At a glance
Home-based learning includes more than one path.
Federal education data separates homeschooling from full-time virtual education, while also reporting the combined share of students receiving instruction at home. That distinction matters when families, writers, and educators compare numbers over time.
Every figure below comes from the National Center for Education Statistics' 2023 Parent and Family Involvement in Education Survey. The survey was conducted from January through August 2023 and reflects the 2022-23 school year.
Instruction at home
The latest national picture.
These figures describe U.S. students ages 5 to 17 with a kindergarten through grade 12 equivalent.
5.2%
of U.S. students ages 5 to 17 received instruction at home in 2022-23.
This includes students described by their parent or guardian as homeschooled and students enrolled full time in virtual education.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗3.4%
of U.S. students ages 5 to 17 were reported as homeschooled in 2022-23.
The federal survey counts students with a kindergarten through grade 12 equivalent.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗2.5%
of U.S. students ages 5 to 17 were enrolled full time in virtual education in 2022-23.
This rate is measured separately from whether a parent or guardian considered the child homeschooled.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗7%
of enrolled or homeschooled students took at least one virtual course in 2022-23.
Three percent took all of their courses virtually.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗Change over time
Instruction at home was more common in 2022-23 than before the pandemic.
5.2%
of students received instruction at home in 2022-23, compared with 3.7% in 2018-19. The two measures include homeschooling and full-time virtual education.
Read the federal survey releaseFamily decisions
Reasons families gave for homeschooling.
Parents and guardians could select more than one reason, so these percentages are not meant to add up to 100.
83%
Concern about the environment of other schools was selected as a reason to homeschool.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗75%
Providing moral instruction was selected as a reason to homeschool.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗72%
Emphasizing family life was selected as a reason to homeschool.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗72%
Dissatisfaction with academic instruction at other schools was selected as a reason to homeschool.
NCES, 2022-23 ↗28% of homeschooled students had a parent or guardian who named concern about the environment of other schools as the single most important reason for homeschooling.
A useful comparison
Definitions shape the numbers.
In the National Household Education Surveys Program, a student is considered homeschooled when their parent reports education at home rather than in a public or private school, the student is not enrolled in public or private school for more than 24 hours a week, and homeschooling is not only due to a temporary illness.
That definition is why federal homeschooling figures should not be treated as interchangeable with every survey about learning at home. When quoting a number, use the source date and the definition attached to it.
Read the NCES homeschooling definitionSources and methodology
Where these numbers come from.
This page uses the latest nationally representative federal survey release on instruction at home. The survey covered the 50 states and the District of Columbia, and a parent or guardian completed the questionnaire for 19,562 kindergarten through grade 12 students, including students learning at home.
- National Center for Education Statistics, “A Higher Percentage of K-12 Students are Receiving Academic Instruction at Home,” September 17, 2024 ↗
- National Center for Education Statistics, National Household Education Surveys Program: Homeschooling ↗
- National Center for Education Statistics, Fast Facts: Homeschooling ↗
Cite this page
A simple source for your next reference.
Suggested citation: Motherhood by Terri. “U.S. Homeschooling Statistics.” Updated September 1, 2026. Use the link to this page and cite the National Center for Education Statistics source listed with the statistic you quote.
Read Terri's home schooling reflections →