Per Pupil Spending By State

Education forms the backbone of a society's development, shaping the minds and skills of the future generation. The quality of education, in turn, is often directly influenced by what is spent on it. In the United States, per-pupil spending, or the amount spent on education per student, varies greatly state by state due to factors like allocation of funds, teacher salaries, benefits, and administrative costs. According to data for the fiscal year 2022, U.S. states spend from as high as $30,282 to a low of $8,748 per student, demonstrating a wide disparity in educational investment.

• New York leads all states with the highest per-pupil spending at $30,282 which is a remarkable difference compared to the national average of $12,612 from the given reference.
• A look at the top five states in terms of per-pupil spending-New York, Vermont, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Massachusetts-reveals that they spend over $22,000 per pupil.
• On the other end of the spectrum is Idaho, which spends the least on each pupil at $8,748. This is almost a quarter of what New York spends on each of its students and way below the national average.
• Notably, all of the bottom five states in per-pupil spending- Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Utah, and Arizona- spend less than $10,000 per pupil.
• There is a substantial gap between the highest and lowest spending states, with New York spending almost 3.5 times more than Idaho.

At the top of the list is New York, spending an impressive amount of $30,282 per pupil in 2022, which sits significantly above the national average. 

Coming in second is Vermont, dedicating $24,666 in its annual budget for each student. New Jersey is not far behind at third place, spending $23,870 per pupil, followed by Connecticut ($23,455 per pupil) and Massachusetts ($22,913 per pupil).

On the sixth position is Alaska, spending a commendable $21,325 per pupil. Next in the standing are Illinois, Pennsylvania, Maine, and Wyoming, each spending over $19,000 per student annually. 

States that Spend the Most on Education

1. New York - $30,282
2. Vermont - $24,666
3. New Jersey - $23,870
4. Connecticut - $23,455
5. Massachusetts - $22,913
6. Alaska - $21,325
7. Illinois - $20,887
8. Pennsylvania - $20,005
9. Maine - $19,887
10. Wyoming - $19,887

The state with the lowest per-pupil spending is Idaho, allocating an average of just $8,748 for each student. This represents a significant departure from states like New York, which invests over three times as much per student.

Directly above Idaho, Arizona ranks second-lowest in terms of per-pupil spending, dedicating only about $9,072 to each student. Utah, with an average spending of $9,479 per student, ranks third from the bottom.

Oklahoma, with an allocation of $10,506 per pupil, ranks as the fourth lowest-spending state on education, followed by North Carolina which allot an average of $10,918 per pupil. Nevada, home to one of the largest school districts in the country, ranks sixth from the bottom with average student spending of $11,120. 

Even Tennessee, Florida, Mississippi, and Alabama, which possess higher per-student spending than the aforementioned states, each dedicate less than $12,092 per student, far below the national average.

States that Spend the Least on Education:

1. Idaho - $8,748
2. Arizona - $9,072
3. Utah - $9,479
4. Oklahoma - $10,506
5. North Carolina - $10,918
6. Nevada - $11,120
7. Tennessee - $11,607
8. Florida - $11,773
9. Mississippi - $11,929
10. Alabama - $12,092