Montana Got A Terrible Grade For Teachers, But There’s More To The Story.

Montana Ranks Near The Bottom For Teachers

To be just a little bit cliché, Montana just got a pretty rough report card when it comes to being a good place for teachers.

Though I'm not sure that means Montana is full of bad teachers.

Montana's Education Rankings Suggest The Problem Isn't All About Teachers

WalletHub just put out its new 2026 ranking of where each state ranks for teachers, and they ranked Montana #49 out 51. The ranking looked at things like teacher pay, income growth, pensions, school spending, turnover, and working conditions.

That's certainly not a great headline for Montana. But we've actually looked at this before, and there's a little more to the story.

Earlier this summer, we reported on another WalletHub ranking involving Montana's early education system. While the state ranked poorly overall, when it came to the actual quality of education ranking, Montana was much closer to the middle of the pack.

Basically, the problems weren't all on the shoulders of the people standing in front of the classroom, and today, we've got another piece of evidence worth considering.

Source: WalletHub

Montana May Have a Teacher Problem, Not A Problem With Its Teachers

We took a look at Montana school districts where parents and students gave their teachers some of the highest ratings in the state. Those rankings came from Niche and were based on people who actually experience those schools every day.

So maybe the bigger story here isn't that Montana has terrible teachers. Maybe Montana has a teacher problem.

There's a difference between the two.

A state can have great teachers and still struggle with salaries, resources, turnover, and all the other things that can make teaching a difficult career path.

For proof, take a look at some of the Montana school districts where parents and students are giving their teachers top marks.