Across the country, there are many government-funded online high schools that offer a virtual alternative to school. We've compiled a list of the best tuition-free online high schools and organized them by state. Below the list of free online high schools you'll find useful information about online schooling, state requirements, funding, and more.

List of Free Online High Schools in the United States

There is not a maintained list of virtual public schools, so we spent hours compiling one. Below you will find a table with the most recently updated list. If you don't see your state, it means your state does not support online education. This does not mean you cannot attend a virtual academy, although a tuition-free virtual public school is not sponsored by your state. Private schools, charter schools, home school programs, or an individualized home education may be your best option if you need to pull your child from the public education system.

Searchable table of 170+ Schools

STATE	City / County	School	Phone
Alabama	Montgomery	ACCESS Virtual Learning	334.242.9594
Alabama	Eufaula	Alabama Virtual Academy	334.689.5059
Alabama	Conecuh County	Conecuh County Virtual School	251.578.5291
Alaska	FAIRBANKS	Fairbanks Correspondence	.907.452.2000 ext. 11431
Alaska	Homer	KPBSD Connections Homeschool Program	907.226.1880
Alaska	Anchorage	Frontier Charter School	.907.742.1181
Arizona	Tucson	Southern Arizona Community Academy	520.319.6113
Arizona	Chandler	Sequoia Choice School Arizona Distance Learning School	480.461.3222
Arizona	Phoenix	Pinnacle High School	602.449.4000
Arizona	Chandler	Primavera Online High School	480.456.6678
Arizona	Mesa	Sequoia Choice Distance Learning	480.461.3222
Arizona	Tucson	Southern Arizona Community Academy	520.319.6113
Arkansas	North Little Rock	Arkansas Virtual Academy	501.664.4225
California		A3 World Language Academy	855.534.6304
California		A3 California Prep	855.268.9108
California	San Juan Capistrano	Capistrano Connections Academy	949.461.1667
California	Visalia	Central California Connections Academy	559.713.1324
California	Ripon	California Connections Academy @ North Bay	209.253.1208
California	Ripon	California Connections Academy @ Ripon	209.253.1208
California	Simi Valley	California Virtual Academies	386.255.6475 Ext. 38342
California	Clovis	Clovis Online School	559.327.4400
California	Tracy	Delta Charter Schools	209.830.6363
California	Kansas City	Gateway Virtual Academy	816.469.9424
California	Simi Valley	Insight Schools of California	800.670.5391
California	Duarte	Inspire Charter Schools	888.215.3040
California	Simi Valley	iQ Academy California-Los Angeles	888.997.4722
California	Lake Elsinore	Keith McCarthy Academy	951.253.7777
California	Arcadia	Method Schools	951.461.4620
California	Moreno Valley	Moreno Valley Online Academy	951.571.4970
California	Riverside	Riverside Virtual School	951.276.2006
Colorado	Pueblo	70 Online	719.562.0468
Colorado	Westminster	Colorado Preparatory Academy	888.208.2173
Colorado	Lakewood	Colorado Virtual Academy	303.255.4650
Colorado	Westminster	Destinations Career Academy of Colorado	800.705.1528
Colorado	Grand Junction	Grand River Academy	970.254.6393
Colorado	Montrose	Peak Virtual Academy	970.252.7928
Colorado	Westminster	Pikes Peak Online School	855.234.4559
Colorado	Fort Collins	PSD Global Academy	970.490.3086
Colorado	Colorado Springs	Springs Studio for Academic Excellence	719.494.8940
Colorado	Eagle	World Academy	970.328.9070
Florida	Panama City	Bay Virtual Instruction Program	805.767.4377
Florida	Blountstown	Calhoun Virtual Instruction Program	866.339.8784
Florida	Orange Park	Clay Virtual Academy	904.336.9875
Florida	Naples	Collier Virtual School	866.339.8784
Florida	Jacksonville	Florida Cyber Charter Academy	904.247.3268
Florida	Orlando	Florida Virtual School	407.513.3587
Florida	Eastpoint	Franklin Virtual Instruction Program	850.670.2810
Florida	Moore Haven	Glades Virtual Instruction Program	866.339.8784
