Families spend 8.8 times more on private schools than government schools: survey

A government survey has highlighted sharp contrasts in household spending between students in government and private schools, underscoring how financial pressures are shaping education choices across India.

The Comprehensive Modular Survey: Education 2025, covering 52,085 households and 57,742 students, mapped household expenditure using computer-assisted interviews.

It found that while government schools still account for a majority of enrollments, families of private school students face far greater financial burdens.

Nationally, 55.9% of students attend government schools. The share rises to 66% in rural areas but drops to 30.1% in urban areas.

Despite this, only 26.7% of government school students reported paying course fees, compared with 95.7% in private schools.

On average, families spent ₹2,863 per student in government schools during the academic year, compared with ₹25,002 in private schools, making private schooling nearly 8.8 times more expensive.

Course fees were the largest cost driver across all school types, averaging ₹7,111 per student nationally.

Urban households bore much higher costs, paying an average of ₹15,143 in course fees against ₹3,979 in rural areas.

Textbooks and stationery followed as the next biggest expense at ₹2,002 on average.

Private coaching emerged as a major contributor to education costs. About 27% of students received coaching, with participation slightly higher in urban areas (30.7%) than in rural ones (25.5%).

Spending on coaching averaged ₹3,988 per student in urban areas, more than double the ₹1,793 recorded in rural households.

At the higher secondary level, the gap widened further, with urban families spending nearly ₹9,950 compared to ₹4,548 in rural areas.

The study also revealed that household members are the main source of education funding for 95% of students.

Government scholarships accounted for just 1.2% as the primary funding source, suggesting heavy dependence on family income to sustain both schooling and coaching.

Officials have advised caution in interpreting state-level figures, pointing out sample size limitations and classification differences with earlier surveys.

Direct comparisons with previous National Sample Survey rounds are therefore not reliable.

The findings paint a clear picture of India’s education landscape: government schools continue to serve most children, yet the financial demands of private education and urban schooling are creating a widening gulf that could shape future debates on equity, funding, and the role of private providers in the sector.