job. Special education, bilingual and higher-level jobs (aide II or III) often pay more than a general aide I job. Many bilingual aides also get a stipend, which is extra pay on top of the rates shown here. The posting will say if there is one.

Look at the hours as well as the rate. A lot of aide jobs are 3 to 6½ hours a day and follow the school year, so it helps to compare what you'd make in a week.

Just starting out? See how to become a paraeducator in California.

Paraeducator pay by district

Where these numbers come from

We read every instructional aide and paraeducator posting on the EDJOIN job site and on the job boards of districts that post elsewhere, as long as the job is open now or was posted after July 1, 2026. Only postings that list an hourly rate count. Substitute aides are left out, and so are aide jobs outside the classroom (health, library, office and after-school program aides). Districts that post only a monthly salary aren't included, because turning that into an hourly rate means guessing the hours. Pay changes, so check the posting before you apply.