How much each US state spends on public school students, ranked

New York had the highest per-student education spending in the US. sangaku/Getty Images/iStockphoto US public schools rely on federal, state, and local taxes, with state and local taxes contributing the most. Public schools across the US spent an annual average of $17,619 per student in 2024. New York had the highest spending per public school student at $31,918. For many students in the US , the ZIP code they live in can shape the quality of education they get. And while a lot of disparity can exist between wealthy suburbs and under-resourced urban school districts, differences can also show up dramatically when comparing education across US states . In 2024, US public schools received nearly $995 billion in funding, with state and local sources combined providing nearly 90% of the total, according to Census data . Nationwide, local governments provided $429.8 billion for primary and secondary education funding, while state governments provided $450 billion. Across the nation, public schools spent an average of $17,619 per enrolled student annually, though this figure varied widely by state. Some states, like New York, spent nearly twice the national average per student, while others, like Idaho, trailed the national average by thousands of dollars. While better-funded schools don't automatically translate into better-quality education, the resources a school can rely on for instructor pay and materials can tangibly impact students' education . To evaluate how much each state invests in its public school students, Business Insider looked at the US Census Bureau's latest Annual Survey of School System Finances, which covered the 2024 fiscal year. The ranking is based on the current spending per public school student listed in the survey data, which covers public pre-K through 12th grade and excludes non-current expenses, such as capital outlay and debt service. Student enrollment figures also come from Census data and reflect enrollment starting in the fall of 2023. To put this spending — which does not account for cost-of-living differences between states — in context with each state's local economy, we listed the median household income from the Census Bureau's latest American Community Survey, reflecting 2024 estimates. See how much each US state spends on public education per student, ranked from lowest amount to highest. 50. Idaho christiannafzger/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $11,060 Number of enrolled students: 285,690 Median household income: $81,166 49. Utah Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $11,347 Number of enrolled students: 609,785 Median household income: $96,658 48. Arizona Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,003 Number of enrolled students: 884,915 Median household income: $81,486 47. Oklahoma Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,162 Number of enrolled students: 647,207 Median household income: $66,148 46. Mississippi Carmen K Sisson/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,324 Number of enrolled students: 432,375 Median household income: $59,127 45. Florida Bilanol/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,693 Number of enrolled students: 2,841,039 Median household income: $77,735 44. South Dakota Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,828 Number of enrolled students: 140,930 Median household income: $76,881 43. Tennessee Kruck20/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,882 Number of enrolled students: 997,720 Median household income: $71,997 42. Texas travelview/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,895 Number of enrolled students: 5,111,073 Median household income: $79,721 41. North Carolina Kruck20/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $12,995 Number of enrolled students: 1,396,880 Median household income: $73,958 40. Indiana Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $13,622 Number of enrolled students: 978,458 Median household income: $71,959 39. Alabama Kruck20/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $13,627 Number of enrolled students: 741,082 Median household income: $66,659 38. Montana Strekoza2/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $13,656 Number of enrolled students: 154,013 Median household income: $75,340 37. Arkansas Rdlamkin/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $13,873 Number of enrolled students: 458,186 Median household income: $62,106 36. Missouri Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $14,241 Number of enrolled students: 865,208 Median household income: $71,589 35. Iowa Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $14,369 Number of enrolled students: 507,866 Median household income: $75,501 34. Kentucky Wirestock/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $14,596 Number of enrolled students: 656,427 Median household income: $64,526 33. Nevada Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $14,812 Number of enrolled students: 417,474 Median household income: $81,134 32. South Carolina Larry Gibson/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,060 Number of enrolled students: 738,314 Median household income: $72,350 31. Kansas Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,558 Number of enrolled students: 482,136 Median household income: $75,514 30. Louisiana Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $15,581 Number of enrolled students: 628,335 Median household income: $60,986 29. West Virginia Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,640 Number of enrolled students: 244,054 Median household income: $60,798 28. Georgia Sean Davis/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,833 Number of enrolled students: 1,705,143 Median household income: $79,991 27. Colorado Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,908 Number of enrolled students: 841,065 Median household income: $97,113 26. Wisconsin Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $15,952 Number of enrolled students: 802,501 Median household income: $77,488 25. Nebraska Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $16,147 Number of enrolled students: 328,848 Median household income: $76,376 24. Minnesota RudyBalasko/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $17,098 Number of enrolled students: 794,003 Median household income: $87,117 23. North Dakota Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $17,102 Number of enrolled students: 119,016 Median household income: $77,871 22. Virginia SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $17,104 Number of enrolled students: 1,258,795 Median household income: $92,090 21. Ohio Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $17,257 Number of enrolled students: 1,550,261 Median household income: $72,212 20. New Mexico Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $17,664 Number of enrolled students: 289,851 Median household income: $67,816 19. Oregon Nicholas Klein/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $18,083 Number of enrolled students: 545,641 Median household income: $85,220 18. Michigan Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $18,314 Number of enrolled students: 1,224,595 Median household income: $72,389 17. Washington SCStock/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $18,564 Number of enrolled students: 1,086,202 Median household income: $99,389 16. Maine SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $19,962 Number of enrolled students: 169,316 Median household income: $76,442 15. Maryland Kruck20/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $20,208 Number of enrolled students: 889,728 Median household income: $102,905 14. Wyoming WitGorski/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $20,521 Number of enrolled students: 90,761 Median household income: $75,532 13. California f11photo/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $20,791 Number of enrolled students: 5,274,265 Median household income: $100,149 12. Alaska Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $21,004 Number of enrolled students: 131,243 Median household income: $95,665 11. Pennsylvania RudyBalasko/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $21,091 Number of enrolled students: 1,506,485 Median household income: $77,545 10. Illinois JaySi/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $21,776 Number of enrolled students: 1,831,215 Median household income: $83,211 9. Rhode Island Kelly Liu/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $22,110 Number of enrolled students: 122,128 Median household income: $83,504 8. Delaware ChrisBoswell/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $22,201 Number of enrolled students: 123,393 Median household income: $87,534 7. New Hampshire Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Per-pupil spending: $22,978 Number of enrolled students: 156,325 Median household income: $99,782 6. Hawaii Iryna Olkhova/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $23,878 Number of enrolled students: 169,308 Median household income: $100,745 5. Massachusetts Belia Koziak/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $24,429 Number of enrolled students: 862,765 Median household income: $104,828 4. Connecticut Sean Pavone/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $26,316 Number of enrolled students: 472,293 Median household income: $96,049 3. New Jersey Leonid Andronov/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $27,234 Number of enrolled students: 1,323,927 Median household income: $104,294 2. Vermont jenifoto/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $28,818 Number of enrolled students: 81,266 Median household income: $82,730 1. New York Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Per-pupil spending: $31,918 Number of enrolled students: 2,350,583 Median household income: $85,820 Read the original article on Business Insider