How are public schools in funded?

Updated May. 28, 2026Refreshed annually
New Jersey public schools are funded primarily from state governments. In the 2022–2023 school year, the most recent year of available data, about 46.5% of New Jersey public school funding came from state sources. Another 45.8% came through local programs, and the federal government provided the remaining 7.7%. Altogether, public schools in New Jersey received $41.5 billion in funding, or $30,000 per student.

$41.5B

of funding went to public schools in New Jersey (2022–2023 school year)

$30K

per student went to public schools in New Jersey (2022–2023 school year)
All American public schools are funded with a mix of local, state, and federal money, but the share attributable to each source — and the total amount of funding per student — differs by state. New Jersey schools received about $30,000 per student in 2022, roughly $10,100 more than the national average. The largest difference was in local funding: the average US school received $8,300 per student from local sources, compared to $13,700 in New Jersey.

In the 2022–2023 school year, public schools in New Jersey received $10,100 more per student than the average US school

Total public school funding by source per student

Where do local, state, and federal funds come from?

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 2022–2023 school year, local, state, and federal funds amounted to $30,000 per student in New Jersey

Total public school funding by source per student

Which school districts in New Jersey have the most funding per student? Which districts have the least?

State-level data paints an overall picture of school funding, but masks differences between school districts. Each district receives a different amount of funding per student and those amounts can vary within the same state. In New Jersey, some districts received around $20,200 per student (Harrison Township School District), while others received as much as $446,500 (Mercer County Special Services School District).

Per-student public school funding in New Jersey ranged from $20,200 to $446,500 across districts

Total public school funding per student per school district, all sources, 2022–2023 school year

What is the local, state and federal funding breakdown in New Jersey school districts?

Districts also differ in where that funding comes from. Some rely more heavily on state-level revenue— like Plainfield Public School District, where 84% of school funding came from state sources. Others receive more through local sources, such as Monroe Township School District, where local dollars accounted for 75.1% of funding. In districts like Passaic City School District, where local revenues are lower, federal dollars made up a larger portion — about 18.9% of total funding. The breakdown by source highlights the ways New Jersey structures support for public education.

Districts differ in how they fund public schools

Share of public school funding from local, state, and federal sources for 50 largest school districts in NJ, 2022–2023 school year

Total public school funding per student, by state (2022–2023 school year)

Total public school funding per student, by state (2022–2023 school year)
DistictFunding per student

Mercer County Special Services School District

$446,500

Somerset County Vocational And Technical School District

$113,300

Saddle River School District

$109,200

Lakewood Township School District

$72,900

Camden City School District

$68,600

Spring Lake Borough

$68,400

North Wildwood School District

$66,600

Asbury Park School District

$65,100

Ocean County Vocational Technical School District

$64,400

Area Vocational Technical School District Of Mercer County

$62,700

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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.

Page sources

USAFacts endeavors to share the most up-to-date information available. We sourced the data on this page directly from government agencies; however, the intervals at which agencies publish updated data vary.