The salaries for teachers in Kenya have been growing over time and in 2020 a Kenyan teacher will comfortably live in a leafy suburb.
Currently, the lowest paid teacher is a P1 who pockets Ksh 16,692 per month and the highest paid is one in job group R, who takes home Ksh 109,089-Ksh200,928 per month. The job group R teachers are those who have a masters and above and several years of working experience. Chief Principals are the heads of National schools like Starehe, Maseno, Lenana etc.
From 2020 to 2021 the salary scales may not change because of the deteriorating nature of Kenya’s economy. But first, here are the salary scales for Kenyan teachers for the year 2020:
| Civil Service | Teachers | Basic Salary | Common Allowances | Gross Salary | |||
| Job Group | Designation | ||||||
| Min. | Max. | House | Commuter | Min. | Max. | ||
| G | P1 | 16,692 | 21,304 | 5,000 | 4,000 | 25,692 | 30,304 |
| H | ATS IV | 19,323 | 24,662 | 5,000 | 4,000 | 28,323 | 33,662 |
| J | GAT III | 24,662 | 29,918 | 6,000 | 4,000 | 34,662 | 39,918 |
| K | GAT II | 31,020 | 41,590 | 10,000 | 5,000 | 46,020 | 56,590 |
| L | GAT I | 35,910 | 45,880 | 20,000 | 6,000 | 61,910 | 71,880 |
| M | Senior GAT | 41,590 | 55,840 | 20,000 | 8,000 | 69,590 | 83,840 |
| N | Principal GAT II | 48,190 | 65,290 | 24,000 | 8,000 | 80,190 | 97,290 |
| P | Principal GAT I | 77,527 | 103,894 | 40,000 | 12,000 | 129,527 | 155,894 |
| Q | Senior Principal | 89,748 | 120,270 | 40,000 | 14,000 | 143,748 | 174,270 |
| R | Chief Principal | 109,089 | 144,928 | 40,000 | 16,000 | 165,089 | 200,928 |
It takes an average of 3 years for a Kenyan teacher to get a promotion. If one is employed in secondary school at K he will start earning Ksh 31,020 and by the time he completes 6 years, his salary would be Ksh 69,590.
On top of the salaries paid to teachers, there are also travelling and house allowances. The tables below show the amount of money teachers earn in terms of allowances:
There are also interns who were employed by the government in 2019.In total an intern working as a primary teacher earns Ksh10,000 per month while high school intern earns Ksh 15,000 per month.The amount is subjected to taxation.
