How are public schools in the US funded?
Updates published annually
Primarily from state and local governments. In the 2021–2022 school year, the most recent year of available data, about 44.1% of public school funding came from state sources like income and retail taxes, and another 42.2% came from local sources like property taxes. The federal government provided the remaining 13.7%, often through programs like Title I or IDEA that are aimed at supporting specific student needs. Altogether, public schools received $909.2 billion in funding, or $18,500 per student.
$909B
of funding went to public schools in the US (2021–2022 school year)
$18.5K
per student went to public schools in the US (2021–2022 school year)
This mix of funding sources has remained fairly consistent over the past decade, with state and local governments contributing the majority each year. However, changes in policy or administration at any level of government can influence the total amount of funding that public schools receive.
In the 2021 school year, around 44.1% of public school funding came from states.
Total funding by source per student, adjusted for inflation
Public school districts receive funding from a combination of local, state, and federal sources.
- Local funding often comes from property taxes but can also come from fees or programs like parent-teacher associations.
- State funding is generated through a wide variety of sources that vary from state-to-state, often through personal and corporate income and retail sales taxes. Depending on the state, funding may also come from taxes on tobacco products and alcoholic beverages and from lotteries.
- Federal funding often comes to school districts through a series of targeted grants, like Title I, which supports schools serving low-income communities, or IDEA, which funds special education services. Much of this funding goes to the state, which is then allocated to individual school districts.
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In the 2021 school year, local, state, and federal funds amounted to $18,500 per student
Total public school funding by source per student
National averages paint an overall picture of school funding but mask large differences across states. Each state sets its own approach to funding public education and distributing those funds, so per-student funding can vary widely—from around $11,500 in Idaho to $34,000 in New York.
These differences reflect a mix of factors, including cost of living, how much funding is collected at the state versus local level, and local tax bases; property values and tax policies vary across the country, impacting the funding available to public schools.
NY schools received $34,000 per student in the 2021 school year, the most of any state
Total public school funding per student, all sources
States also differ in the percentage of funding coming from state versus local sources. In Vermont, 86.4% of school funding came from state sources; in New Hampshire, local sources accounted for 61.7% of total funding. In other states like Mississippi, where there are fewer local revenues, federal dollars made up a larger portion — about 23.2% of total funding.
States differ in how they fund public schools
Share of public school funding from local, state, and federal sources
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Methodology
USAFacts standardizes data, in areas such as time and demographics, to make it easier to understand and compare.
The analysis was generated with the help of AI and reviewed by USAFacts for accuracy.
