Data / Rankings / Public school current spending per pupil / US states

US states by public school current spending per pupil

New York had the highest public school current spending per pupil of 51 states in 2017, at $23,091. Utah had the lowest, at $7,179. The median was $11,554 and the figure for the United States was $12,201. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

Keep it in a collection in your library.
Highest23,091New York
Lowest7,179Utah
Median11,55451 states
United States12,201History

Map of states, 2017

Alabama: 9,511 USDAlaska: 17,838 USDArizona: 8,004 USDArkansas: 9,967 USDCalifornia: 12,145 USDColorado: 9,809 USDConnecticut: 19,322 USDDelaware: 15,302 USDDistrict of Columbia: 21,974 USDFlorida: 9,075 USDGeorgia: 10,205 USDHawaii: 14,322 USDIdaho: 7,486 USDIllinois: 15,337 USDIndiana: 10,045 USDIowa: 11,461 USDKansas: 10,961 USDKentucky: 10,121 USDLouisiana: 11,199 USDMaine: 13,690 USDMaryland: 14,848 USDMassachusetts: 16,193 USDMichigan: 11,907 USDMinnesota: 12,647 USDMississippi: 8,771 USDMissouri: 10,589 USDMontana: 11,457 USDNebraska: 12,579 USDNevada: 9,320 USDNew Hampshire: 15,683 USDNew Jersey: 18,920 USDNew Mexico: 9,881 USDNew York: 23,091 USDNorth Carolina: 9,072 USDNorth Dakota: 13,760 USDOhio: 12,645 USDOklahoma: 7,959 USDOregon: 11,264 USDPennsylvania: 15,798 USDRhode Island: 15,962 USDSouth Carolina: 10,590 USDSouth Dakota: 9,939 USDTennessee: 9,184 USDTexas: 9,375 USDUtah: 7,179 USDVermont: 18,290 USDVirginia: 11,886 USDWashington: 11,989 USDWest Virginia: 11,554 USDWisconsin: 11,968 USDWyoming: 16,537 USD
  • Under 9,300
  • 9,300 to 10K
  • 10K to 12K
  • 12K to 13K
  • 13K to 16K
  • 16K and over
USD, 2017. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2017

