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The Latest US Literacy Statistics for Children and Adults (2026)

Official literacy statistics, about both children and adults, are presented here by state, in their dynamics over the years, explaining the reasons for illiteracy and how it might affect kids’ future and the US economy altogether. Spoiler? Personalized reading tutoring can help your kid further avoid unfavorable illiteracy stats. 

US Literacy Rate: Key Statistics

 

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Cost of Illiteracy to the US Economy

The latest federal data don’t provide a current dollar estimate for the economic cost of adult low literacy. However, a frequently cited 2020 Gallup study commissioned by the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy assessed that bringing all US adults to at least Level 3 literacy proficiency could generate $2.2 trillion in additional annual income. 

This modeled estimate predates the most recent 2023 PIAAC results, which show that lower literacy proficiency is associated with weaker employment outcomes and lower earnings. Reduced employment opportunities and lower wages result in reduced tax revenue at federal, state, and local levels. Additionally, lower literacy levels correlate with higher utilization rates of state social services and safety-net programs.

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Child Literacy Statistics in the United States

31% of fourth-grade students scored at or above the NAEP Proficient level, which indicates solid academic performance and competency. 60% of fourth-grade students performed at or above the NAEP Basic level (means partial mastery of foundational skills).

Recent data from NAEP shows troubling trends (despite decades of educational initiatives and considering a significant pandemic learning loss caused by COVID-19):

• Proficiency rates are dropping. Only 31% of fourth-graders and 30% of eighth-grade students performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level.
• Increased below-Basic levels: 40% of fourth- and 33% of eighth-graders scored below the NAEP Basic level.  
• Reading performance differs a lot from state to state. 
• Racial and socioeconomic disparities. 60% of Black eighth-graders and 54% of Hispanic ones scored below the Basic level.  

The good news is that sites like Brighterly can help your child avoid illiteracy statistics. In particular, we provide early reading tutoring and middle school reading help for kids to develop literacy skills timely. 

Children who engage in regular reading and storytelling with family members, too, tend to perform better in reading assessments. Start with reading challenges for kids or reading worksheets for kids that we particularly developed for children from 1st to 12th grade. You’ll find a whole diversity of activity types – all collected based on the kids’ grades.

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Child Literacy Rates by State 

In 2024, only 31% of fourth-grade students nationwide scored at or above the NAEP Proficient level in reading. That’s a 2-point drop from 2022 and 4 points lower than 2019. Even more concerning, 40% of fourth-graders scored below the NAEP Basic level in 2024. Unfortunately, it’s the highest percentage since NAEP started tracking child literacy statistics in 1992.

Here’s a brief summary of the U.S. literacy rate by state:

Regardless of the state you’re living in, you may enroll in our personalized reading program, which is available for attendance online and one-on-one with a professional tutor. Our lessons align with US state standards and adjust to every kid’s current level and future academic goals. Our pricing options start from $17.70/lesson (2 lessons/week, 12-month plan, now 20% off). 

U.S. Child Literacy Rate by Year (2019-2025)

2019 – 2020: Child literacy statistics United States

2021 – 2023: Average young American reading level

The October 2022 release of NAEP scores for fourth and eighth-graders showed major learning setbacks across all grade levels:

According to Peggy Carr, Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, ‘These are some of the largest declines we have observed in a single assessment cycle in 50 years of the NAEP program. Students in 2022 are performing as they did two decades ago.’

2024 – 2025: What percentage of young Americans are illiterate?

As of 2024-2025, the United States is dealing with a continuing literacy crisis among kids. It’s gotten even worse since the COVID-19 pandemic. The latest National Literacy Institute data shows that approximately 64% of fourth-grade students nationwide are not reading proficiently. 

Fourth-grade reading performance (NAEP, 2024)

Eighth-grade reading performance (NAEP, 2024)

Nearly five years after the COVID-19 pandemic began, the country is still behind its 2019 (pre-pandemic) scores in both grades and subjects. As per the Nation’s Report Card, just two states have beaten their pre-pandemic scores in any single grade or subject: Louisiana in fourth-grade reading and Alabama in fourth-grade math.