Florida	Vero Beach	Indian River Virtual Instruction Program	866.339.8784
Florida	Marianna	Jackson County Virtual Instruction Program	866.339.8784
Florida	Bristol	Liberty County Virtual Instruction Program	850.643.2275
Florida	Madison	Madison County Virtual School	850.973.5809
Florida	Miami	Miami-Dade Online Academy	305.995.1257
Florida	Port St. Lucie	Mosaic Digital Academy	772.429.5504
Florida	Palatka	MyDistrict Virtual School	386.329.3831
Florida	Fernandina Beach	Nassau County Virtual School	904.491.9913
Florida	Fort Walton Beach	Okaloosa County Virtual School	850.833.3100
Florida	St. Cloud	Osceola Virtual School	407.870.1445
Florida	Lakeland	Polk County Virtual School	863.665.4538
Florida	Milton	Santa Rosa Online	850.981.7860
Florida	Sarasota	Sarasota Virtual School	941.924.1365
Florida	St. Augustine	St. Johns County Virtual School	904.547.8080
Florida	Port Orange	Volusia Virtual School	386.255.6475 Ext. 38342
Florida	Chipley	Washington County School District	850.638.6222
Georgia	Atlanta	Georgia Cyber Academy	404.334.4790
Georgia	Thomasville	Thomas County Virtual Program	229.225.4380
Hawaii	Waipahu	Hawaii Technology Academy	808.676.5444
Idaho	Nampa	Icon: Idaho Connects Online School	208.287.3668
Idaho	Boise	INSPIRE, the Idaho Connections Academy	208.322.4002
Idaho	Deary	Idaho Distance Education Academy	800.871.5057
Idaho	Meridian	Idaho Technical Career Academy	208.917.2420
Idaho	Meridian	Idaho Virtual Academy	866.339.9065
Idaho	Boise	iSucceed Virtual High School	208.375.3116
Illinois	Chicago	Chicago Virtual Charter School	866.612.1451
Illinois	Pingree Grove	Cambridge Lake Charter School	847.464.5300
Illinois	Winnetka	Hadley Institute for the Blind and Visually Impaired	847.446.8111
Indiana	Indianapolis	Hoosier Academies	317.495.6494
Iowa	Garnavillo	Iowa Virtual Academy	855.652.3931
Kansas	Basehor	Basehor-Linwood Virtual School	913.724.1727
Kansas	Haven	Haven Virtual Academy	620.465.3595
Kansas	Olathe	Insight School of Kansas	913.592.4600
Kansas	Olathe	Insight School of Kansas Adult	800.260.0438
Kansas	Elkhart	Kansas Connections Academy	620.697.1166
Kansas	Olathe	Kansas Virtual Academy	913.592.4600
Kansas	Lawrence	Lawrence Virtual School	785.832.5620
Louisiana	Baton Rouge	Louisiana Virtual Charter Academy	877.490.3596
Louisiana	Baton Rouge	Mentorship Academy	225.346.5180
Louisiana	Baton Rouge	Southern University Laboratory Virtual School	877.603.6281
Louisiana	Leesville	Vernon Parish School District	337.239.3401
Maine	Augusta	Maine Virtual Academy	844.224.6540
Massachusetts	Greenfield	Massachusetts Virtual Academy at Greenfield	413.475.3879
Michigan	Lansing	Insight School of Michigan	877.918.4020
Michigan	Jenison	Jenison International Academy	616.457.8477
Michigan	Auburn Hills	Michigan District Virtual Programs	800.841.8162
Michigan	Manistee	Michigan Great Lakes Virtual Academy	231.794.5999
Michigan	Grand Rapids	Michigan Virtual Charter Academy	616.309.1600
Michigan	Inkster	Westwood Cyber High School	313.565.0288
Minnesota	West St Paul	Bluesky Charter School	651.642.0888
Minnesota	Madelia	eMinnesota Online Academy	507.642.3232
Minnesota	Brooklyn Center	Insight School of Minnesota	800.711.5944
Minnesota	Fergus Falls	iQ Academy Minnesota	218.998.3198
Minnesota	Lakeville	LinK12 Lakeville	952.232.2000
Minnesota	St Paul	MTS Minnesota Connections Academy	651.523.0888
Minnesota	Houston	Minnesota Virtual Academy	866.360.0159
Minnesota	St Paul	Minnesota Virtual High School	612.746.7977
Minnesota	St Paul	MN Online High School	1.800.764.8166
Minnesota	Worthington	VIBE Academy	507.372.1322
Minnesota	Lindstrom	TRIO Wolf Creek Distance Learning Charter School	651.213.2095
Mississippi	Baltimore	Mississippi Virtual Public School	1.800.382.6010 x1042
Nevada	Reno	Nevada Connections Academy	775.826.4200
Nevada	Las Vegas	Nevada Virtual Academy	702.514.4025
Nevada	Elko	Northeastern Nevada Virtual Academy	775.738.5196
New Hampshire	Exeter	Virtual Learning Academy	603.778.2500
New Jersey	Newark	Newark Prep Charter School	862.307.7010
