Table 1: State Rankings and Quality Checklist Sums
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State Access for 4-year-olds rank Access for 3-year-olds rank Resources rank based on state spending Resources rank based on all reported spending Quality standards checklist sum (maximum of 10) Alabama 18 None Served 18 17 10 Alaska 39 36 20 30 2.3 Arizona 45 30 14 25 3 Arkansas 24 8 26 19 8 California 14 15 4 5 4.1 Colorado 3 5 29 37 2 Connecticut 37 12 9 20 5.1 Delaware 42 24 8 11 9 District of Columbia 1 1 1 1 4 Florida 7 None Served 44 45 5 Georgia 10 None Served 19 29 10 Hawaii 43 25 16 28 10* Illinois 20 4 22 24 8 Iowa 6 21 40 43 6 Kansas 16 6 36 40 6 Kentucky 28 19 33 8 8 Louisiana 22 33 31 38 8.8 Maine 13 34 24 16 9 Maryland 19 18 17 15 7 Massachusetts 25 10 43 34 5.2 Michigan 17 None Served 6 9 10* Minnesota† 35 35 25 35 5.2 Mississippi 29 None Served 35 22 10 Missouri 30 28 42 44 5.1 Nebraska 23 11 45 13 6 Nevada 41 29 12 23 7 New Jersey 21 3 2 2 9 New Mexico 11 7 5 7 9 New York 9 9 21 4 7* North Carolina 32 None Served 27 26 9* North Dakota 40 None Served 23 32 5 Ohio 38 23 32 39 5 Oklahoma 5 27 30 10 9 Oregon 36 14 3 3 7.7 Pennsylvania† 27 13 15 27 6.6* Rhode Island 26 None Served 10 21 10 South Carolina 15 22 38 42 7 Tennessee 33 31 34 33 9 Texas 12 16 37 41 2 Utah 44 32 39 36 6 Vermont 2 2 11 12 7 Virginia** 31 26 28 18 5 Washington 34 17 7 6 8.0 West Virginia 4 20 13 14 9 Wisconsin 8 37 41 31 1 Indiana*** Work requirement Work requirement Work requirement Work requirement 2 Idaho No program No program No program No program No program Montana No program No program No program No program No program New Hampshire No program No program No program No program No program South Dakota No program No program No program No program No program Wyoming No program No program No program No program No program † At least one program in these states did not break down total enrollment figures into specific numbers of 3- and 4-year-olds served. As a result, enrollment by single year of age was estimated.
* Indicates that while a policy meets the benchmark, at least one benchmark in the program is not being fully implemented.
** Rankings and benchmarks reflect VPI only. Virginia’s two other early childhood education programs (Mixed-Delivery and CCSP) have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility and do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program.
*** Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program is similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because it has a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, the program does not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Indiana program information is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
Table 2: State Preschool Access By State
