Adoption Rate by State
Share of FY2022 exits discharged through adoption. FY2022 data; rankings require at least 500 exits, which 49 jurisdictions meet.
- 26.4%
- Qualifying mean (n=49)
- 26.3%
- Qualifying median
- 41.8%
- Highest
- 14.0%
- Lowest
This ranks adoption rate only, not overall state child-welfare quality or child safety. With fewer exits, a handful of cases can swing the rate.
#1 among the qualifying cohort: Maine at 41.8% (cohort median 26.3%).
Where the 49 qualifying jurisdictions sit
According to the U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 jurisdiction tables, half of the qualifying jurisdictions fall between 21.9% and 29.6%, so the 27.8-percentage-point gap between 41.8% and 14.0% is driven by the tails, not by a broadly split field.
- 26.3%
- Cohort median
- 21.9-29.6%
- Middle half of jurisdictions
- 16
- Jurisdictions in the most crowded band (25.1-30.7%)
- None
- Relationship to caseload size
Caseload size shows essentially no relationship to this measure across the qualifying cohort (Pearson r = 0.01, n = 49): big states are not systematically higher or lower. Correlation is not causation, and this measure is not adjusted for case mix, state law, or court practice.
Where the 49 qualifying jurisdictions sit
Equal-width bands across the observed FY2022 range. Band counts sum to the qualifying cohort (49), not to a quality score.
Two views of the same qualifying cohort
Distribution of jurisdictions meeting the exit floor, beside the #1 reading on the same scale. Neither chart is an overall child-welfare grade.
Distribution of adoption rate, FY2022
How the 49 jurisdictions meeting the 500-exit floor spread across the observed range
#1 · Maine
Same ranked #1 value as the table below; tick marks the cohort median as context only.
What the FY2022 Adoption Rate Data Reveals
This is a wide-tail board: FY2022 runs 27.8 points from 14.0 to 41.8%, so the ranked list is dominated by extremes rather than a split middle. Maine is an outlier relative to the median (41.8% vs 26.3%); treat #1 as a tail case, not the typical jurisdiction.
Across the 49 jurisdictions that meet the ≥500-exit floor, the unweighted mean was 26.4% in FY2022 (median 26.3%). Delaware and D.C. are omitted because fewer than 500 exits make the rate highly volatile.
Adoption counts finalized adoptive discharges as a share of all FY2022 exits. States that reunify more children mechanically leave fewer exits for adoption, so a low adoption rate can sit beside a strong reunification board without contradicting the tables. Read this list as an exit-path share, not as a judgment of how hard agencies work to find adoptive homes.
The ranking is descriptive and does not adjust for case mix, state law, reporting systems, courts, consent decrees, or service availability. Percentages use the applicable FY2022 discharge count divided by all exits. This data is informational and does not substitute for child welfare agency consultation, state caseworker guidance, or legal advice.
Qualifying Jurisdictions, Ranked by Adoption Rate
| # | State | Grade | Adoption Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Maine | B | 41.8% |
| 2 | Michigan | D | 39.3% |
| 3 | West Virginia | B | 39.2% |
| 4 | Oklahoma | C | 39.0% |
| 5 | New Hampshire | B | 35.6% |
| 6 | Utah | B | 35.1% |
| 7 | Virginia | D | 34.6% |
| 8 | Iowa | B | 34.4% |
| 9 | Connecticut | D | 34.3% |
| 10 | Florida | B | 33.2% |
| 11 | New Jersey | C | 31.9% |
| 12 | Arizona | C | 31.8% |
| 13 | Arkansas | C | 29.6% |
| 14 | Kansas | C | 29.5% |
| 15 | Mississippi | B | 29.5% |
| 16 | Vermont | B | 29.5% |
| 17 | Illinois | C | 28.8% |
| 18 | Pennsylvania | C | 28.5% |
| 19 | Texas | C | 27.6% |
| 20 | Nevada | B | 26.9% |
| 21 | Rhode Island | D | 26.9% |
| 22 | Louisiana | B | 26.6% |
| 23 | North Carolina | C | 26.6% |
| 24 | Idaho | A | 26.3% |
| 25 | South Dakota | C | 26.3% |
| 26 | California | C | 26.0% |
| 27 | North Dakota | B | 25.8% |
| 28 | Kentucky | C | 25.2% |
| 29 | Indiana | B | 24.3% |
| 30 | Georgia | D | 24.2% |
| 31 | New Mexico | B | 24.0% |
| 32 | Alabama | C | 23.3% |
| 33 | Minnesota | C | 23.0% |
| 34 | Alaska | C | 22.8% |
| 35 | Missouri | D | 22.3% |
| 36 | Oregon | D | 22.0% |
| 37 | Nebraska | C | 21.9% |
| 38 | Tennessee | C | 21.5% |
| 39 | Montana | C | 20.4% |
| 40 | Washington | C | 20.3% |
| 41 | Massachusetts | D | 19.6% |
| 42 | Colorado | C | 19.3% |
| 43 | New York | F | 19.3% |
| 44 | Wisconsin | D | 18.2% |
| 45 | South Carolina | C | 17.3% |
| 46 | Hawaii | C | 16.6% |
| 47 | Ohio | D | 16.0% |
| 48 | Maryland | F | 14.0% |
| 49 | Wyoming | B | 14.0% |
Other Metrics
Frequently Asked Questions
What is adoption rate in foster care?
Share of FY2022 exits discharged through adoption. PlainFoster derives this measure from FY2022 AFCARS jurisdiction reports published by the federal Administration for Children and Families.
Which state has the best adoption rate?
Among jurisdictions with ≥500 FY2022 exits, Maine ranks first at 41.8%. Higher values rank first. Maine is an outlier relative to the median (41.8% vs 26.3%); treat #1 as a tail case, not the typical jurisdiction. The unweighted mean of that qualifying cohort is 26.4%. Delaware (256 exits) and D.C. (260) are omitted.
Why is the adoption rate range so wide?
The AFCARS tables show a 27.8-percentage-point span across qualifying jurisdictions but do not establish causes. Case mix, state law, courts, and reporting can differ; this page keeps the figure descriptive.
How is adoption rate calculated?
Adoption Rate is derived from AFCARS jurisdiction reports published by the Administration for Children and Families. It measures share of fy2022 exits discharged through adoption. The FY2022 data reflects the federal fiscal year ending September 30, 2022.
Read with this measure
Foster Care vs Adoption
why adoption share and reunification share move against each other
Source: Administration for Children and Families, AFCARS Report FY2022. acf.hhs.gov
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
Source: U.S. Children's Bureau (Administration for Children and Families) AFCARS foster care placement, exit, and outcome statistics · 2022 Rates are shares of exits in the jurisdiction report; they are not a composite child-welfare grade.
According to the U.S. Children's Bureau (Administration for Children and Families), foster-care counts and discharge outcomes are published in AFCARS workbooks and jurisdiction reports. Every figure on PlainFoster is rebuilt from those federal tables; no number is typed in by an editor. This ranking is rebuilt from FY2022 AFCARS jurisdiction-report counts. The displayed mean is an unweighted mean of the 50 states and District of Columbia. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-07-30. AFCARS figures are federal fiscal-year foster-care counts and discharge rates from jurisdiction reports - not child-welfare quality rankings, court-performance scores, case-level advice, or real-time caseload status.