How many students are in public schools?
49,034,047 pupils were enrolled in public schools in the fifty states and the District of Columbia in the fall of 2024, the 2024–25 school year, 8.1% of them in charter schools, NCES records.
Data retrieved
The figures behind this
| State | Pupils | Share of the nation |
|---|---|---|
| California | 5,789,934 | 11.8% |
| Texas | 5,545,640 | 11.3% |
| Florida | 2,856,320 | 5.8% |
| New York | 2,503,633 | 5.1% |
| Illinois | 1,842,881 | 3.8% |
| Georgia | 1,744,185 | 3.6% |
| Pennsylvania | 1,666,699 | 3.4% |
| Ohio | 1,661,295 | 3.4% |
| North Carolina | 1,550,037 | 3.2% |
| Michigan | 1,369,409 | 2.8% |
| New Jersey | 1,355,569 | 2.8% |
| Virginia | 1,257,315 | 2.6% |
| Arizona | 1,102,246 | 2.2% |
| Washington | 1,094,502 | 2.2% |
| Indiana | 1,037,604 | 2.1% |
| Tennessee | 1,002,363 | 2.0% |
| Massachusetts | 915,932 | 1.9% |
| Maryland | 891,525 | 1.8% |
| Missouri | 885,243 | 1.8% |
| Minnesota | 875,579 | 1.8% |
| Colorado | 865,055 | 1.8% |
| Wisconsin | 805,901 | 1.6% |
| South Carolina | 796,780 | 1.6% |
| Alabama | 751,060 | 1.5% |
| Oklahoma | 697,358 | 1.4% |
| Utah | 684,604 | 1.4% |
| Louisiana | 666,840 | 1.4% |
| Kentucky | 655,997 | 1.3% |
| Oregon | 539,417 | 1.1% |
| Iowa | 497,102 | 1.0% |
| Arkansas | 491,268 | 1.0% |
| Connecticut | 490,969 | 1.0% |
| Kansas | 477,006 | 1.0% |
| Nevada | 474,586 | 1.0% |
| Mississippi | 431,206 | 0.9% |
| Nebraska | 330,483 | 0.7% |
| Idaho | 315,191 | 0.6% |
| New Mexico | 304,084 | 0.6% |
| West Virginia | 242,155 | 0.5% |
| Hawaii | 167,071 | 0.3% |
| Maine | 166,127 | 0.3% |
| New Hampshire | 162,945 | 0.3% |
| Montana | 147,049 | 0.3% |
| Delaware | 142,156 | 0.3% |
| South Dakota | 140,592 | 0.3% |
| Rhode Island | 133,879 | 0.3% |
| Alaska | 127,890 | 0.3% |
| North Dakota | 119,656 | 0.2% |
| District of Columbia | 94,038 | 0.2% |
| Wyoming | 89,915 | 0.2% |
| Vermont | 77,756 | 0.2% |
Where to go next
Sources
- NCES Common Core of Data — public schools, newest full school year — National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education · U.S. Government work · retrieved September 25, 2026