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Percent of children enrolled in state prekindergarten (2024-2025) Number of children enrolled in state prekindergarten (2024-2025) Access for 4-year-olds rank State 4-year-olds 3-year-olds Total (3s and 4s) 4-year-olds 3-year-olds Total (3s and 4s) 1 District of Columbia 94% 76% 85% 7,056 5,963 13,019 2 Vermont 72% 56% 65% 4,131 2,998 7,129 3 Colorado 70% 24% 47% 43,398 14,709 58,107 4 West Virginia 66% 7% 37% 11,904 1,279 13,183 5 Oklahoma 65% 3% 35% 32,794 1,370 34,164 6 Iowa 65% 6% 36% 25,065 2,337 27,402 7 Florida 63% 0% 32% 149,100 0 149,100 8 Wisconsin 59% 0.04% 30% 38,397 23 38,420 9 New York 56% 17% 37% 118,427 34,577 153,004 10 Georgia 53% 0% 27% 69,314 0 69,314 11 New Mexico 53% 22% 38% 11,633 4,796 16,429 12 Texas 52% 11% 32% 204,754 43,729 248,483 13 Maine 47% 1% 25% 6,116 80 6,196 14 California 46% 11% 29% 198,998 46,352 245,350 15 South Carolina 45% 6% 26% 26,940 3,549 30,489 16 Kansas 45% 22% 34% 16,116 7,745 23,861 17 Michigan 43% 0% 22% 47,981 0 47,981 18 Alabama 40% 0% 20% 24,238 0 24,238 19 Maryland 38% 8% 24% 27,947 5,799 33,746 20 Illinois 35% 26% 31% 49,026 34,562 83,588 21 New Jersey 35% 27% 31% 37,692 27,673 65,365 22 Louisiana 35% 1% 18% 19,403 481 19,884 23 Nebraska 34% 16% 25% 8,560 4,034 12,594 24 Arkansas 33% 19% 26% 12,197 6,723 18,920 25 Massachusetts 30% 16% 23% 21,038 11,182 32,220 26 Rhode Island 26% 0% 13% 2,864 0 2,864 27 Pennsylvania 26% 14% 20% 36,377 18,348 54,726 28 Kentucky 26% 8% 17% 14,030 4,072 18,102 29 Mississippi 23% 0% 11% 8,076 0 8,076 30 Missouri 22% 3% 13% 16,367 1,814 18,181 31 Virginia 22% 3% 12% 21,596 2,829 24,425 32 North Carolina 21% 0% 11% 26,707 0 26,707 33 Tennessee 20% 1% 11% 16,627 874 17,501 34 Washington 19% 9% 14% 16,282 7,256 23,538 35 Minnesota 18% 0.5% 9% 12,304 311 12,615 36 Oregon 17% 13% 15% 7,200 5,137 12,337 37 Connecticut 16% 14% 15% 5,862 5,312 11,174 38 Ohio 13% 5% 9% 17,432 6,162 23,594 39 Alaska 11% 0.2% 6% 1,053 22 1,075 40 North Dakota 11% 0% 5% 1,076 0 1,076 41 Nevada 10% 2% 6% 3,670 618 4,288 42 Delaware 9% 4% 6% 999 419 1,418 43 Hawaii 7% 4% 5% 1,060 577 1,637 44 Utah 2% 1% 2% 1,189 464 1,653 45 Arizona 2% 1% 2% 1,674 1,117 2,791 50 states + DC* 37% 9% 23% 1,424,670 315,293 1,739,963 Work requirement† Indiana 7% 0% 4% 6,018 0 6,018 Work requirement† Virginia MD & CCSP 7% 8% 7% 6,788 7,344 14,132 Guam 2% 0% 1% 52 0 52 No program Idaho 0% 0% 0% 0 0 0 No program Montana 0% 0% 0% 0 0 0 No program New Hampshire 0% 0% 0% 0 0 0 No program South Dakota 0% 0% 0% 0 0 0 No program Wyoming 0% 0% 0% 0 0 0 * Nationwide, an additional 55,184 children of other ages were enrolled in state prekindergarten, for a total of 1,795,147 children.
† Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program and Virginia’s Mixed Delivery and CCSP are similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because they have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, the programs do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Information on these programs is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
For details about how these figures were calculated, see the Methodology section and Roadmap to the State Profile Pages.
