States
Charter School Marketing in Florida: Funding, Lottery Rules, and the Enrollment Math
Taylor Wiz helps Florida charter and private schools get more submitted applications. Here is what enrollment marketing in Florida actually requires. Florida has more than 739 charter schools serving 408,481 students in 2025-26 (Florida Department of Education). Each student brings about $9,335 in state and local funding in 2026-27 (FEFP Second Calculation). Florida families can also use state scholarships to attend private schools, so charters compete with private schools for the same families. We run Meta ads and contact every parent inquiry within 15 minutes during business hours, then report one number: your cost per submitted application.
408,481
charter students
Florida Department of Education, 2025-26
739+
charter schools
Florida Department of Education, 2025-26
+19%
charter enrollment growth in five years
FLDOE, 2020-21 to 2025-26
$9,335
state and local funding per student
FEFP Second Calculation, 2026-27
How big is the Florida charter school sector?
Charter students, 2020-21 and 2025-26
Source: FLDOE Charter Schools Fast Facts (2020-21); Florida Department of Education (2025-26)
View the data
| Measure | Figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Charter schools, 2025-26 | More than 739 | Florida Department of Education |
| Charter students, 2025-26 | 408,481 | Florida Department of Education |
| Charter students, 2020-21 | 341,926 | FLDOE Charter Schools Fast Facts |
| Five-year growth | +66,555 students (+19%) | FLDOE, 2020-21 and 2025-26 |
| Charter share of public students, 2022-23 | 13.3% | FLDOE Charter School Enrollment Share report |
| Charter share, 2025-26 | 14.6% | Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools, as reported by Florida Trend |
| Districts with charter schools, 2022-23 | 46 | FLDOE Charter Schools Fast Facts |
What this means for enrollment marketing. Florida charter enrollment rose every year from 2013-14 to 2022-23 in FLDOE's figures and reached a record in 2025-26. In the largest counties, a family choosing a school sees district schools, magnet programs, several charters, and scholarship-funded private schools at the same time.
How much funding does a Florida charter school receive per student?
$9,335 per student in 2026-27. That is total state and local funding per unweighted full-time-equivalent student in the Florida Education Finance Program (FEFP), from FLDOE's 2026-27 Second Calculation, dated July 16, 2026. The base student allocation inside that total is $5,457.60.
Two things about how this money works:
- Charter students are funded like district students. Florida law funds charter students through the FEFP, the same formula used for students in district schools (Section 1002.33(17), Florida Statutes).
- Charters cannot charge tuition. "A charter school shall not charge tuition or registration fees, except those fees normally charged by other public schools" (Section 1002.33(9)(d)). Every seat is funded by the state formula.
What is a submitted application worth to a Florida charter school?
Taylor Wiz measures what we control: the cost of a submitted application. You know your own yield, meaning the share of submitted applications that become enrolled, attending students. Divide our number by your yield and you have your marketing cost per enrolled student.
The Taylor Wiz figure. Across 20 charter school accounts, from October 2025 to September 2026, a submitted application cost $113 in Meta ad spend over the full year, and $103 from October through July. The seasonal detail is in the Charter Enrollment Marketing Benchmark 2026.
The math at different yields, using $113 and $9,335 in first-year funding:
Ad cost per enrolled student, by share of submitted applications that enroll
3.0%
2.4%
2.0%
1.7%
Source: Taylor Wiz Charter Enrollment Marketing Benchmark 2026 ($113); FEFP Second Calculation, 2026-27 ($9,335)
View the data
| If this share of submitted applications enroll | Ad cost per enrolled student | Share of one year of funding |
|---|---|---|
| 40% | $282 | 3.0% |
| 50% | $226 | 2.4% |
| 60% | $188 | 2.0% |
| 70% | $161 | 1.7% |
Over more than one year. A student who stays four years brings about $37,341 at the 2026-27 rate ($9,335 times 4). Use your own re-enrollment data for the number of years.
What this table does not include. Staff time, open houses, and printed materials. It is ad spend only.
