Which states pay homeschoolers, and how
Official sources show 22 state programs in 20 states that pay toward a homeschooled student's costs: 16 as an account or scholarship, 6 as a state income tax break. Every line below is quoted from a legislature or education agency page, with the testing rule each state sets.
- Pays through an account or scholarship 14
- Account and a tax break 1
- Pays through a state income tax break 5
- Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers 10
- No official source read says it pays 21
10Test or evaluation every year
5Test or evaluation in set grades or years
8No test required by the state
8Other arrangement (see the rule)
20Not in our sourced summary
Testing rule under each state's homeschool law, out of 51 (50 states and DC). Program tests are separate: they are in the program lines below.
The programs that pay
| State | Program | How it pays | What the official source says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | CHOOSE Act education savings account | Account or scholarship | The CHOOSE Act gives $2,000 per participating student in a home education program, including individual or group programs, homeschool and co-ops, capped at $4,000 per family. On the 2026-27 renewal application, home education program students do not need to give a participating school name. Source Source 2 |
| Alaska | Correspondence study student allotments (AS 14.03.310) | Account or scholarship | A school district or the state department that runs a correspondence study program may give the parent an annual student allotment for the instructional expenses of a student enrolled in that program. A parent may use the allotment to buy nonsectarian services and materials from a public, private or religious organization, subject to conditions the law lists. A correspondence student's individual learning plan includes the statewide assessments required for public schools. Source |
| Arizona | Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) | Account or scholarship | The ESA is a separate option from homeschool under 15-802. A child in an ESA is educated outside any district or charter school, and the parent may, but does not have to, use a private school. Source |
| Arkansas | Arkansas Education Freedom Account | Account or scholarship | The department's home school office says homeschool families can take part in the Education Freedom Account program. A homeschooled child who takes part in the Education Freedom Account program is required to take a test. Source |
| Florida | Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities (FES-UA) | Account or scholarship | For a student with a disability, the law lists tuition and fees for a home education program among the allowed uses of scholarship funds. A student who qualifies for the Family Empowerment Scholarship under the disability route (paragraph (3)(b)) can stay eligible while enrolled in a home education program. Source |
| Florida | Personalized Education Program (PEP), under the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship | Account or scholarship | PEP gives students who are not enrolled full time in a public or private school an education savings account for approved expenses. Florida law defines a personalized education program as parent-directed instruction registered with a scholarship-funding organization under 1002.395. It is a separate status from a home education program. PEP is open to all families, whatever their income. Eligible expenses listed for PEP include instructional materials and a home education instructional program. Source Source 2 |
| Georgia | Georgia Promise Scholarship | Account or scholarship | The Georgia Promise Scholarship funds nonpublic schooling, including private school and home study. One way a student meets the program's student type rule is being currently enrolled in, and previously enrolled in, a Georgia public school for the prior two full semesters. Home study students in the program are responsible for meeting the program's testing and reporting requirements themselves. Source Source 2 |
| Illinois | Illinois Education Expense Credit | State income tax credit or deduction | Parents of a student taught in a home school that meets Section 26-1 of the School Code can claim the state Education Expense Credit. The credit is 25% of qualified expenses after the first $250. For home schools, qualifying costs include workbooks and teacher's grade books that are used up during the class. Source |
| Indiana | Indiana Private School/Homeschool Deduction (state income tax) | State income tax credit or deduction | Parents may deduct up to $1,000 per qualifying child who is enrolled in a private school or homeschooled, for education expenses. Source |
| Indiana | Indiana Education Scholarship Account (INESA) | Account or scholarship | INESA spending options include home education. INESA is for students with a disability that requires special education services, or siblings of approved INESA students. Homeschoolers can apply for INESA if they meet its requirements. A student who enrolls is no longer considered an independent homeschooler. Source |
| Iowa | Iowa Tuition and Textbook Credit (state income tax) | State income tax credit or deduction | Parents of dependents receiving private instruction (homeschooling) can claim the Tuition and Textbook Credit. The credit is 25% of the first $2,000 of qualifying expenses per dependent. Eligible tuition includes tuition for competent private instruction under Iowa Code 299A.2. Source |
| Louisiana | Louisiana deduction for home-schooled children's educational expenses (state income tax) | State income tax credit or deduction | Parents can deduct 50% of what they paid in qualified home-schooling expenses for each child. The Department of Revenue says the deduction is 50% of costs per dependent, up to $6,000, for a home-schooled dependent. Qualified expenses include textbooks and curricula needed for home-schooling. Source Source 2 |
| Minnesota | Minnesota K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit (state income tax) | State income tax credit or deduction | Families who home school may qualify for the K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit. The child must attend kindergarten to 12th grade at a public, private or qualified home school. Home schooling expenses may qualify if they are for supplies and materials for subjects taught during the normal public school day. The subtraction has no income limit and no filing status requirement. Source Source 2 Source 3 |
