How Much Does Your State Spend on Public Education?
Quality Verified
High-quality public education indirectly benefits everyone in the form of safer communities and lower police and corrections costs. High school graduates earn more, commit fewer crimes and are more likely to access credit, manage debt and get insurance.
Still, what does public education cost, and what is it worth? The answer depends on where you live. In New York, every high school graduate costs $338,000 in education expenses, while Idaho produces high school graduates for a mere $131,000.
MoneyGeek collected data in a study to rank each state by education spending. Find out how much your state spends on each high school graduate, the percent of high school students who graduate and how it compares to other states.
Alabama
BalanceFormCreative / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $194,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 36
Alaska
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $270,000
- Graduation Rate: 79%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 5
Arizona
antoniodiaz / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $133,000
- Graduation Rate: 79%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 49
Arkansas
Rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $201,000
- Graduation Rate: 89%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 29
California
David Tonelson / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $188,000
- Graduation Rate: 83%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 40
Colorado
Syda Productions / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $196,000
- Graduation Rate: 81%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 35
Connecticut
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- Cost Per Graduate: $244,000
- Graduation Rate: 88%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 8
Delaware
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- Cost Per Graduate: $240,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 11
Florida
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- Cost Per Graduate: $166,000
- Graduation Rate: 86%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 45
Georgia
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $211,000
- Graduation Rate: 82%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 26
Hawaii
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- Cost Per Graduate: $171,000
- Graduation Rate: 85%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 43
Idaho
Jacob Lund / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $131,000
- Graduation Rate: 81%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 50
Illinois
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- Cost Per Graduate: $196,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 34
Indiana
CandyBox Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $163,000
- Graduation Rate: 88%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 46
Iowa
Jacob Lund / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $230,000
- Graduation Rate: 91%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 14
Kansas
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- Cost Per Graduate: $208,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 27
Kentucky
Sean Locke Photography / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $193,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 37
Louisiana
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- Cost Per Graduate: $216,000
- Graduation Rate: 81%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 24
Maine
VGstockstudio / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $211,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 25
Maryland
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- Cost Per Graduate: $221,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 20
Massachusetts
Rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $217,000
- Graduation Rate: 88%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 22
Michigan
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $192,000
- Graduation Rate: 81%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 39
Minnesota
sirtravelalot / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $238,000
- Graduation Rate: 83%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 12
Mississippi
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $193,000
- Graduation Rate: 84%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 38
Missouri
Rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $197,000
- Graduation Rate: 89%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 32
Montana
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- Cost Per Graduate: $228,000
- Graduation Rate: 86%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 15
Nebraska
Jacob Lund / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $240,000
- Graduation Rate: 89%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 10
Nevada
antoniodiaz / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $206,000
- Graduation Rate: 83%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 28
New Hampshire
Rawpixel.com / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $221,000
- Graduation Rate: 89%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 21
New Jersey
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- Cost Per Graduate: $242,000
- Graduation Rate: 91%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 9
New Mexico
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- Cost Per Graduate: $198,000
- Graduation Rate: 74%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 31
New York
Syda Productions / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $338,000
- Graduation Rate: 82%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 1
North Carolina
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- Cost Per Graduate: $161,000
- Graduation Rate: 86%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 47
North Dakota
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- Cost Per Graduate: $286,000
- Graduation Rate: 88%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 4
Ohio
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $222,000
- Graduation Rate: 82%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 19
Oklahoma
Jacob Lund / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $166,000
- Graduation Rate: 82%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 44
Oregon
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $234,000
- Graduation Rate: 79%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 30
Pennsylvania
digidreamgrafix / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $253,000
- Graduation Rate: 86%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 7
Rhode Island
Syda Productions / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $265,000
- Graduation Rate: 84%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 6
South Carolina
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $222,000
- Graduation Rate: 81%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 18
South Dakota
Antonio Guillem / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $222,000
- Graduation Rate: 84%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 17
Tennessee
michaeljung / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $176,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 42
Texas
Laura Gunn / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $177,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 41
Utah
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $151,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 48
Vermont
Sean Locke Photography / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $314,000
- Graduation Rate: 85%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 3
Virginia
Jacob Lund / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $199,000
- Graduation Rate: 88%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 30
Washington
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- Cost Per Graduate: $226,000
- Graduation Rate: 87%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 16
West Virginia
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- Cost Per Graduate: $196,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 33
Wisconsin
Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $216,000
- Graduation Rate: 90%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 23
Wyoming
baipooh / Shutterstock.com
- Cost Per Graduate: $323,000
- Graduation Rate: 82%
- State Ranking Based on Highest Spending: 2
Sources
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. “Learn more, earn more: Education leads to higher wages, lower unemployment.” Accessed February 10, 2021.
- Rand Corporation. “The Benefits to Taxpayers from Increases in Students’ Educational Attainment, Educational Attainment and Public Revenues and Costs.” Accessed February 10, 2021.