New York: 23,091 USDNew York23,091District of Columbia: 21,974 USDDistrict of Columbia21,974Connecticut: 19,322 USDConnecticut19,322New Jersey: 18,920 USDNew Jersey18,920Vermont: 18,290 USDVermont18,290Alaska: 17,838 USDAlaska17,838Wyoming: 16,537 USDWyoming16,537Massachusetts: 16,193 USDMassachusetts16,193Rhode Island: 15,962 USDRhode Island15,962Pennsylvania: 15,798 USDPennsylvania15,798New Hampshire: 15,683 USDNew Hampshire15,683Illinois: 15,337 USDIllinois15,337Delaware: 15,302 USDDelaware15,302Maryland: 14,848 USDMaryland14,848Hawaii: 14,322 USDHawaii14,322North Dakota: 13,760 USDNorth Dakota13,760Maine: 13,690 USDMaine13,690Minnesota: 12,647 USDMinnesota12,647Ohio: 12,645 USDOhio12,645Nebraska: 12,579 USDNebraska12,579California: 12,145 USDCalifornia12,145Washington: 11,989 USDWashington11,989Wisconsin: 11,968 USDWisconsin11,968Michigan: 11,907 USDMichigan11,907Virginia: 11,886 USDVirginia11,886West Virginia: 11,554 USDWest Virginia11,554Iowa: 11,461 USDIowa11,461Montana: 11,457 USDMontana11,457Oregon: 11,264 USDOregon11,264Louisiana: 11,199 USDLouisiana11,199Kansas: 10,961 USDKansas10,961South Carolina: 10,590 USDSouth Carolina10,590Missouri: 10,589 USDMissouri10,589Georgia: 10,205 USDGeorgia10,205Kentucky: 10,121 USDKentucky10,121Indiana: 10,045 USDIndiana10,045Arkansas: 9,967 USDArkansas9,967South Dakota: 9,939 USDSouth Dakota9,939New Mexico: 9,881 USDNew Mexico9,881Colorado: 9,809 USDColorado9,809Alabama: 9,511 USDAlabama9,511Texas: 9,375 USDTexas9,375Nevada: 9,320 USDNevada9,320Tennessee: 9,184 USDTennessee9,184Florida: 9,075 USDFlorida9,075North Carolina: 9,072 USDNorth Carolina9,072Mississippi: 8,771 USDMississippi8,771Arizona: 8,004 USDArizona8,004Oklahoma: 7,959 USDOklahoma7,959Idaho: 7,486 USDIdaho7,486Utah: 7,179 USDUtah7,179New York: 23,091 USDNew York23,091District of Columbia: 21,974 USDDistrict of Columbia21,974Connecticut: 19,322 USDConnecticut19,322New Jersey: 18,920 USDNew Jersey18,920Vermont: 18,290 USDVermont18,290Alaska: 17,838 USDAlaska17,838Wyoming: 16,537 USDWyoming16,537Massachusetts: 16,193 USDMassachusetts16,193Rhode Island: 15,962 USDRhode Island15,962Pennsylvania: 15,798 USDPennsylvania15,798New Hampshire: 15,683 USDNew Hampshire15,683Illinois: 15,337 USDIllinois15,337Delaware: 15,302 USDDelaware15,302Maryland: 14,848 USDMaryland14,848Hawaii: 14,322 USDHawaii14,322North Dakota: 13,760 USDNorth Dakota13,760Maine: 13,690 USDMaine13,690Minnesota: 12,647 USDMinnesota12,647Ohio: 12,645 USDOhio12,645Nebraska: 12,579 USDNebraska12,579California: 12,145 USDCalifornia12,145Washington: 11,989 USDWashington11,989Wisconsin: 11,968 USDWisconsin11,968Michigan: 11,907 USDMichigan11,907Virginia: 11,886 USDVirginia11,886West Virginia: 11,554 USDWest Virginia11,554Iowa: 11,461 USDIowa11,461Montana: 11,457 USDMontana11,457Oregon: 11,264 USDOregon11,264Louisiana: 11,199 USDLouisiana11,199Kansas: 10,961 USDKansas10,961South Carolina: 10,590 USDSouth Carolina10,590Missouri: 10,589 USDMissouri10,589Georgia: 10,205 USDGeorgia10,205Kentucky: 10,121 USDKentucky10,121Indiana: 10,045 USDIndiana10,045Arkansas: 9,967 USDArkansas9,967South Dakota: 9,939 USDSouth Dakota9,939New Mexico: 9,881 USDNew Mexico9,881Colorado: 9,809 USDColorado9,809Alabama: 9,511 USDAlabama9,511Texas: 9,375 USDTexas9,375Nevada: 9,320 USDNevada9,320Tennessee: 9,184 USDTennessee9,184Florida: 9,075 USDFlorida9,075North Carolina: 9,072 USDNorth Carolina9,072Mississippi: 8,771 USDMississippi8,771Arizona: 8,004 USDArizona8,004Oklahoma: 7,959 USDOklahoma7,959Idaho: 7,486 USDIdaho7,486Utah: 7,179 USDUtah7,179
USD. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2017
USD		Change on 2016
1New York23,091+3.2%
2District of Columbia21,974+8.6%
3Connecticut19,322+1.9%
4New Jersey18,920+2.8%
5Vermont18,290+2.3%
6Alaska17,838+1.9%
7Wyoming16,537+0.6%
8Massachusetts16,193+3.9%
9Rhode Island15,962+2.8%
10Pennsylvania15,798+2.3%
11New Hampshire15,683+2.2%
12Illinois15,337+8.2%
13Delaware15,302+4%
14Maryland14,848+4.5%
15Hawaii14,322+4.2%
16North Dakota13,760+2.9%
17Maine13,690+3.1%
18Minnesota12,647+2.1%
19Ohio12,645+4.5%
20Nebraska12,579+2.3%
21California12,145+5.6%
22Washington11,989+3.9%
23Wisconsin11,968+4.5%
24Michigan11,907+2%
25Virginia11,886+4%
26West Virginia11,554+2.3%
27Iowa11,461+2.8%
28Montana11,457+1%
29Oregon11,264+3.9%
30Louisiana11,199+1.5%
31Kansas10,961+10.1%
32South Carolina10,590+3.3%
33Missouri10,589+2.7%
34Georgia10,205+4.5%
35Kentucky10,121+2.6%
36Indiana10,045+1.9%
37Arkansas9,967+1.2%
38South Dakota9,939+8.3%
39New Mexico9,881+1.9%
40Colorado9,809+2.4%
41Alabama9,511+2.9%
42Texas9,375+4%
43Nevada9,320+4%
44Tennessee9,184+4.2%
45Florida9,075+1.7%
46North Carolina9,072+3.2%
47Mississippi8,771+0.8%
48Arizona8,004+5.1%
49Oklahoma7,959-1.7%
50Idaho7,486+4.6%
51Utah7,179+3.2%

Other periods

About this ranking

Current spending of public elementary and secondary school systems divided by their fall enrollment, in US dollars, from the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of School System Finances (Table 8).

More on how it is measured
  • Current spending is instruction plus support services such as administration, transport and food services; it leaves out capital outlay, debt interest, payments to other school systems, and adult education and other programs outside kindergarten to grade 12.
  • The year is the fiscal year, which ends on 30 June in most states (2024 means July 2023 to June 2024).

Current dollars, not adjusted for inflation or for price differences between states. NCES publishes a similar per pupil figure from its own finance survey with a different enrollment base, so the two differ slightly.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total (US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html

MLA 9

Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total, US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017. U.S. Census Bureau, 24 May 2021, https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2021. Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2021) Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total, US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_public_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total: US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017}},
  year = {2021},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total: US states by public school current spending per pupil, 2017
PY  - 2021
DA  - 2021/05/24
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/public-school-spending-per-pupil/us-states?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/school-finances/data/tables.html. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
Embed this chart

Paste this code into a web page or a blog post. The chart shows the latest figures as they are published, with the source and a link back to this page.

Sites that read oEmbed links, such as WordPress, can show the chart when you paste the link to this page.

Use this data in your AI agent

Invokely serves this figure to AI assistants through MCP and to code through a REST API, with the source and citation attached. Ask your assistant:

Rank US states by public school current spending per pupil using official data, and cite the source.
rank_places {"indicator":"public_school_current_spending_per_pupil","level":"region","within":"United States","limit":10}
GET https://invokely.ai/api/v1/rank?indicator=public_school_current_spending_per_pupil&level=region&within=United%20States&limit=10

Connect Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor in one step. The trial answers 25 calls a day without an account.

Questions

Which state has the highest public school current spending per pupil?

New York, with $23,091 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest public school current spending per pupil?

Utah, with $7,179 in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, Table 8: per pupil amounts for current spending of public elementary-secondary school systems by state, total. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

US states: more rankings