New Mexico	Farmington	New Mexico Virtual Academy	855.718.7724
North Carolina	Raleigh	North Carolina Virtual Public School	919.513.8550
North Carolina	Durham	North Carolina Virtual Academy	919.346.0121
Ohio	Columbus	Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow	614.492.8884
Ohio	Columbus	Insight School of Ohio	855.380.2511
Ohio	Cleveland	Ohio Connections Academy	216.361.9460
Ohio	Akron	Ohio Distance and Electronic Learning Academy	330.253.8680
Ohio	Maumee	Ohio Virtual Academy	419.482.0948
Ohio	Marion	TRECA Digital Academy	800.567.1686
Oklahoma	Midwest City	Insight School of Oklahoma	877.637.2614
Oklahoma	Midwest City	Oklahoma Virtual Charter Academy	405.259.9478
Oregon	Albany	Albany Online!	541.967.4607
Oregon	Bend	Bend-La Pine Schools Online	541.355.1040
Oregon	Eagle Point	Crater Lake Charter Academy	541.830.6245
Oregon	Hermiston	Hermiston Online	541.667.6400
Oregon	Prineville	Insight School of Oregon—Painted Hills	541.823.5010
Oregon	Monroe	Monroe School District Online	541.847.6292
Oregon	The Dalles	North Wasco Virtual Academy	541.506.3449. x4119
Oregon	Mill City	Oregon Connections Academy	503.897.2272
Oregon	North Bend	Oregon Virtual Academy	541.751.8060
Pennsylvania	Downingtown	21st Century Cyber Charter School	484.875.5400
Pennsylvania	Exton	Achievement House Cyber Charter School	484.615.6200
Pennsylvania	King of Prussia	Agora Cyber Charter School	844.402.4672
Pennsylvania	Wingate	Bald Eagle Area Cyber Academy
Pennsylvania	Reading	Berks Online Learning	610.898.8950
Pennsylvania	Avenue Boyertown	Boyertown Area School District	610.367.6031
Pennsylvania	Topton	Brandywine Heights Area School District	610.682.5100
Pennsylvania	Carlisle	Carlisle Area School District	717.240.6800
Pennsylvania	Hollidaysburg	Central PA Digital Learning Foundation	814.682.5258
Pennsylvania	Lancaster	Conestoga Valley Virtual Academy	717.397.2421
Pennsylvania	Ephrata	Ephrata Virtual Academy	717.721.1150
Pennsylvania	Midland	Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School	724.643.1180
Pennsylvania	King of Prussia	Pennsylvania Virtual Charter School	610.275.8500
Pennsylvania	Harrisburg	Reach Cyber Charter School	717.704.8437
Pennsylvania	Folcroft	Southeast Delco School District	610.522.4300
Pennsylvania	Steelton	Steelton-Highspire School District	717.704.3800
Pennsylvania	Bethel	Tulpehocken Virtual Academy	717.933.4611
South Carolina	Columbia	Provost Academy South Carolina	803.734.8322
South Carolina	Columbia	South Carolina Connections Academy	803.212.4712
South Carolina	Columbia	South Carolina Virtual Charter School	803.253.6222
South Dakota	Rapid City	Black Hills Online Learning Community	605.721.4506
Texas	Lewisville	Texas Online Preparatory School	972.420.1404
Texas	Lewisville	Texas Virtual Academy	866.360.0616
Utah	Murray	Utah Virtual Academy	801.262.4922
Washington	Tacoma	Insight School of Washington	866.800.0017
Washington	Federal Way	Internet Academy	253.945.2230
Washington	Vancouver	iQ Academy Washington	360.604.4057
Washington	Wichita	Learning2 eSchool of Wichita	316.973.9310
Washington	Kennewick	Mid Columbia Partnership	509.222.5036
Washington	Connell	North Franklin School District	509.234.2021
Washington	Tacoma	Washington Virtual Academies	866.548.9444
West Virginia	Herndon	West Virginia Virtual Academy	866.968.7512
Wisconsin	McFarland	Destinations Career Academy of Wisconsin	608.838.9482
Wisconsin	Prairie du Chien	Mighty River Virtual Academy	608.326.3700
Wisconsin	Oregon	Oregon School District Online	608.835.4000
Wisconsin	Sparta	Sparta Area School District	608.269.3151
Wisconsin	Wisconsin Rapids	Wisconsin Rapids Virtual School Program	715.424.6700, ext. 1055
Wisconsin	McFarland	Wisconsin Virtual Academy	608.838.9482
Wisconsin	Fredonia	Wisconsin Virtual Learning	262.692.3988
Wyoming	Worland	Washakie County School District #1	307.347.9286
Wyoming	Cody	Wyoming Connections Academy	307.587.5028
Wyoming	Lusk	Wyoming Virtual Academy	307.334.1001

