Students’ chances of tossing their graduation caps on time can vary widely by the US state where they attend high school.
In Alaska, the rate of students who graduate from high school in four years is 79.87%, compared to Kentucky’s 93.60%.
While graduation rates are one way to measure academic achievement and are used by local and state governments to track educational progress, they are complex metrics.
For starters, diploma requirements vary from state to state, meaning students in different states face different course and testing requirements to earn a diploma, influencing the rigor of education demonstrated by a high school degree.
Still, the diploma matters.
Across the nation, higher levels of education are almost always associated with higher earnings, and high school degrees are no different. On average, US adults aged 25 or over with a high school degree earn $8,216 more a year than those without one, according to Census data.
Using data from state education agencies and public data portals across all 50 states, Business Insider compiled a list of the most up-to-date high school graduation rates from each.
The US Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics regularly publishes an official list of all states’ high school graduation rates, but because of the adjustment process used for its calculations, the released data often lags by a couple of years. The most recent data, released in 2024, covers the 2021-2022 school year.
The graduation rates we used in our list come from the much more frequently updated state data.
While most percentages reflect the 2024-2025 school year, a handful of states had only 2023-2024 numbers publicly available. Those include: Connecticut, Delaware, Kansas, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Texas.
Most states follow the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate formula, which measures the share of first-time ninth graders who earn a regular high school diploma within four years.
The formula adjusts the cohort of students by adding those who transfer into the school system and removing students who transfer out, emigrate, or die.
To put graduation rates into context, we also listed each state’s public school spending per pupil and median household income.
See what percentage of public high school students graduate in four years in every state, and where yours falls in the nationwide ranking.
50. Alaska
Four-year high school graduation rate: 79.87%
Per-pupil education spending: $21,004
Median household income: $95,665
49. Arizona
Four-year high school graduation rate: 80.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,003
Median household income: $81,486
48. New Mexico
Four-year high school graduation rate: 80.63%
Per-pupil education spending: $17,664
Median household income: $67,816
47. Vermont
Four-year high school graduation rate: 82.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $28,818
Median household income: $82,730
46. Oklahoma
Four-year high school graduation rate: 82.20%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,162
Median household income: $66,148
45. Idaho
Four-year high school graduation rate: 82.50%
Per-pupil education spending: $11,060
Median household income: $81,166
44. Washington
Four-year high school graduation rate: 82.64%
Per-pupil education spending: $18,564
Median household income: $99,389
43. Oregon
Four-year high school graduation rate: 83.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $18,083
Median household income: $85,220
42. Wyoming
Four-year high school graduation rate: 83.10%
Per-pupil education spending: $20,521
Median household income: $75,532
41. North Dakota
Four-year high school graduation rate: 84.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $17,102
Median household income: $77,871
40. Michigan
Four-year high school graduation rate: 84.01%
Per-pupil education spending: $18,314
Median household income: $72,389
39. Rhode Island
Four-year high school graduation rate: 84.10%
Per-pupil education spending: $22,110
Median household income: $83,504
38. Minnesota
Four-year high school graduation rate: 84.90%
Per-pupil education spending: $17,098
Median household income: $87,117
37. Louisiana
Four-year high school graduation rate: 85.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,581
Median household income: $60,986
36. Nevada
Four-year high school graduation rate: 85.40%
Per-pupil education spending: $14,812
Median household income: $81,134
35. Montana
Four-year high school graduation rate: 85.41%
Per-pupil education spending: $13,656
Median household income: $75,340
34. New York
Four-year high school graduation rate: 85.50%
Per-pupil education spending: $31,918
Median household income: $85,820
33. Colorado
Four-year high school graduation rate: 85.60%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,908
Median household income: $97,113
31. (tie) Hawaii
Four-year high school graduation rate: 86.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $23,878
Median household income: $100,745
31. (tie) South Dakota
Four-year high school graduation rate: 86.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,828
Median household income: $76,881
30. Maryland
Four-year high school graduation rate: 86.40%
Per-pupil education spending: $20,208
Median household income: $102,905
29. South Carolina
Four-year high school graduation rate: 86.70%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,060
Median household income: $72,350
28. Georgia
Four-year high school graduation rate: 87.20%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,833
Median household income: $79,991
26. (tie) California
Four-year high school graduation rate: 87.50%
Per-pupil education spending: $20,791
Median household income: $100,149
26. (tie) North Carolina
Four-year high school graduation rate: 87.50%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,995
Median household income: $73,958
25. New Hampshire
Four-year high school graduation rate: 87.54%
Per-pupil education spending: $22,978
Median household income: $99,782
24. Nebraska
Four-year high school graduation rate: 87.90%
Per-pupil education spending: $16,147
Median household income: $76,376
23. Ohio
Four-year high school graduation rate: 88.30%
Per-pupil education spending: $17,257
Median household income: $72,212
22. Iowa
Four-year high school graduation rate: 88.80%
Per-pupil education spending: $14,369
Median household income: $75,501
21. Connecticut
Four-year high school graduation rate: 88.90%
Per-pupil education spending: $26,316
Median household income: $96,049
20. Illinois
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $21,776
Median household income: $83,211
19. Delaware
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.05%
Per-pupil education spending: $22,201
Median household income: $87,534
18. Maine
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.10%
Per-pupil education spending: $19,962
Median household income: $76,442
17. Pennsylvania
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.11%
Per-pupil education spending: $21,091
Median household income: $77,545
16. Mississippi
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.20%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,324
Median household income: $59,127
15. Massachusetts
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.30%
Per-pupil education spending: $24,429
Median household income: $104,828
14. Kansas
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.50%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,558
Median household income: $75,514
13. Utah
Four-year high school graduation rate: 89.80%
Per-pupil education spending: $11,347
Median household income: $96,658
12. Arkansas
Four-year high school graduation rate: 90.16%
Per-pupil education spending: $13,873
Median household income: $62,106
11. Texas
Four-year high school graduation rate: 90.70%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,895
Median household income: $79,721
10. Missouri
Four-year high school graduation rate: 91.40%
Per-pupil education spending: $14,241
Median household income: $71,589
9. New Jersey
Four-year high school graduation rate: 91.80%
Per-pupil education spending: $27,234
Median household income: $104,294
8. Indiana
Four-year high school graduation rate: 91.83%
Per-pupil education spending: $13,622
Median household income: $71,959
7. Wisconsin
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.00%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,952
Median household income: $77,488
6. Florida
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.20%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,693
Median household income: $77,735
5. Tennessee
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.30%
Per-pupil education spending: $12,882
Median household income: $71,997
4. Virginia
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.70%
Per-pupil education spending: $17,104
Median household income: $92,090
3. Alabama
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.77%
Per-pupil education spending: $13,627
Median household income: $66,659
2. West Virginia
Four-year high school graduation rate: 92.80%
Per-pupil education spending: $15,640
Median household income: $60,798
1. Kentucky
Four-year high school graduation rate: 93.60%
Per-pupil education spending: $14,596
Median household income: $64,526