Method. Total Meta ad spend divided by applications marked submitted in our CRM, counted only in months with at least $300 in ad spend. All 20 accounts are charter schools in more than one state. The full method is on Cost Per Enrolled Student.
When do Florida charter school applications and lotteries happen?
Florida law does not set one statewide charter application date. Each charter sets its own timeline. When applications exceed capacity, "all applicants shall have an equal chance of being admitted through a random selection process" (Section 1002.33(10)(b), Florida Statutes).
What families see on the calendar:
| Program | Applications open | Key date |
|---|---|---|
| IDEA Public Schools, Florida campuses, 2027-28 | October 15, 2026 | Lottery February 20, 2027 |
| Step Up For Students scholarships, 2026-27 (new families) | February 1, 2026 | Private School Scholarship deadline November 15, 2026 |
What this means for your calendar.
- Charter networks start asking families in October. A school that starts advertising after the holidays is starting late.
- Scholarship season opens February 1. That is when private schools push hardest for the same families. Your charter message should already be in front of them.
- Seats open after the lottery. Families decline offers and waitlists move through summer. Inquiry follow-up does not stop in February.
Who authorizes Florida charter schools, and what can charters say in their advertising?
The authorizer. In Florida, the local district school board is the main sponsor: "A district school board may sponsor a charter school in the county over which the district school board has jurisdiction" (Section 1002.33(5)(a)). State universities and Florida College System institutions may also sponsor charters. In 2024-25, Florida districts received 30 charter applications and approved 16 (FLDOE 2024 Authorizer Report).
Florida charters are public schools. "All charter schools in Florida are public schools and shall be part of the state's program of public education" (Section 1002.33(1)). Florida law does not name advertising either way. Whether a specific campaign is an appropriate use of public funds is a question for your governing board, counsel, and auditor.
What your ads must match:
- Your enrollment preferences. Florida lets charters give preference to specific groups, including siblings, children of employees and governing board members, and children of active-duty military (Section 1002.33(10)(d)). If your charter uses a preference, your ads can say so. If it doesn't, they can't.
- Your admission standards, if any. Florida charters may limit enrollment to students who meet academic or artistic standards, if the charter allows it (Section 1002.33(10)(e)). An ad that implies selective admission is only accurate if your charter actually has a standard.
- Open to all students otherwise. Charters must be open to any eligible student residing in the district and must not violate Florida's antidiscrimination law (Section 1002.33(9) and (10)). Students with disabilities must have an equal chance of being selected.
- Apply, not reserve. If applications exceed capacity, seats go by random selection. Ads should say "apply," not "reserve your spot."
How crowded is the Florida charter market, and where?
Florida charter enrollment is concentrated in South Florida and a handful of large counties.
Top districts by charter students (FLDOE Charter School Enrollment Share report, 2022-23, the latest county breakdown FLDOE has published):
Top districts by charter students, 2022-23
24.6%
19.8%
16.1%
18.8%
11.8%
16.2%
23.5%
8.3%
Source: FLDOE Charter School Enrollment Share report, 2022-23
View the data
| District | Charter students | Charter share of public students |
|---|---|---|
| Miami-Dade | 82,623 | 24.6% |
| Broward | 50,564 | 19.8% |
| Hillsborough | 36,454 | 16.1% |
| Duval | 24,486 | 18.8% |
| Palm Beach | 22,582 | 11.8% |
| Polk | 18,555 | 16.2% |
| Osceola | 17,251 | 23.5% |
| Orange | 17,203 | 8.3% |
Miami-Dade and Broward alone held 35% of Florida charter students. In Miami-Dade, about one in four public school students attends a charter, so a charter there competes with other charters as much as with district schools. Sumter County had the highest share in the state at 36.9%.
How do Florida's scholarship programs affect charter schools?
Florida runs the largest state scholarship programs in the country. They let families use public money for private school tuition.
- Size. Florida's Education Estimating Conference forecasts 434,053 full-time-equivalent students on Family Empowerment Scholarships in 2025-26, rising to 482,528 in 2026-27, an 11% increase (August 11, 2026). Those figures do not include the separate tax credit scholarship.
