ESA funding

Can ESA cover this?

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Your state

Is it covered? Check an item against your state's rules

Type what you want to buy, for example a product name, a class or a service. We check it against the program's published expense rules and show the rule.

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Your state's program makes the final decision. A purchase made with your own card may not be paid back.

Choose your state to see its vendors

Tutors, therapists, classes and schools that take ESA funds, by what your child needs.

How to use Special Needs Equal Opportunity Education Savings Account funds well

Know your amount and when it arrives
No 2026–27 award is confirmed. OPI says a temporary court stay allowed reimbursements through June 30, 2026; its year-end guidance directed schools to end ESA enrollments after 2025–26.
Spend on what builds skills first
Core learning comes first: curriculum, tutoring and any therapy your child needs. Weekly tutoring or therapy over months does more than one big purchase. Lessons, classes and camps come next; technology and supplies last.
Check every purchase before you pay
Search the exact item above. Pay through OPI reimbursement, not your own card: a card purchase may never be reimbursed.
Pay for services month by month
Book tutoring, therapy and classes in monthly blocks rather than a year upfront. Many programs pay services as they are delivered, and it keeps money free if something doesn't work for your child.
Keep every invoice and receipt
Programs can ask for proof long after a purchase. Save each invoice with your child's name, the dates and what was delivered.
Find out what happens to money you don't spend
Some programs carry unused funds into next year; others take them back. Ask Montana Office of Public Instruction before the year ends (official page (opens in a new tab)).

Come back whenever you're about to buy something: check it here first.

Compare all 18 state programs: amounts, payment platform, vendors

Compare all 18 programs

2026–27 amounts where posted. Choose a state for its guide.

Alabama
CHOOSE Act Alabama$7,000 school · $2,000 home ed (cap $4,000/family)ClassWallet1,735 listed Arizona
Empowerment Scholarship Account90% of state per-pupil funding (varies by grade/district/disability)ClassWallet1,336 listed Arkansas
Education Freedom Account$7,208 per student (2026-27), $1,802 disbursed quarterlyClassWallet1,602 listed Florida
Family Empowerment Scholarships and PEP~$7,463–$12,217, varies by scholarship/grade/countyEMA / MyScholarShop (Step Up)1,443 listed Georgia
Georgia Promise ScholarshipUp to $6,500 per year in four installmentsOdyssey984 listed Indiana
Indiana Education Scholarship AccountUp to $20,000 (disability) or $8,000 (sibling) per studentClassWallet909 listed Iowa
Students First Education Savings Account$8,148 per student for 2026-27Odyssey292 listed Louisiana
LA GATOR Scholarship Program$5,243-$15,253 by tier (2025-26 figures; 2026-27 not yet posted)Odyssey97 listed Mississippi
Education Scholarship Account$8,007 max reported for 2025-26; 2026-27 amount not yet postedMDE reimbursement14 listed Montana
Special Needs Equal Opportunity Education Savings AccountUncertain for 2026-27; OPI reimbursements ran only through 6/30/26OPI reimbursement11 listed New Hampshire
Education Freedom Account$4,100 base + differentiated aid (income/EL/disability)ClassWallet3,522 listed North Carolina
Education Student Accounts (ESA+)ESA+ $9,000-$17,000; Opportunity Scholarship $3,574-$7,942 (2026-27)ClassWallet3,578 listed South Carolina
Education Scholarship Trust Fund$7,634/yr (Exceptional SC up to $11,000, funds-permitting)ClassWallet1,314 listed Tennessee
Education Freedom Scholarship and targeted ESA programs$7,530/yr EFS; geographic ESA ~$10,094-$10,133; IEA by formulaTheoLearning375 listed Texas
Texas Education Freedom Accounts$10,474 private school · $2,000 homeschool · up to $30,000 with IEPOdyssey5,205 listed Utah
Utah Fits All Scholarship$8,000 private school · $4,000 home age 5-11 · $6,000 home age 12-18Odyssey1,455 listed West Virginia
Hope Scholarship$5,435.62 full-year award for 2026-27, paid quarterlyTheoPay (Student First)1,323 listed Wyoming
Steamboat Legacy Scholarship$7,000/yr, disbursed quarterlyOdyssey1,016 listed

Amounts are as posted by each program for 2026–27; where a program hasn't posted, the latest figure is shown. Every guide links to the official page.

Explore more ESA guides

Start with what you want to do

What funds cover

16 kinds of expenses checked against every program's published rules, with an item checker.

Check an item

Vendor directory

Vendors you can pay with ESA funds, by state and by what they sell, with how each one is paid.

Browse vendors

Worksheets & workbooks

Which programs pay for printable worksheets and printed workbooks, and how to buy PencilGo with them.

See the rules

How to pay

ClassWallet, Odyssey or reimbursement: the steps for each route, and PencilGo's DirectPay states.

Read the steps

Before buying: The program decides whether the exact item and payment route qualify. A direct card purchase may not be reimbursed.

More about ESA purchase decisions

Provider approval or a marketplace listing does not approve every product or confirm that a funded purchase can be made. Check your program's current rules and payment route before buying; a direct card purchase does not guarantee reimbursement. This hub is educational information, not legal, tax or eligibility advice. PencilGo is independent of state agencies.

State guides