The 2025 EdChoice Friedman Index 

All Students, All Options, All Dollars 

“We are at the beginning of the task because as of the moment vouchers are available to only a very small amount of children. Our goal is to have a system in which every family in the U.S. will be able to choose for itself the school to which its children go.”

Milton Friedman (2003)

How much private educational choice is really available to families in your state? To measure how much K–12 choice is available, we have created the EdChoice Friedman Index which evaluates three key factors: student eligibility–the percentage of children who can participate in taxpayer-funded private K–12 choice programs; flexible use of funds–assessing whether families can apply these funds not only to private school tuition but also to other educational expenses such as tutoring, textbooks, test fees, and special needs therapies; and funding parity–determining whether choice programs receive funding comparable to state and local per-student allocations for public schools. 

The full report on this new index may be accessed here.   

The EdChoice Friedman Index ranges from 0 to 100. To achieve a score of 100 on the index, a given state must meet each of the following three criteria: 

• “All Students”: 100% of the students in the state are eligible to participate in a choice program, with funding available for all who wish to participate (universal funded eligibility).2  

• “All Options”: All choice students are able to participate in choice programs that permit multiple uses, which means families have the opportunity to use the taxpayer funds placed in their child’s account to offset tuition payments at private schools and to purchase educational goods and services outside of schools, (e.g. tutoring, textbooks, test fees, special needs therapies, etc.).                                                                                                             

• “All Dollars”: Average awards per choice student are equal to the average state and local revenue per public school student, which means that choice students receive the same amount of funding as public school students (sans federal funding), on average. 

The 2025 EdChoice Friedman Index Results 

The 2025 EdChoice Friedman Index, based on the formula presented in the next section and the most recent data available, is shown in Table 1. Florida and Arizona have the highest EdChoice Friedman Index scores. Florida’s score of 77 reflects that all children in the state are eligible to participate in and may actually receive funding from a choice program (“All Students”), and that all children may access a multi-use ESA, where their parents may use their award dollars to access approved educational services outside of school walls (“All Options”).  

What Florida, Arkansas, Alabama, Arizona, and several other states have achieved in permitting families to have more educational choice opportunities is truly remarkable! Advocates in those states and their legislative and gubernatorial allies should feel very good about their tremendous accomplishments.  

That said, the job is not done.  For example, the Sunshine State has room to grow in respect to “All Dollars.” Florida’s awards to families are, on average, 77% as large as state plus local revenues per pupil in Florida public schools. If Floridians want to move even closer to Milton and Rose Friedman’s vision of universal choice, they will seek to increase average awards to choice students until they are equal to state plus local funding for public students. 

Another state with room to grow is Utah. Utah has universal eligibility, but its funded eligibility is quite low (there is funding available for only 2% of Utah students). Utah would have the nation’s highest EdChoice Friedman Index score if it provided funding for all children whose families wish to participate in the Beehive State’s choice programs.  

The remaining states do not have private choice programs and consequently receive an index score of zero.  

The purpose of the index is not to point fingers at states that have a low score, even a score of “1.” Every state that has implemented a choice program has taken an important step toward expanding educational opportunities for families, and that progress should be recognized. The genius of the EdChoice Friedman Index lies in its simplicity and clarity— it serves as a roadmap for lawmakers and advocates, highlighting both achievements and the areas where further growth is needed. With a quick glance, policymakers can see exactly what steps will bring them closer to realizing Milton and Rose Friedman’s vision of true educational freedom for all families. As shown in Table 1, 14 of the 15 states with a score of “1” have very low rates of funded eligibility. In those states, allowing more families to actually have the opportunity to exercise choice to private schools and educational settings would have the largest impact on moving toward Milton and Rose Friedman’s vision of universal educational choice. Table 1 also shows that all states have small or large differences in the per student funding they provide to choice students, where choice students tend to receive significantly less state and local funding for their education relative to students who attend public schools. 

How the EdChoice Friedman Index is Calculated 

The EdChoice Friedman Index is calculated using the following formula: 

(with up to a 5-point deduction from the above formula for states that do not have an Education Savings Account or similar program that permits families to purchase education services outside of school walls). 

The Path Forward 

We hope that policymakers and advocates use the EdChoice Friedman Index as a North Star to guide their state’s choice policies toward Milton and Rose Friedman’s vision of universal educational choice.   

While many states have made dramatic progress in recent years, the 2003 quote from Milton Friedman at the start of this piece remains true today—the EdChoice Friedman Index shows that most states are still “at the beginning of the task” to “have a system in which every family in the U.S. will be able to choose for itself the school (or other educational setting) to which its children go.” 

As state programs grow over time, we plan to update the EdChoice Friedman Index annually. Thus, if state advocates and others have information to share about changes in state choice programs, please contact us via colyn@edchoice.org.