America’s School Choice Programs Ranked by Participation, 2024 Edition
EdChoice tracks every private school choice program and student participation in those programs nationally. In this annual post, we rank all of those programs by participation counts, current at the time of this writing. This reflects the most recent information available, however not every program has released data from the 2023-24 school year.
Though participation is a key factor in analyzing school choice systems, it isn’t the only metric of success. Program design is just as important and impacts students and families who depend on these educational options. Look at the top few programs below, for example: many of these programs offer families tax relief for private school tuition. This type of program often fails to provide immediate financial support to families of all income levels.
We encourage readers to pay attention to the education savings account (ESAs), vouchers, tax-credit ESAs and tax-credit scholarships that rank high in participation because these program types better empower families with the flexibility and funding to meet their children’s individual learning needs. In 2024, ESA participation in particular is on the rise—perhaps a promising sign of the increasing accessibility of school choice.
This list of 70 programs includes every currently active program that has released participation data. While there are 80 private school choice programs across the country, 10 of those programs are new and haven’t reported data from their first year.
Learn more about each school choice program in the 2024 ABCs of School Choice where we provide the most recent participation data and much more. Order your copy today.
1. Illinois Tax Credits for Educational Expenses
Individual Tax Credit | 210,224 tax returns
2. Minnesota Education Deduction
Individual Tax Deduction | 145,623 tax returns
3. Florida Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options
Education Savings Account | 136,087 students
4. Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Education Savings Account | 125,657 students
5. Iowa Tuition and Textbook Tax Credit
Individual Tax Credit | 110,806 tax returns
6. Florida Family Empowerment Scholarships for Students with Unique Abilities
Education Savings Account | 83,499 students
7. Arizona Empowerment Scholarship Accounts
Education Savings Account | 73,221 students
8. Indiana Choice Scholarship Program
Voucher | 69,270 students
9. Louisiana Elementary and Secondary School Tuition Deduction
Individual Tax Deduction | 64,411 tax returns
10. Indiana Private School/Homeschool Deduction
Individual Tax Deduction | 57,628 tax returns
11. Pennsylvania Educational Improvement Tax Credit Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 54,241 students
12. Ohio Educational Choice Scholarship Program
Voucher | 35,981 students
13. Arizona Low-Income Corporate Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 34,337 students
14. Arizona Original Individual Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 33,806 students
15. Ohio Income-Based Scholarship Program
Voucher | 32,535 students
16. Wisconsin K–12 Private School Tuition Deduction
Individual Tax Deduction | 31,560 tax returns
17. Wisconsin Milwaukee Parental Choice Program
Voucher | 29,003 students
18. Arizona “Switcher” Individual Income Tax Credit Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 28,647 students
19. North Carolina Opportunity Scholarship Program
Voucher | 25,568 students
20. Pennsylvania Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credit Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 23,430 students
21. Georgia Qualified Education Expense Tax Credit
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 19,516 students
22. Wisconsin Parental Choice Program (Statewide)
Voucher | 19,205 students
23. Iowa Students First Education Savings Accounts
Education Savings Account | 18,893 students
24. Minnesota K-12 Education Credit
Individual Tax Credit | 18,191 tax returns
25. Iowa School Tuition Organization Tax Credit
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 12,673 students
26. Indiana School Scholarship Tax Credit
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 11,405 students
27. Illinois Invest In Kids Tax-Credit Scholarship
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 9,656 students
28. Ohio Jon Peterson Special Needs Scholarship Program
Voucher | 7,244 students
29. Ohio Cleveland Scholarship Program
Voucher | 6,693 students
30. West Virginia Hope Scholarship Accounts
Education Savings Account | 5,791 students
31. Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program
Voucher | 5,788 students
32. Louisiana Student Scholarships for Educational Excellence Program
Voucher | 5,541 students
33. Virginia Education Improvement Scholarships Tax Credits Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 4,843 students
34. New Hampshire Education Freedom Accounts
Education Savings Account | 4,770 students
35. Maine Town Tuitioning Program
Voucher | 4,701 students
36. Ohio Autism Scholarship Program
Voucher | 4,462 students
37. Wisconsin Parental Private School Choice Program (Racine)
Voucher | 4,038 students
38. Vermont Town Tuitioning Program
Voucher | 3,551 students
39. North Carolina Education Student Accounts (ESA+)
Education Savings Account | 3,377 students
40. Maryland Broadening Options and Opportunities for Students Today (BOOST) Program
Voucher | 3,248 students
41. Alabama Education Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 2,829 students
42. Wisconsin Special Needs Scholarship Program
Voucher | 2,703 students
43. Louisiana Tuition Donation Credit Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 2,444 students
44. Oklahoma Equal Opportunity Education Scholarships
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 2,113 students
45. Tennessee Education Savings Account Pilot Program
Education Savings Account | 1,972 students
46. D.C. Opportunity Scholarship Program
Voucher | 1,707 students
47. Nevada Educational Choice Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,685 students
48. South Dakota Partners in Education Tax Credit Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,500 students
49. South Carolina Educational Credit for Exceptional Needs Children
Individual Tax Credit | 1,365 tax returns
50. Arizona Lexie’s Law Corporate Tax Credits
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,345 students
51. Kansas Low Income Students Scholarship
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,340 students
52. Oklahoma Lindsey Nicole Henry (LNH) Scholarship Program for Children with Disabilities
Voucher | 1,256 students
53. New Hampshire Education Tax Credit Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,228 students
54. Montana Tax Credits for Contributions to Student Scholarship Organizations
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 1,050 students
55. Missouri Empowerment Scholarship Accounts
Tax-Credit Education Savings Account | 970 students
56. Utah Carson Smith Special Needs Scholarship Program
Voucher | 900 students
57. Puerto Rico Free School Selection Program
Voucher | 878 students
58. Arkansas Succeed Scholarship Program for Students with Disabilities
Voucher | 795 students
59. South Carolina Refundable Educational Credit for Exceptional Needs Children
Individual Tax Credit | 564 tax returns
60. Florida Hope Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 538 students
61. Rhode Island Tax Credits for Contributions to Scholarship Organizations
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 470 students
62. Louisiana School Choice Program for Certain Students with Exceptionalities
Voucher | 428 students
63. Indiana Education Scholarship Account Program
Education Savings Account | 412 students
64. Mississippi Equal Opportunity for Students with Special Needs Program
Education Savings Account | 381 students
65. Utah Special Needs Opportunity Scholarship Program
Tax-Credit Scholarship | 345 students
66. Tennessee Individualized Education Accounts
Education Savings Account | 338 students
67. Mississippi Dyslexia Therapy Scholarship for Students with Dyslexia Program
Voucher | 237 students
68. Alabama Accountability Act of 2013 Parent-Taxpayer Refundable Tax Credits
Individual Tax Credit | 44 tax returns
69. New Hampshire Town Tuitioning Program
Voucher | 17 students
70. Mississippi Nate Rogers Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program
Voucher | 10 students
