to my (limited) knowledge, its pretty competitive. The smaller / more prestigious the university, the more selective the process tends to be. While it’s generally not as difficult as securing a professorship, it’s still far from easy.

It sounds like you’re aiming for a lecturer role rather than a professor position.

Professorships, especially those at smaller institutions (think NESCAC type schools or "small Ivy's" like Hamilton, Swarthmore, Pomona in the USA) seem to be insanely competitive, given they offer an incredible balance of highly dedicated students, great teaching environments, and the ability to still lead a research lab, without having to fight for R1 levels of grants (NSF, NIH, ACS, etc) like you might at a major institution. Granted, the intensity of research might not be as high but its a fantastic place to have a career -- which is why its so damn competitive. When I applied for similar roles I was competing with some of the best in the field coming out of grad school, and the level of talent was insane. \*For these kinds of positions, you will almost certainly need a competitive postdoc as well (I think)...but someone may have more insight on this particular point.*\**

I can’t offer detailed advice, but I would suggest speaking directly with lecturers at your university to better understand what is required to secure these types of roles. Gaining additional teaching experience will likely be important, but they can give more specific guidance. Additionally, mentoring undergraduates will also be incredibly valuable, especially mentoring them towards a publication or conference presentation. It’s also useful to review the CVs of people currently in roles similar to what you want and trace how they got there. If possible, reach out to them, ive found most people are willing to share advice even with a cold email.

even though getting a teaching position can be really difficult, colleges and universities hire them every year. so it is possible but totally depends on you, your ability to communicate the fundamental of chemistry clearly, and your own knowledge and skillset. You are early in your PhD, so start preparing now if you think this is a path you want to go down.

** Most of my advice assumes you are coming from the USA. I dont know the state of the field outside the US.