Table 3A: Change In Preschool Enrollment of 3-Year-Olds Over Time
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2001-2002 to 2024-2025 2019-2020 to 2024-2025 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 State Number % Served Number % Served Number % Served Alabama 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Alaska 22 0% -259 -2% -323 -3% Arizona 1,117 1% -595 -1% -1,253 -2% Arkansas 5,781 16% 72 2% -204 0% California 35,428 9% -9,886 0% 3,496 1% Colorado 13,979 22% 8,311 14% 5,571 9% Connecticut 3,777 11% -113 0% -273 -1% Delaware 419 4% 156 2% 21 0% District of Columbia 4,838 56% -472 3% -152 -6% Florida 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Georgia 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Hawaii 577 4% 577 4% 298 2% Idaho 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Illinois 20,464 18% 250 4% 994 2% Indiana** 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Iowa 1,826 5% 898 3% 35 0% Kansas 7,745 22% 6,349 19% 192 1% Kentucky -800 -2% -2,086 -3% -55 0% Louisiana 481 1% 481 1% 132 0% Maine 80 1% 80 1% 80 1% Maryland 4,391 6% 3,359 5% 572 1% Massachusetts 1,750 4% -840 0% -411 0% Michigan 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Minnesota* -504 -1% -225 0% -56 0% Mississippi 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Missouri -732 -1% 664 1% 649 1% Montana 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Nebraska 3,910 16% -286 0% 2 0% Nevada 507 1% 618 2% 163 0% New Hampshire 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% New Jersey 14,888 15% 5,414 5% 2,360 3% New Mexico 4,326 20% 3,226 16% 249 1% New York 28,742 15% 23,854 12% -5,410 -2% North Carolina 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% North Dakota 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Ohio -3,552 -2% 4,375 3% -1,764 -1% Oklahoma 1,370 3% -1,469 -3% -1,640 -3% Oregon 4,028 10% 1,551 5% 19 0% Pennsylvania* 18,348 14% 3,289 3% 843 1% Rhode Island 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% South Carolina 3,199 5% 3,292 6% 3,414 6% South Dakota 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Tennessee 32 0% 666 1% 17 0% Texas 23,988 5% 6,632 2% 1,139 0% Utah 464 1% -55 0% -257 -1% Vermont 2,629 51% -474 -2% -277 -1% Virginia*** 2,829 3% 2,829 3% -437 0% Washington 6,107 7% 1,922 3% 396 1% West Virginia -489 -1% 47 1% -32 0% Wisconsin -665 -1% -379 -1% -38 0% Wyoming 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% United States 211,300 6% 61,773 2% 8,060 0.3% Guam 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% * At least one program in these states did not break down total enrollment figures into specific numbers of 3- and 4-year-olds served. As a result, the figures in the table are estimates.
** Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program is similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because it has a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, the program does not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Indiana program information is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
*** 2024-2025 enrollment numbers reflect VPI only. Virginia’s two other early childhood education programs (Mixed-Delivery and CCSP) have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility and do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program.
Table 3B: Change In Preschool Enrollment of 4-Year-Olds Over Time