| Missouri | MOScholars (Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Program) | Account or scholarship | MOScholars scholarships can be used at an FPE (Family Paced Education) school, a home-based school defined in RSMo 167.013, which the law lists as a qualified school. An FPE school may enroll children who take part in MOScholars. Source Source 2 |
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire Education Freedom Accounts | Account or scholarship | An EFA student does not have to be enrolled in a private or online school. EFA money can pay for tutoring and for textbooks, curriculum and other instructional materials, among other listed expenses. A family cannot be in both programs at once: a home education program under RSA 193-A ends when the student starts in the EFA program, and EFA students are exempt from attendance under their own clause. Source |
| North Carolina | ESA+ (Personal Education Student Accounts for students with disabilities) | Account or scholarship | ESA+ money may pay for curricula, among other listed expenses, but may not pay tuition and fees for a Part 3 (home) school. For ESA+, the law counts a school meeting Part 1, 2 or 3 of Article 39 as a nonpublic school, and Part 3 is the home school part. Eligible students must be children with a disability. Source Source 2 |
| Ohio | Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship and Autism Scholarship | Account or scholarship | The department's fact sheet says home educated children may be eligible for the Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship or the Autism Scholarship and must find an approved provider to apply. Source |
| Oklahoma | Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit, homeschool tax credit | State income tax credit or deduction | Since tax year 2024, Oklahoma taxpayers who pay qualified expenses for a homeschooled student can claim a refundable income tax credit of up to $1,000 per student. Qualified expenses include textbooks, curriculum and other instructional materials, along with online learning program fees, academic tutoring and standardized test fees. Proof of purchase is required for each student. The rules say the credit cannot be claimed for expenses during a semester when the student was enrolled in a public or private school. Source Source 2 |
| Texas | Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) | Account or scholarship | An awarded child who is homeschooled receives $2,000 a year. Homeschool students receive 100% of their award at once, while private school students are paid in parts. Source |
| Utah | Utah Fits All Scholarship | Account or scholarship | Utah Fits All pays a home-based scholarship student up to $4,000 a year at ages 5 to 11 (age on September 1). Utah Fits All pays a home-based scholarship student up to $6,000 a year at ages 12 to 18 (age on September 1). Source |
| West Virginia | Hope Scholarship | Account or scholarship | Hope can be used for homeschool curriculum as well as tuition and other qualifying expenses. From 2026-27, existing traditional homeschool students who were not eligible before can apply. Source Source 2 |
| Wyoming | Steamboat Legacy Scholarship (Wyoming ESA) | Account or scholarship | Eligible students receive $7,000 a year for approved costs including curriculum and tutoring as well as private school tuition. The ESA law does not require enrollment in a private school, and a child taught individually outside a school with an ESA is not counted as a home-based educational program student. Source Source 2 |
State by state
Funding and the testing rule for every state and DC. Each state name opens its homeschool law page, where every rule is quoted in full.
| State | State money for homeschooling | Testing rule |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Pays through an account or scholarship CHOOSE Act education savings account | Not in our sourced summary |
| Alaska | Pays through an account or scholarship Correspondence study student allotments (AS 14.03.310) | Not in our sourced summary |
| Arizona | Pays through an account or scholarship Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Account (ESA) | No test required by the state The state testing article does not require testing children while they are being homeschooled. Source |
| Arkansas | Pays through an account or scholarship Arkansas Education Freedom Account | No test required by the state Homeschooled students who do not take part in the Education Freedom Account program are not required to take standardized tests. Source |
| California | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Colorado | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers The Colorado Department of Education says there is no public funding available for homeschool. Source | Test or evaluation in set grades or years Each child is evaluated in grades 3, 5, 7, 9 and 11, either by a nationally standardized achievement test or by a qualified person. Source |
| Connecticut | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Delaware | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| District of Columbia | No official source read says it pays | Other arrangement (see the rule) OSSE says homeschooled children may take part, free of charge, in the standardized testing given at the public school they could attend. Source |
| Florida | Pays through an account or scholarship Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities (FES-UA); Personalized Education Program (PEP), under the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship | Test or evaluation every year The parent must arrange an annual educational evaluation that documents the student's progress at a level that fits the student's ability. Source |
| Georgia | Pays through an account or scholarship Georgia Promise Scholarship | Test or evaluation in set grades or years Home study students take a nationally standardized test at least every three years. Source |
| Hawaii | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation every year The parent must submit a report on the child's progress every year. Source |
