Utah Fits All Scholarship Amount: How Much Money Per Student in 2026–2027

Award Amounts by Track and Age

The scholarship pays different amounts depending on two factors: whether your child uses the private school track or the home-based track, and (for home-based students) how old they are on September 1 of the scholarship year.

Private school track — $8,000 per year. This covers K–12 students enrolled in an approved qualifying private school or microschool. The full $8,000 goes toward tuition, fees, and approved educational expenses at that school.

Home-based track, ages 5–11 — $4,000 per year. Elementary-age students educated at home receive the base award. Your child must turn five by September 1 to qualify for kindergarten-year funding.

Home-based track, ages 12–18 — $6,000 per year. Secondary-age students get a higher award reflecting the increased cost of middle and high school curriculum, tutoring, and educational services.

These amounts are set by statute and don't adjust for disability status, household income, geographic location, or any other factor. A first-grader in rural Utah gets the same $4,000 as a first-grader in Salt Lake City.

When the Money Arrives

Scholarship funds land in your Odyssey digital wallet in two equal installments:

• First disbursement — by July 31 (half the annual award)
• Second disbursement — by December 31 (the remaining half)

For a home-based student aged 12, that means $3,000 in late July and $3,000 in late December. For a private school student, it's $4,000 and $4,000.

The split matters for budgeting. If your child's private school tuition is due in August for the full year, the first disbursement covers only half. You either pay the balance out of pocket until December or negotiate a payment schedule with the school.

Mid-Year Entry and Proration

Students who receive awards from the waitlist after the school year starts don't get the full annual amount. Utah Code prorates mid-year awards on a quarterly basis:

• Second quarter entry — capped at 75% of the annual award
• Third quarter entry — capped at 50% of the annual award
• Fourth quarter entry — capped at 25% of the annual award

A home-based student aged 14 who enters in the second quarter may receive up to $4,500 (75% of $6,000) instead of the full amount. This is a one-year reduction — if they renew for the following year, they receive the standard full award.

What Happens to Unspent Funds

Money that stays in your Odyssey digital wallet at the end of the scholarship year doesn't automatically carry forward as a windfall. Under Utah Code § 53F-6-402, unspent funds follow specific rollover rules tied to your renewal status.

For 2025–26 balances rolling into 2026–27, Odyssey says 66% of eligible unspent funds carries forward, capped at $2,000; the remaining balance returns to the program. If you exit the program — either by choice or by not renewing — unspent funds revert to the state's restricted program account.

You cannot cash out unused scholarship funds. They exist only as spending credits on the Odyssey platform, usable only for approved educational expenses.

The Real Cost Math

For context, Utah public school spending averages roughly $10,000 to $12,000 per pupil annually. The Fits All Scholarship provides $4,000 to $8,000 — less than public schools spend, but enough to cover core educational expenses for most homeschooling families.

The families who get the most value tend to be those spending heavily on structured curriculum ($500–$1,500/year), private tutoring ($50–$100/hour for specialized subjects), educational therapy services ($100–$200/session), and online course platforms ($200–$600/year). For these families, the scholarship can cover most or all of their educational spending.

Families with minimal expenses — those using free library resources, community co-ops, and parent-taught lessons — may find that the program's annual portfolio requirements and spending documentation create more administrative work than the funding justifies.

Plan Your Spending Around the Award Tiers

The Utah Fits All Scholarship Parent Guide breaks down how to allocate your award across spending categories, stay within the 20% caps on extracurriculars and PE, and track the rollover cap — whether you're managing $4,000 for one child or $20,000 across a larger family.

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