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2001-2002 to 2024-2025 2019-2020 to 2024-2025 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 State Number % served Number % served Number % served Alabama 23,482 39% 3,799 6% -402 -1% Alaska 1,053 11% -71 1% 113 1% Arizona -2,603 -4% -1,213 -1% -1,539 -2% Arkansas 9,973 27% -587 0% 120 1% California 154,464 38% 16,607 9% 19,007 5% Colorado 35,078 56% 26,860 46% -81 -1% Connecticut 1,445 6% -2,124 -5% 918 2% Delaware 156 1% 417 4% 159 1% District of Columbia 4,045 50% -300 10% -22 -1% Florida 149,100 63% -17,626 -8% -2,349 -2% Georgia 5,701 0% -11,014 -6% -2,212 -2% Hawaii -189 -1% 382 3% 326 2% Idaho 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Illinois 10,124 13% -1,654 2% 252 0% Indiana** 6,018 7% 2,501 3% -1,930 -2% Iowa 23,509 61% -1,670 -1% -541 -2% Kansas 13,886 39% 4,743 15% -84 0% Kentucky 1,213 2% -2,699 -4% -821 -2% Louisiana 11,884 23% -1,052 1% 237 1% Maine 4,676 38% 230 3% 22 1% Maryland 9,573 13% -2,722 -3% 446 0% Massachusetts 11,606 18% -576 0% 24 -1% Michigan 21,504 24% 10,613 11% 6,861 6% Minnesota* 11,034 16% 4,718 7% 4,803 7% Mississippi 8,076 23% 5,012 15% 931 3% Missouri 12,681 18% 10,726 15% 8,838 12% Montana 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Nebraska 8,204 32% -728 -1% -108 -1% Nevada 3,349 9% 600 2% 519 2% New Hampshire 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% New Jersey 13,811 14% 4,538 3% 1,137 0% New Mexico 11,263 51% 1,136 12% 85 2% New York 54,928 31% 9,011 8% -542 0% North Carolina 25,467 20% -4,352 -3% -597 -1% North Dakota 1,076 11% -159 -1% 180 2% Ohio 3,547 4% 1,349 1% -2,786 -2% Oklahoma 6,915 10% -4,423 -4% -555 -1% Oregon 4,611 11% 1,426 5% 14 0% Pennsylvania* 33,827 24% 4,331 4% 925 0% Rhode Island 2,864 26% 1,444 14% 500 5% South Carolina 11,290 16% -1,743 -2% -50 -1% South Dakota 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% Tennessee 14,869 17% -1,630 -2% -149 0% Texas 77,171 12% -6,515 1% -122 -1% Utah 1,189 2% -514 -1% -101 0% Vermont 3,511 64% -491 -4% -257 -3% Virginia*** 15,718 15% 2,437 3% -131 0% Washington 11,497 13% 7,616 9% 1,452 1% West Virginia 6,819 42% -1,487 -2% -160 -1% Wisconsin 24,893 40% -8,054 -9% -2,384 -4% Wyoming 0 0% 0 0% 0 0% United States 858,290 23% 44,592 3% 31,876 0.7% Guam 52 2% -19 0% 2 0% * At least one program in these states did not break down total enrollment figures into specific numbers of 3- and 4-year-olds served. As a result, the figures in the table are estimates.
** Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program is similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because it has a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, the program does not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Indiana program information is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
*** 2024-2025 enrollment numbers reflect VPI only. Virginia’s two other early childhood education programs (Mixed-Delivery and CCSP) have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility and do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program.
Table 4: 2024-2025 Enrollment of 3- and 4-Year-Olds In State Preschool, Preschool Special Education, And Federal And State Head Start
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Pre-K + Pre-K Special Education Pre-K + Pre-K Special Education + Head Start†† 3-Year-Olds 4-Year-Olds 3-Year-Olds 4-Year-Olds State Number Enrolled % of State Population Number Enrolled % of State Population Number Enrolled % of State Population Number Enrolled % of State Population Alabama† 902 2% 25,928 43% 5,137 9% 28,525 47% Alaska* 302 3% 1,408 15% 1,241 14% 2,431 26% Arizona 3,972 5% 6,794 8% 8,219 10% 12,891 16% Arkansas 8,468 24% 17,822 48% 10,386 29% 19,375 53% California 55,222 13% 203,406 47% 81,814 20% 220,823 51% Colorado† 14,709 24% 43,398 70% 16,722 27% 44,192 71% Connecticut† 7,594 21% 9,349 25% 9,445 26% 11,101 30% Delaware 1,352 13% 2,620 23% 1,565 14% 2,880 26% District of Columbia† 5,963 76% 7,073 94% 5,996 77% 7,105 95% Florida† 