What are the differences between an online high school and public school?

Online high school:

• Some schools may be hybrid, meaning that students spend some time in a physical class and other instruction is given online.
• Some, or all, teaching and testing take place virtually
• Students in complete online programs never visit a physical building
• Although everything is digital, students do not spend all day in front of a computer, there are required:
  • Offline activities
  • Paper worksheets
  • Physical projects
• Students can learn from any location as long as they have an internet connection
• Students interact with a teacher is often one-on-one through various mediums:
  • Online platforms that mimic classrooms
  • Through email / over the phone / over video
• Students usually receive an individualized education
• Curriculum, textbooks, workbooks, and educational materials are often mailed directly to your residence

What is it like to attend an online high school?

For the most part, attending a virtual school is very similar to attending public school. Allegedly, students still spend over five hours each day doing "classroom work" before spending time on "homework."

The biggest difference is that students and families create a schedule that works best for them. This allows for incredible flexibility.

Common reasons why parents choose online schools

Connections Academy surveyed their parents and reported the following statistics:

• 51% of parents wanted greater flexibility
• 42% of parents wanted a change from their local school
• 32% wanted a safe/controlled learning environment
• 23% wanted to be more involved in their child's education
• 22% of children had serious health concerns
• 10% of children suffered from bullies
• 3+% were actively involved in sports or competitions

Public Virtual Schools vs Private Virtual Schools

Just like in public school classrooms, there are two broad categories of online high schools: public and private.

Online public high schools

Public schools and charter schools must be accredited and funded by the state. Therefore, they will only use state-approved teachers, offer state curriculum, stick to exact government education standards, and reward graduates with a diploma. There is never any required tuition, these schools are tax-payer funded. These schools serve students in grades kindergarten through twelve. Besides no interpersonal experience, online public high schools are really no different than public schools.

Online private high schools

Looking to escape from the government controlled education systems? Don't want a curriculum that is written by the state?

You'll want to consider an online private high school. Private institutions use their own requirements, standards, curriculum, and tuition. Because they are private, they are free from government control, but they are not free. Click here to view a list of the best private online high schools.

State Requirements

Lots of schools require their students to live in a local school district and the majority of programs require the student to be a state resident. Nevertheless, there are online schools that allow any student to enroll. Some states do not fund a K12 online program. This means students/parents will need to find an out-of-state school that meets their local state requirements and accepts out-of-state students.

What if I live in a state without public online schools and I can't afford a private program?

Have you considered homeschooling? Many parents seek out online schools because of a difficult or busy family schedule and may not have time to bear the full educational responsibility of homeschooling. Nevertheless, there are many affordable all-in-one homeschool curriculums and homes chool programs that make homeschooling much easier on a busy parent.