How are public schools in funded?

Updated annually
Primarily from state governments. In the 2021–2022 school year, the most recent year of available data, about 56.7% of public school funding came from state sources. Another 23.4% came through local programs, and the federal government provided the remaining 19.9%. Altogether, public schools received $19.8 billion in funding, or $13,000 per student.

$19.8B

of funding went to public schools in North Carolina (2021–2022 school year)

$13K

per student went to public schools in North Carolina (2021–2022 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. North Carolina schools received about $13,000 per student in 2021, roughly $5,500 less than the national average. The largest difference was in local funding: the average US school received $7,800 per student from local sources, compared to $3,000 in North Carolina.

In the 2021 school year, public schools in North Carolina received $5,500 less per student than the average US school

Total public school funding by source per student

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.

In the 2021 school year, local, state, and federal funds amounted to $13,000 per student in North Carolina

Total public school funding by source per student

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 widely within the same state. In North Carolina, some districts received around $0 per student (Niner University Elementary School), while others received as much as $28,100 (Hyde County Schools).

Per-student public school funding in North Carolina ranged from $0 to $28.1k across districts

Total public school funding per student per school district, all sources, 2021–2022 school year

Districts also differ in where that funding comes from. Some rely more heavily on state-level revenue— like Hoke County Schools, where 65.9% of school funding came from state sources. Others receive more through local sources, such as Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, where local dollars accounted for 46.2% of funding. In districts like Wayne County Public Schools, where local revenues are lower, federal dollars made up a larger portion — about 28% of total funding. The breakdown by source highlights the ways North Carolina 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 NC, 2021–2022 school year

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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.