5,794 3% 158,878 67% 19,792 9% 165,038 70% Georgia† 2,677 2% 73,382 56% 10,971 9% 76,728 59% Hawaii 1,094 7% 2,129 13% 1,857 12% 3,111 20% Idaho 635 3% 1,353 6% 1,533 7% 2,610 11% Illinois† 34,562 26% 56,117 40% 42,301 32% 63,446 45% Indiana*,** 3,690 5% 13,275 16% 7,494 9% 17,376 21% Iowa† 2,402 7% 25,836 67% 4,426 12% 27,952 72% Kansas 7,745 22% 17,154 48% 9,705 28% 19,531 54% Kentucky† 4,072 8% 15,562 29% 9,044 17% 19,964 37% Louisiana* 1,146 2% 24,645 44% 8,666 15% 29,364 52% Maine† 538 5% 6,406 50% 1,343 11% 6,397 50% Maryland*,† 8,354 12% 30,855 42% 11,070 16% 32,401 44% Massachusetts† 11,182 16% 21,243 30% 15,009 22% 24,555 35% Michigan† 2,484 2% 47,981 43% 11,667 11% 50,842 46% Minnesota* 3,446 5% 19,901 29% 7,049 11% 23,445 34% Mississippi† 348 1% 9,492 27% 5,754 16% 16,097 46% Missouri* 4,579 7% 22,090 30% 9,533 14% 25,932 35% Montana 33 0.3% 363 3% 1,226 11% 1,840 16% Nebraska† 4,034 16% 8,678 34% 4,764 19% 9,333 37% Nevada† 2,183 6% 6,915 19% 3,225 9% 7,571 21% New Hampshire 962 8% 1,275 10% 1,354 11% 1,754 14% New Jersey† 34,002 33% 47,455 44% 37,264 36% 47,484 44% New Mexico† 5,756 27% 12,018 55% 8,107 38% 14,369 65% New York† 44,953 22% 125,577 59% 55,238 27% 133,346 63% North Carolina† 2,736 2% 32,908 26% 8,251 7% 36,925 30% North Dakota† 317 3% 1,967 19% 1,006 10% 2,879 28% Ohio 10,537 8% 29,195 21% 20,655 16% 40,228 29% Oklahoma 1,370 3% 33,638 67% 6,660 14% 36,615 73% Oregon 5,919 15% 10,277 24% 8,164 20% 12,294 29% Pennsylvania*,† 23,537 18% 52,430 38% 32,334 24% 62,515 45% Rhode Island† 599 6% 3,892 36% 1,329 13% 4,262 39% South Carolina 3,549 6% 26,940 45% 8,391 14% 29,908 50% South Dakota 328 3% 946 8% 1,586 14% 3,559 30% Tennessee† 2,593 3% 21,011 25% 7,681 9% 25,212 30% Texas† 47,513 12% 212,998 54% 64,290 16% 220,291 55% Utah* 2,397 5% 5,232 11% 4,067 9% 7,537 16% Vermont 2,998 56% 4,131 72% 3,233 61% 4,500 79% Virginia†,*** 12,269 13% 32,279 32% 16,458 17% 37,115 37% Washington 9,249 11% 20,175 23% 12,708 15% 24,171 28% West Virginia† 1,279 7% 11,904 66% 2,940 17% 12,141 67% Wisconsin 1,794 3% 39,529 61% 6,941 11% 43,112 66% Wyoming 436 7% 1,139 18% 952 15% 1,665 26% United States 407,232 11% 1,600,182 42% 629,219 17% 1,767,954 46% Guam 29 1% 111 4% 210 7% 464 15% * These states serve special education children in their state pre-K programs but were not able to provide the number of children for at least one of their programs. Estimates were used based on the average percent of special education students in state pre-K across all programs and enrollment numbers for each program or the percentage of children with an IEP in Head Start as reported in the PIR (MN Head Start only).
** Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program is similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because it has a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, the program does not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Indiana’s program information is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
*** Virginia’s enrollment includes VPI, Mixed Delivery, and CCSP to show a more comprehensive picture of children in the state enrolled in publicly funded early childhood education programs.
† At least one program in the state was able to report the number of children enrolled in state pre-K & Head Start. This information was used to estimate an unduplicated count of Head Start enrollment.
†† Totals can overestimate public enrollment in state pre-K, pre-K special education, and Head Start as some or all of Head Start children may be served in a state’s pre-K program and many states could not report this information.
For details about how these figures were calculated, see the Methodology section and the Roadmap to the State Profile Pages.