Kids’ Illiteracy Rate in America: Statistics & Facts

About 25 million kids in the U.S. can’t read at grade level, according to NAEP test results. Plus, NAEP data shows that 67% of 4th graders and 69% of 8th graders across the country aren’t reading at grade level. Some more interesting stats:

• Two out of 10 kids start kindergarten with skills two to three years below grade level. Kids who start behind usually only make about a year’s progress each grade. 
• About 25% of kids in the U.S. grow up not being able to read. 
• A child encountering difficulties at the end of 1st grade has about a 90% chance of still struggling by 4th grade. That’s why early help makes such a big difference once kids start to fall behind.
• Kids who aren’t reading at grade level by 3rd grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school than strong readers.
• Kids who start kindergarten behind have less than a 12% chance of ever going to college – that’s how early reading gaps turn into lifelong struggles.
• Around 85% of teens in the justice system can’t read well enough to get by. And about 70% of people in U.S. prisons can’t read above a 4th-grade level.
• 80% of low-income kids aren’t reading at grade level by 4th grade, compared to kids from higher-income families. More specifically, only 20% of 4th graders from low-income families read at grade level, which is way lower than the 51% of 4th graders from higher-income families who read at grade level.
• Kids whose parents struggle with reading are 72% more likely to read below grade level in school, keeping the cycle of low literacy going from one generation to the next. 

Early Literacy and the Home Environment

The National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) gave a look at some early childhood literacy statistics on reading activities at home for young children (ages 3-5 not yet in kindergarten):

There were clear racial gaps in home reading activities, too. 91% of White children and 89% of multiracial children had someone read to them three or more times a week. That’s in contrast to 81% of Asian children, 77% of Hispanic children, and 75% of Black children.

US Adult Literacy Rate: Key Numbers

According to the latest PIAAC results from NCES, 28% of US adults aged from 16 to 65 performed at Level 1 or below in literacy in 2023, compared with 19% in 2017. At the other end of the scale, 44% performed at Level 3 or above, and the remaining 28% performed at Level 2.

American Literacy Rate by State (Adult)

Immigration and Literacy

34% of US adults with low literacy weren’t born in the US, with many immigrants, legal or not, being 60% more likely to have adult illiteracy above 20% for the adult population.

According to the 2023 PIAAC data, 18% of US adults between 16 and 65 years old were born outside the United States, and it’s up from 14% in 2017. Adults born outside the US had lower average literacy proficiency than US-born adults, although the difference varied depending on various factors (English-language background, years in the US, etc.) In adaptive problem solving, for instance, 52% of non-native-born adults scored at Level 1 or below, compared to 27% of native-born adults.

Gender and Age Differences

In 2023, according to PIAAC illiteracy rates in America, there were no major gender differences. Both males and females had more adults at the lowest proficiency level:

• Male: 29% at Level 1 or below (increased from 19% in 2017)
• Female: 26% at Level 1 or below (increased from 18% in 2017)

Adults 55-65 did worse than everyone else in both literacy and adaptive problem solving in 2023. The percentages of US adults performing at Level 1 or below in literacy increased across all age groups between 2017 and 2023, except those aged 45-54.

Comparison Between Child and Adult Literacy Rates

Key Facts About Child Literacy Rate in the US

1. Current national reading proficiency rates. Only 33% of fourth-grade students nationwide performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level in reading in 2022. That entails that 67% of fourth-graders are not reading proficiently. This shows a decline from 2019, when 34% scored at or above Proficient, and brings reading scores back to early-1990s levels, basically wiping out 30 years of progress. For eighth-graders, the picture isn’t much better! Only 31% scored at or above NAEP Proficient in 2022, down from 34% in 2019. 

2. The third-grade reading benchmark: A critical turning point. Children who are not reading proficiently by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of high school than proficient readers. The rates are even more alarming for the lowest-performing readers! 23% of children who score at well below grade level in third grade drop out or don’t graduate on time, vs. just 4% of proficient readers. Yes, these below-basic readers make up only about a third of students, but they make up about 60% of kids who don’t graduate, according to child illiteracy statistics.

3. Racial disparities in reading achievement. According to 2019 NAEP data, the achievement gap still exists across racial and ethnic groups. Here are the shares of those who weren’t reading at a proficient level. Black and Hispanic children who are not reading proficiently in third grade are twice as likely as similar white children not to graduate from high school (approximately 25% versus 13%). When you factor in poverty, Black and Latino students who read poorly are eight times more likely not to graduate than all proficient readers.