| Idaho | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Illinois | Pays through a state income tax break Illinois Education Expense Credit | No test required by the state Standardized tests are not required, and any test results do not have to be sent to a school or state agency. Source |
| Indiana | Account and a tax break Indiana Private School/Homeschool Deduction (state income tax); Indiana Education Scholarship Account (INESA) | No test required by the state No state testing or other testing is required for homeschooled children. Source |
| Iowa | Pays through a state income tax break Iowa Tuition and Textbook Credit (state income tax) | Other arrangement (see the rule) For CPI Option 2 students with optional reporting or dual enrollment, the annual progress evaluation is due by May 31. Source |
| Kansas | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Kentucky | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers The department says there is no state financial assistance for families who homeschool. Source | Not in our sourced summary |
| Louisiana | Pays through a state income tax break Louisiana deduction for home-schooled children's educational expenses (state income tax) | Other arrangement (see the rule) Home study students are not required to take state assessments. Source |
| Maine | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers The department says there is no fee for home instruction, but parents bear all costs. Source | Test or evaluation every year Every year after the first, parents submit an annual assessment of the student's progress. Source |
| Maryland | No official source read says it pays | Other arrangement (see the rule) A local school system representative may review the portfolio and discuss the program no more than three times a school year. Source |
| Massachusetts | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Michigan | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers The department's nonpublic and home school manual says the Michigan Constitution bars public money paid directly or indirectly to aid or maintain any private, denominational or nonpublic school. Source | Not in our sourced summary |
| Minnesota | Pays through a state income tax break Minnesota K-12 Education Subtraction and Credit (state income tax) | Test or evaluation every year Each year, children ages 7 through 16 who are not enrolled in public school must take a nationally norm-referenced standardized achievement test. Source |
| Mississippi | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| Missouri | Pays through an account or scholarship MOScholars (Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts Program) | Not in our sourced summary |
| Montana | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers Scholarships under Montana's tax credit program go to qualified education providers, and the law says a qualified provider is not a home school. Source | Not in our sourced summary |
| Nebraska | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers The department says no funding is available through it for exempt schools. Source | No test required by the state The department says standardized testing is not required of exempt school students. Source |
| Nevada | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| New Hampshire | Pays through an account or scholarship New Hampshire Education Freedom Accounts | Other arrangement (see the rule) In child protection proceedings, the state may not treat a lack of notice, records, evaluations or assessments in a home education program run under the chapter as a failure to provide education. Source |
| New Jersey | No official source read says it pays | Other arrangement (see the rule) The department says the parent is responsible for the child's educational outcomes, and the local board is not required or authorized to monitor them. Source |
| New Mexico | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| New York | No official source read says it pays | Not in our sourced summary |
| North Carolina | Pays through an account or scholarship ESA+ (Personal Education Student Accounts for students with disabilities) | Test or evaluation every year G.S. 115C-564 makes the testing requirement annual for home schools. Source |
| North Dakota | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation in set grades or years In grades 4, 6, 8 and 10 the child takes the district's standardized achievement test or, at the parent's request, a nationally normed one, given by a licensed or approved teacher. Source |
| Ohio | Pays through an account or scholarship Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship and Autism Scholarship | Not in our sourced summary |
| Oklahoma | Pays through a state income tax break Oklahoma Parental Choice Tax Credit, homeschool tax credit | No test required by the state The department says the law does not require state testing of homeschooled students. Source |
| Oregon | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation in set grades or years Homeschooled children are tested at grades 3, 5, 8 and 10 on a state approved exam given by a qualified neutral person, and the parent submits results to the ESD if the superintendent asks. Source |
| Pennsylvania | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation every year In grades 3, 5 and 8 the portfolio must include results of nationally normed standardized tests in reading/language arts and math, or the statewide tests. The parent may not give the test. Source |
| Rhode Island | No official source read says it pays | Other arrangement (see the rule) No set test: the parent and the school committee agree on how the child's progress in the required subjects will be evaluated. Source |
| South Carolina | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers Excluded: each year an ESTF parent attests that the child will not take part in a home instruction program under Options 1, 2 or 3. Source | Other arrangement (see the rule) Option 1 students take part in the annual statewide testing program for their grade level. Source |
| South Dakota | No official source read says it pays | No test required by the state The department's guide for districts lists standardized testing as not required for alternative instruction learners. Source |
