Foreign Language Instructor

Foreign Language Instructor Salary

$69K

$79K

$115K

$86,800

/year

$41.73

/hour

Foreign Language Instructor Salary Comparison by Location

Nationwide

United States

$86,800

Columbus

Ohio

$83,840

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    How much does a Foreign Language Instructor make?

    As of Jul 29, 2026, the average annual pay for a Foreign Language Instructor in the United States is $86,800 a year.

    Just in case you need a simple salary calculator, that works out to be approximately $41.73 an hour. This is the equivalent of $1,669/week or $7,233/month.

    While ZipRecruiter is seeing annual salaries as high as $115,000 and as low as $69,000, the majority of Foreign Language Instructor salaries currently range between $78,500 (25th percentile) to $96,000 (75th percentile) with top earners (90th percentile) making $110,500 annually across the United States. The average pay range for a Foreign Language Instructor varies greatly (by as much as 17500), which suggests there may be many opportunities for advancement and increased pay based on skill level, location and years of experience.

    A Foreign Language Instructor in your area makes on average $83,840 per year, or $2,960 (3.410%) less than the national average annual salary of $86,800. Ohio ranks number 31 out of 50 states nationwide for Foreign Language Instructor salaries.

    To estimate the most accurate annual salary range for Foreign Language Instructor jobs, ZipRecruiter continuously scans its database of millions of active jobs published locally throughout America.

    Find your next high paying job as a Foreign Language Instructor on ZipRecruiter today.

    What are Top 10 Highest Paying Cities for Foreign Language Instructor Jobs

    We've identified 10 cities where the typical salary for a Foreign Language Instructor job is above the national average. Topping the list is Berkeley, CA, , with Sitka, AK, and Los Altos, CA, close behind in the second and third positions. Los Altos, CA, beats the national average by $15,834 (18.2%), and Berkeley, CA, furthers that trend with another $19,481 (22.4%) above the $86,800 average.

    With these 10 cities having average salaries higher than the national average, the opportunities for economic advancement by changing locations as a Foreign Language Instructor appears to be exceedingly fruitful.

    Finally, another factor to consider is the average salary for these top 10 cities varies very little at 6% between Berkeley, CA, and Arlington, VA, , reinforcing the limited potential for much wage advancement. The possibility of a lower cost of living may be the best factor to use when considering location and salary for a Foreign Language Instructor role.

    City

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Berkeley, CA

    $106,281

    $51.10

    Sitka, AK

    $104,566

    $50.27

    Los Altos, CA

    $102,634

    $49.34

    San Francisco, CA

    $102,348

    $49.21

    Sunnyvale, CA

    $101,873

    $48.98

    Livermore, CA

    $101,815

    $48.95

    San Jose, CA

    $101,728

    $48.91

    Los Altos Hills, CA

    $101,130

    $48.62

    Santa Cruz, CA

    $100,224

    $48.18

    Arlington, VA

    $100,017

    $48.09

    What are Top 5 Best Paying Related Foreign Language Instructor Jobs in the U.S.

    Analyzing some similar jobs related to the Foreign Language Instructor job category, we found that Online Anatomy And Physiology Instructor jobs have average salaries similar than Foreign Language Instructor jobs.

    Job Title

    Annual Salary

    Hourly Wage

    Online Anatomy And Physiology Instructor

    $66,466

    $31.95

    Foreign Language

    $58,798

    $28.27

    Chinese Linguist

    $58,415

    $28.08

    Urdu Teacher

    $44,055

    $21.18

    Bus Driver Instructor

    $43,812

    $21.06

    About Our Data

    ZipRecruiter salary estimates, histograms, trends and comparisons are derived from both employer job postings and third party data sources.

    Infographic detailing Foreign Language Instructor salary across the United States as of July 2026. Displays a bar chart with salary percentiles, a national average salary of $86,800 per year or $41.73 an hour, and a color-coded map showing state-by-state salary variations.