Table 5: 2024-2025 State Preschool Quality Standards
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State/ Program Early learning & development standards Curriculum supports Teacher has BA Specialized training in pre-K Assistant teacher has CDA or equiv. Staff professional development Class size 20 or lower Staff-child ratio 1:10 or better Vision, hearing & health screening & referral Continuous quality improvement system Quality standards checklist sum 2024-2025 Alabama ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 Alaska Pre-Elementary ✔ 1 Alaska EEP ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Alaska 0.5 ADM ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Arizona ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Arkansas ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8 California CSPP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 California TK ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Colorado ✔ ✔ 2 Connecticut CDCC ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Connecticut SR ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Connecticut Smart Start ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Delaware ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 District of Columbia ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 4 Florida ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Georgia ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 Hawaii EOEL ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 Hawaii SPCS ✔ ✔ ✔* ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10* Illinois ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8 Iowa Shared Visions ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Iowa SWVPP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Kansas ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Kentucky ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8 Louisiana 8(g) ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 Louisiana LA 4 ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Louisiana NSECD ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8 Maine ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Maryland ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 Massachusetts CPPI ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 Massachusetts Chapter 70 ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Michigan ✔ ✔ ✔* ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10* Minnesota HdSt ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Minnesota VPK/SRP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Mississippi ELC ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 Mississippi SIP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 Missouri Foundation Form. ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 4 Missouri QPK ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Nebraska ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Nevada ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 New Jersey ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 New Mexico ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 New York ✔ ✔ ✔* ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7* North Carolina ✔ ✔ ✔* ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9* North Dakota ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Ohio ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Oklahoma ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Oregon OPK ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Oregon Preschool Promise ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Pennsylvania RTL ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 4 Pennsylvania HSSAP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8 Pennsylvania K4 & SBPK ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Pennsylvania PKC ✔ ✔ ✔* ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 8* Rhode Island ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 10 South Carolina ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 Tennessee ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Texas ✔ ✔ 2 Utah ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 Vermont ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 7 Virginia VPI ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 5 Washington ECEAP ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Washington TK ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 West Virginia ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 9 Wisconsin ✔ 1 TOTAL 62 53 30 47 21 21 50 51 43 40 Indiana** ✔ ✔ 2 Virginia Mixed Delivery** ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 4 Virginia CCSP** ✔ ✔ ✔ 3 Guam ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ ✔ 6 * Indicates that while the policy meets the benchmark, it is not being fully implemented.
** Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program and Virginia’s Mixed Delivery and CCSP are similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because they have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, they do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Information on these programs is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
Table 6: State Pre-K Resources 2024-2025
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State Resource rank based on state spending State $ per child enrolled in preschool Change in total state per child spending from 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 Adjusted dollars Total state preschool spending in 2024-2025 Change in total state spending from 2023-2024 to 2024-2025 Adjusted dollars District of Columbia 1 $27,354 $3,127 $356,697,970 $36,444,483 New Jersey 2 $18,848 $604 $1,231,974,000 $103,290,612 Oregon 3 $17,072 -$1,912 $216,587,540 -$22,543,317 California 4 $14,907 -$1,587 $4,148,114,798 -$21,873,301 New Mexico 5 $13,761 $289 $226,084,608 $9,246,573 Michigan 6 $13,604 $606 $652,720,000 $118,264,216 Washington 7 $13,484 $438 $329,963,994 $45,399,141 Delaware 8 $12,052 $81 $17,090,424 $2,269,696 Connecticut 9 $10,464 $1,099 $133,143,028 $17,646,563 Rhode Island 10 $9,858 $193 $28,232,929 $5,385,882 Vermont 11 $9,591 $799 $73,025,082 -$133,489 Nevada 12 $9,226 -$657 $39,560,895 $3,923,860 West Virginia 13 $8,810 $760 $120,466,591 $8,862,817 Arizona 14 $8,723 $603 $26,875,278 -$24,464,419 Pennsylvania 15 $8,474 -$17 $479,719,969 $11,175,084 Hawaii 16 $8,109 $573 $13,273,747 $5,542,752 Maryland 17 $7,933 $1,662 $269,734,230 $62,963,083 Alabama 18 $7,651 $146 $185,448,382 $528,976 Georgia 19 $7,630 $1,111 $538,431,295 $72,157,626 Alaska 20 $7,150 $86 $8,158,561 -$1,145,285 New York 21 $6,719 $317 $1,028,061,297 $10,409,156 Illinois 22 $6,641 $356 $555,609,751 $37,242,858 North Dakota 23 $6,510 $279 $7,005,089 $1,421,869 Maine 24 $6,363 -$92 $41,012,213 -$49,661 Minnesota 25 $6,283 -$712 $79,260,540 $24,220,975 Arkansas 26 $6,278 $497 $127,617,130 $10,203,845 North Carolina 27 $6,254 -$995 $167,027,011 -$30,896,434 Virginia 28 $6,120 -$113 $149,480,336 -$6,300,712 Colorado 29 $5,817 -$11 $338,023,799 $31,380,217 Oklahoma 30 $5,749 $521 $207,632,498 $6,584,399 Louisiana 31 $5,584 -$198 $111,023,907 -$1,796,638 Ohio 32 $5,110 $781 $120,573,483 -$1,257,827 Kentucky 33 $5,080 -$634 $95,692,076 -$17,082,605 Tennessee 34 $4,886 -$107 $85,505,733 -$2,535,487 Mississippi 35 $4,832 $299 $39,022,295 $6,638,190 Kansas 36 $4,815 $169 $119,446,934 $6,836,219 Texas** 37 $4,395 -$373 $996,609,407 -$84,504,056 South Carolina 38 $3,947 -$387 $120,727,185 $2,957,556 Utah 39 $3,917 $529 $6,474,481 -$338,229 Iowa* 40 $3,885 $80 $97,813,323 -$585,985 Wisconsin*** 41 $3,882 $0 $165,861,752 -$6,549,371 Missouri 42 $3,095 -$1,839 $56,524,225 $13,124,189 Massachusetts 43 $3,046 $140 $105,715,076 $3,562,184 Florida 44 $2,946 $56 $443,714,085 $1,860,701 Nebraska 45 $2,008 -$258 $26,532,334 -$3,448,914 50 states + DC $8,124 $45 $14,387,269,279 $434,037,994 Indiana† Work Requirement $601 -$9,608 $3,616,054 -$77,527,198 Virginia MD & CCSP† Work Requirement $8,877 $125,456,530 Guam $9,410 -$77 $489,340 $14,987 Idaho No Program $0 $0 $0 $0 Montana No Program $0 $0 $0 $0 New Hampshire No Program $0 $0 $0 $0 South Dakota No Program $0 $0 $0 $0 Wyoming No Program $0 $0 $0 $0 * 2,446 children with instructional IEPs were served in Iowa’s SWVPP program but were funded by sources not reported by the state. Similar to prior years, these children were removed from the per-child spending calculations.
** Texas includes 21,742 Non-ADA eligible children in their enrollment total. These children are removed from state funding per child calculations.
*** Wisconsin could not report pre-K spending for 2023-2024 or 2024-2025. Spending is estimated based on 2022-2023 reported spending.
† Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program and Virginia’s Mixed Delivery and CCSP are similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because they have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, they do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Information on these programs is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