| Tennessee | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers A homeschooled student may apply, but receives EFS funds only after enrolling in an EFS-registered Category I, II or III non-public school. Source | Test or evaluation in set grades or years Independent home school students in grades 5, 7 and 9 take a nationally normed test chosen by the parent or the state test given to public school students. Source |
| Texas | Pays through an account or scholarship Texas Education Freedom Accounts (TEFA) | Not in our sourced summary |
| Utah | Pays through an account or scholarship Utah Fits All Scholarship | No test required by the state A local school board may not require standardized or other testing of home school students. Source |
| Vermont | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers Excluded: the Agency of Education says no state or local money pays for a home study program. Source | Test or evaluation every year Progress is assessed at the end of each year by one of the permitted methods, such as a standardized test, a review by a Vermont certified teacher, or a parent report and portfolio. Source |
| Virginia | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation every year By August 1 after each year, parents submit either a test score at or above the fourth stanine on a nationally normed achievement test (or equivalent ACT, SAT or PSAT score) or an evaluation showing adequate progress. This does not apply to children under 6 on September 30. Source |
| Washington | No official source read says it pays | Test or evaluation every year Each year the child takes a standardized achievement test approved by the State Board of Education, given by a qualified person, or gets an annual progress assessment written by a certificated person working in education. Source |
| West Virginia | Pays through an account or scholarship Hope Scholarship | Test or evaluation every year Each year the child is assessed: a nationally normed achievement test, the public school testing program, a portfolio review by a certified teacher, or an alternative assessment agreed with the superintendent. Source |
| Wisconsin | Official source says no state money, or the program excludes homeschoolers Excluded: the department does not provide curriculum, materials or money for curriculum for homeschooling. Source | Not in our sourced summary |
| Wyoming | Pays through an account or scholarship Steamboat Legacy Scholarship (Wyoming ESA) | Not in our sourced summary |
Download every row with all quoted lines and source links: homeschool-funding-by-state.csv (CC BY 4.0).
How we built it
- Official sources only. Each line comes from a state legislature's statute page or the state education, revenue or program agency, never an advocacy group or a news report. Every summary carries the exact words it rests on, and a script re-opened each cited page and found those words on it before the line could publish. Sources were read October 8, 2026.
- Pays. A program counts when its own agency page or statute says it pays toward a homeschooled student's costs, or names home education among the costs it covers. We read every line before marking it. Some programs listed here change the child's legal status: in Arizona, a family enrolling in the ESA signs that it will not file a homeschool affidavit, and in New Hampshire a home education program ends when an Education Freedom Account starts. The program lines quote those rules.
- How it pays. "Account or scholarship" means the program pays or reimburses costs from a state account, allotment or scholarship. "Tax break" means a state income tax credit, subtraction or deduction the family claims.
- Amounts are printed only where the official source states one, in its own terms ("up to", "per family", "25% of"). We do not convert or estimate any amount.
- Testing rule is our reading of the quoted assessment lines in the state's homeschool law, set by hand and printed beside the quote. Where the quoted rule covers only one of a state's homeschool options (South Carolina, Iowa) or sets no fixed test, the state is marked "other arrangement". States whose testing rule we could not quote from an official page are marked "not in our sourced summary"; that is a gap in our reading, not a finding that no rule exists.
- We could not read an official source for California, Mississippi, New Mexico and New York, so those states show no law or funding facts. Law summaries are not legal advice.
Questions
Which states pay homeschoolers?
By their official sources: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming. 16 of the 22 programs put money in an account or scholarship; the other 6 are state income tax credits or deductions.
Can I use an ESA to homeschool?
In 15 states, an official source says an account or scholarship program pays toward a homeschooled student's costs. Rules differ: some programs pay a set amount for homeschooled students, some require testing, and in some states a child in the program is no longer legally a homeschooler. Each state's line below quotes the rule.
Which states require homeschool testing?
Of the 30 states and DC whose rule we quote, every year: Florida, Hawaii, Maine, Minnesota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia. In set grades or years: Colorado, Georgia, North Dakota, Oregon and Tennessee. No test required by the state: Arizona, Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Utah.
Why is my state marked "no official source read says it pays"?
That means none of the official pages we read says a state program pays homeschooled students. It is not a finding that no money exists. Where an official page says there is none, the state is marked that way instead.
Can I reuse this data?
Yes. The CSV has one row per state with every quoted line and its source link, under CC BY 4.0: cite ChoiceFunded and link to this page.
Sources
State statutes on each legislature's site and pages of state education, revenue and program agencies, each linked beside the line it supports and in the CSV. The law in full, state by state: homeschool laws by state. Programs that pay private school costs: what each state pays. This page is rebuilt with the site, most recently . More studies: ChoiceFunded research.