- Timing. New families could apply for 2026-27 scholarships starting February 1, 2026, through Step Up For Students.
- Federal money arrives January 1, 2027. Florida is one of 27 states that opted into the federal scholarship tax credit (IRS, IR-2026-76, June 8, 2026).
For Florida charter schools, the message that competes best is the one private schools can't make: tuition-free, with no scholarship application required.
For Florida private schools, scholarship money reaches the school only when a family knows the program, chooses the school, and applies. See Private School Marketing Agency.
What does Taylor Wiz do for Florida schools?
- Meta advertising. Facebook and Instagram campaigns aimed at families in your enrollment area, timed to your application window.
- Parent outreach. Our outreach team contacts every inquiry within 15 minutes during business hours, by the next business day otherwise, and never later than 48 hours. They work with each family until an application is submitted. See Parent Outreach.
- Enrollment websites. Inquiry and application paths built to convert on a phone.
- Creative and video. Ads and video that show your school the way families experience it.
- Reporting. Submitted applications and cost per submitted application, by month and by ad.
Taylor Wiz is based in Fort Lauderdale, in Broward County. Your school takes it from there: lottery, offers, registration, and enrollment. We report submitted applications because that is the step we control.
Results
See published school results on Results.
Frequently asked questions about charter school marketing in Florida
When should a Florida charter school start marketing for its lottery?
By October. IDEA opens applications for its Florida campuses on October 15, 2026, for a February 20, 2027 lottery. Scholarship applications for private schools open February 1. A school that starts after the holidays is starting behind both.
How much funding does a Florida charter school get per student?
About $9,335 per full-time-equivalent student in 2026-27, according to the FEFP Second Calculation. Charter students are funded through the same FEFP formula as district students.
Do Florida charter schools have to hold a lottery?
When applications exceed capacity, yes. Florida law requires that all applicants have an equal chance through a random selection process, with any enrollment preferences the charter allows (Section 1002.33(10)).
Can a Florida charter school advertise academic admission standards?
Only if its charter includes them. Florida allows charters to limit enrollment to students meeting academic or artistic standards when the charter provides for it (Section 1002.33(10)(e)).
What does a submitted application cost?
$113 in Meta ad spend across 20 Taylor Wiz charter school accounts over the full year from October 2025 to September 2026, and $103 from October through July. The full figures are in the Charter Enrollment Marketing Benchmark 2026.
How much does Taylor Wiz cost for a Florida school?
Pricing is scoped to each school on a strategy call, based on your enrollment goals and your market.
Do you work with Florida private schools that accept scholarships?
Yes. All four services are offered to private and faith-based schools. See Private School Marketing Agency.
Find out what a seat actually costs you
Bring your current enrollment numbers and ad spend. We will map your funnel from inquiry to submitted application and show you where families are lost.
Written by Will Rodriguez, Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Reviewed for accuracy against current Florida statutes and FLDOE data.
- Published
- Last updated
Sources
- Florida Department of Education, Charter Schools (2025-26 figures)
- Florida Department of Education, Charter Schools Fast Facts and Program Statistics
- Florida Department of Education, Charter School Enrollment Share (2022-23)
- Florida Department of Education, 2026-27 FEFP Second Calculation (July 16, 2026)
- Florida Department of Education, 2024 Charter School Authorizer Report
- Section 1002.33, Florida Statutes
- Florida Office of Economic and Demographic Research, PreK-12 Enrollment Conference (August 11, 2026)
- Step Up For Students, 2026-27 Scholarship Deadlines
- IDEA Public Schools, 2027-28 applications (September 1, 2026)
- Florida Trend, Florida charter schools reach record student enrollment (September 3, 2026), citing the Florida Consortium of Public Charter Schools
- IRS, IR-2026-76 (June 8, 2026)
- Taylor Wiz Charter Enrollment Marketing Benchmark 2026: Meta ad spend and submitted applications across 20 charter school accounts, October 2025 to September 2026, pulled October 1, 2026