4. The poverty factor: Double jeopardy for struggling readers. Students who live in poverty are three times more likely to drop out or fail to graduate on time than their better-off peers. When combined with poor reading skills, the dropout rate becomes six times greater than that for all proficient readers. Nationally, about 80 percent of low-income children are not reading on grade level by fourth grade, according to NAEP results. Perhaps most striking, though, proficient third-graders who have lived in poverty graduate high school at about the same rate as struggling readers who have never been poor. That’s how much poverty affects kids’ education, even for skilled readers.

So, How Many Americans Are Illiterate?

As you can see, only about one-third of students are reading proficiently, and performance is still lagging behind pre-pandemic levels. Given that literacy opens doors to lifelong learning, confidence, and academic success, early reading support is indispensable. 

If your child struggles with reading at grade level, our literacy program for kids features personalized one-on-one reading lessons to help kids build comprehension, fluency, and confidence step by step. And if you’re unsure about your kid’s current reading level altogether, book free demo lesson and find out!

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is the Literacy Rate in the United States?

Among kids (NAEP, 2024):

• 31% of 4th graders perform at or above the NAEP Proficient level, and 40% – below the NAEP Basic level.
• 30% of 8th graders perform at or above the NAEP Proficient level, and 33% – below the NAEP Basic level.
• 35% of 12th graders perform at or above the NAEP Proficient level, and 32% – below the NAEP Basic level.

Nationwide, about two-thirds of 4th and 8th graders perform below grade-level expectations.

Among adults (PIAAC, 2023), 28% of US adults have low literacy, 28% have intermediate literacy, 44% have strong proficiency, and 13% reach the highest Levels 4 or 5.

What Does “Functionally Illiterate” Mean?

Being functionally illiterate describes individuals who possess basic, foundational reading skills but lack the higher-level proficiency to handle complex, real-world tasks (see types of reading skills).

Adults at Level 1 or below, for instance, struggle with multi-step directions and interpreting deeper meaning that impacts daily life, contributing to lower average weekly earnings and higher reliance on government assistance programs. 

Children scoring below NAEP Basic Level lack the reading comprehension necessary for grade-level academic work. Kids not reading proficiently by 3rd grade are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school than proficient readers.

Which US State Has the Highest and Lowest Literacy Rate?

States with the highest literacy rates:

• Adults: New Hampshire – 94.2%, and it has the lowest percentage of adults scoring at or below Level 1.
• Children: Massachusetts – approximately 40-48% of students score at or above the NAEP Proficient level. Maryland and New Hampshire also rank in the top-3.

States with the lowest literacy rates:

• Adults: New Mexico has the highest percentage of adults (29%) with low literacy skills. California, Texas, and Mississippi follow closely with 28%.
• Children: New Mexico is recorded as having the lowest child literacy rate in the US. Louisiana and Mississippi also rank in the bottom-3. 

Is the Literacy Rate in the USA Improving or Declining?

US education trends state that the literacy rate in the USA is declining. 

Among kids, the percentage of 4th graders reading at or above the NAEP Proficient level fell from a peak of 37% in 2017 to just 31% in 2024. For 8th graders, the 2024 proficiency rate of 30% is the lowest since 1994.

Among adults, in 2023, 28% of US adults performed at Level 1 or below in literacy – a major increase from 19% in 2017. The average adult literacy score fell by 12 points between 2017 and 2023, which is the largest decline since 2012.

How Is the US Literacy Rate Measured?

For children, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) conducts the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), measuring student reading comprehension among 4th, 8th, and 12th graders:

• Below Basic – indicates a lack of foundational skills.
• NAEP Basic – partial mastery of prerequisite knowledge and skills.
• NAEP Proficient – strong academic performance and competency on grade-level material.

For adults (16-65 yo), NCES conducts the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), measuring the ability to process, understand, and use written information in real-life contexts: 

• Level 1 or Below – low literacy; 
• Level 2 – intermediate literacy;
• Level 3 or Above – strong proficiency. 

How Many Kids Are Illiterate in the US?

There’s no single figure for complete illiteracy, but the official stats highlight severe reading deficits among American children:

• Approximately 25 million kids in the US cannot read at grade level, based on national test results.
• From 67% to 69% of 4th graders nationwide do not read at grade level.
• From 69% to 70% of 8th graders are not reading at grade level.
• About 25% of children in the US grow up unable to read, and about 2 out of 10 kids start kindergarten with reading skills 2-3 years below their expected grade level.