lunenburgbudgetproject.org — written by the Lunenburg Budget Project, an independent tool for residents. Not affiliated with the Town of Lunenburg, the School Committee or the school district. The data this page is computed from: /data/topics/per-pupil-spending.json
Lunenburg spent $18,027 a pupil in FY2025, all funds, against a state median of $23,520.
1 · The facts
$18,027
a pupil, all funds, FY2025, DESE
$23,520
the median of 318 districts
$21,179
the first quartile, the same districts
$5,493
below the median (our arithmetic)
310 of 318
districts, highest spending first, FY2025
17 of 17
years below the first quartile, FY2009 to FY2025
$10,605
a pupil, all funds, FY2009
279 of 328
rank, FY2009
270 of 324
its highest standing, FY2013
2 · What it shows
1
DESE counts every fund and every pupil: $18,027 a pupil against a median of $23,520.
2
It ranked 310 of 318 in FY2025, below the first quartile in all 17 years DESE publishes.
3
In FY2009 it spent $10,605 a pupil and ranked 279 of 328; its highest standing was 270 of 324 in FY2013.
Spending a pupil, all funds, against every district
Year
Lunenburg
State median
First quartile
Rank
FY2025
$18,027
$23,520
$21,179
310 of 318
FY2024
$17,601
$22,227
$20,106
303 of 320
FY2023
$17,684
$20,866
$18,876
282 of 320
FY2022
$15,864
$19,552
$17,637
301 of 318
FY2021
$15,201
$18,902
$16,978
302 of 318
FY2020
$13,797
$17,308
$15,611
302 of 320
FY2019
$13,783
$16,952
$15,166
301 of 320
FY2018
$13,828
$16,270
$14,626
286 of 322
FY2017
$13,209
$15,581
$14,223
296 of 322
FY2016
$12,982
$15,018
$13,946
291 of 322
FY2015
$12,424
$14,461
$13,353
295 of 321
FY2014
$12,384
$13,984
$12,978
277 of 324
FY2013
$12,027
$13,463
$12,452
270 of 324
FY2012
$11,448
$13,080
$12,022
282 of 326
FY2011
$11,080
$12,728
$11,585
283 of 328
FY2010
$10,720
$12,450
$11,267
280 of 328
FY2009
$10,605
$12,242
$11,156
279 of 328
DESE’s end-of-year finance collection: all funds, over total FTE pupils, reported after each year closed. Not a budget and not the appropriation.
What was said
“According to Massachusetts State reports Lunenburg per pupil expenditure is listed 361 out of 401 districts in Massachusetts. This means that we're in the top 20% for school performance while being in the bottom 10% for spending”