For details about how these figures were calculated, see the Methodology section and Roadmap to the State Profile Pages.
Table 7: All-Reported Pre-K Resources 2024-2025
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State Resource rank based on all-reported spending All-reported $ per child enrolled in preschool State reported non-state funds State $ per child enrolled in preschool Local $ per child enrolled in preschool Federal $ per child enrolled in preschool Total all-reported preschool spending District of Columbia 1 $27,354 No $27,354 $0 $0 $356,697,970 New Jersey 2 $18,848 No $18,848 $0 $0 $1,231,974,000 Oregon 3 $17,072 No $17,072 $0 $0 $216,587,540 New York 4 $16,940 Yes $6,719 $8,748 $1,473 $2,591,883,353 California 5 $15,125 Yes $14,907 $6 $213 $4,208,957,132 Washington 6 $13,875 Yes $13,484 $387 $4 $339,537,052 New Mexico 7 $13,761 No $13,761 $0 $0 $226,084,608 Kentucky 8 $13,685 Yes $5,080 $4,963 $3,642 $257,788,886 Michigan 9 $13,604 No $13,604 $0 $0 $652,720,000 Oklahoma 10 $12,433 Yes $5,749 $5,227 $1,457 $449,016,421 Delaware 11 $12,052 No $12,052 $0 $0 $17,090,424 Vermont 12 $11,937 Yes $9,591 $514 $1,832 $90,889,523 Nebraska 13 $11,926 Yes $2,008 $3,993 $5,925 $157,568,259 West Virginia 14 $11,918 Yes $8,810 $46 $3,061 $162,961,998 Maryland 15 $11,899 Yes $7,933 $3,966 $0 $404,601,350 Maine 16 $10,752 Yes $6,363 $4,334 $55 $69,298,384 Alabama 17 $10,741 Yes $7,651 $3,090 $0 $260,343,048 Virginia 18 $10,656 Yes $6,120 $3,640 $896 $260,272,406 Arkansas 19 $10,637 Yes $6,278 $3,479 $880 $216,214,079 Connecticut 20 $10,464 No $10,464 $0 $0 $133,143,028 Rhode Island 21 $9,933 Yes $9,858 $0 $75 $28,448,058 Mississippi 22 $9,470 Yes $4,832 $3,797 $841 $76,477,116 Nevada 23 $9,226 No $9,226 $0 $0 $39,560,895 Illinois 24 $9,179 Yes $6,641 $2,538 $0 $767,865,483 Arizona 25 $8,723 No $8,723 $0 $0 $26,875,278 North Carolina 26 $8,722 Yes $6,254 $710 $1,758 $232,940,748 Pennsylvania 27 $8,474 No $8,474 $0 $0 $479,719,969 Hawaii 28 $8,219 Yes $8,109 $110 $0 $13,453,747 Georgia 29 $7,630 No $7,630 $0 $0 $538,431,295 Alaska 30 $7,177 Yes $7,150 $0 $26 $8,188,561 Wisconsin*** 31 $7,047 Yes $3,882 $3,165 $0 $301,061,330 North Dakota 32 $6,510 No $6,510 $0 $0 $7,005,089 Tennessee 33 $6,509 Yes $4,886 $1,623 $0 $113,911,200 Massachusetts 34 $6,410 Yes $3,046 $2,669 $695 $222,470,448 Minnesota 35 $6,283 No $6,283 $0 $0 $79,260,540 Utah 36 $6,134 Yes $3,917 $0 $2,217 $10,139,286 Colorado 37 $5,817 No $5,817 $0 $0 $338,023,799 Louisiana 38 $5,584 No $5,584 $0 $0 $111,023,907 Ohio 39 $5,110 No $5,110 $0 $0 $120,573,483 Kansas 40 $4,815 No $4,815 $0 $0 $119,446,934 Texas** 41 $4,480 Yes $4,395 $0 $85 $1,015,817,221 South Carolina 42 $4,211 Yes $3,947 $0 $264 $128,789,930 Iowa* 43 $4,084 Yes $3,885 $199 $0 $102,827,175 Missouri 44 $3,095 No $3,095 $0 $0 $56,524,225 Florida 45 $2,963 Yes $2,946 $0 $17 $446,309,578 50 states + DC $9,988 Yes $8,124 $1,474 $391 $17,688,874,755 Indiana† Work Requirement $8,762 Yes $601 $0 $8,161 $52,731,271 Virginia MD & CCSP† Work Requirement $12,678 Yes $8,877 $0 $1,671 $179,158,494 Guam $9,410 No $9,410 $0 $0 $489,340 Idaho No program $0 NA $0 $0 $0 $0 Montana No program $0 NA $0 $0 $0 $0 New Hampshire No program $0 NA $0 $0 $0 $0 South Dakota No program $0 NA $0 $0 $0 $0 Wyoming No program $0 NA $0 $0 $0 $0 * 2,446 children with instructional IEPs were served in Iowa’s SWVPP program but were funded by sources not reported by the state. Similar to prior years, these children were removed from the per-child spending calculations.
** Texas includes 21,742 Non-ADA eligible children in their enrollment total. These children are removed from state funding per child calculations.
*** Wisconsin could not report pre-K spending for 2023-2024 or 2024-2025. Spending is estimated based on 2022-2023 reported spending.
† Indiana’s state-funded early childhood education program and Virginia’s Mixed Delivery and CCSP are similar to state-funded preschool in other states. However, because they have a parent work or education requirement for eligibility, they do not meet NIEER’s definition of a state-funded preschool program. Information on these programs is reported here but not in national totals or rankings.
For details about how these figures were calculated, see the Methodology section and Roadmap to the State Profile Pages.