U.S. NAEP Math Scores 2024
National 2024 NAEP mathematics results for grades 4 and 8, with 2022 score comparisons and achievement-level indicators. Grade 4 and Grade 8 scale scores are derived separately and should not be compared directly with each other.
2024 National Results
NAEP Mathematics Average Scores: 2022 and 2024
National results for Grade 4 and Grade 8 students, with each grade compared only across assessment cycles.
NAEP calculates reported changes and statistical comparisons from unrounded estimates. Grade 4 and Grade 8 use separately derived scales, so the raw score levels should not be compared across grades.
2024 NAEP Mathematics Score Table
| Reported change | 2024 vs. 2022 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 4 | 236 | 237 | +2 points | Higher in 2024 |
| Grade 8 | 274 | 274 | No change in the rounded average | No statistically detectable change |
Grade 4 Improved While Grade 8 Results Split Across the Score Distribution
- Grade 4 mathematics moved upward from 2022, but the recovery was not uniform across the score distribution. The national increase included gains at the 50th, 75th, and 90th percentiles, while scores at the 10th and 25th percentiles did not show a statistically detectable change. The average remained below its 2019 level.
- The unchanged Grade 8 rounded average masks movement in opposite directions. Scores rose at the 75th and 90th percentiles while falling at the 10th and 25th percentiles. A stable national mean therefore does not indicate that performance was stable throughout the distribution.
- Achievement-level results reinforce the different grade patterns. Grade 4 had a larger share at or above NAEP Proficient and a smaller share below NAEP Basic than in 2022. Grade 8 had larger shares at both ends: more students at or above NAEP Proficient and more students below NAEP Basic.
- The Grade 8 score of 274 should not be interpreted as higher achievement than the Grade 4 score of 237. NAEP develops the mathematics scales separately by grade, even though both are reported from 0 to 500.
Achievement-Level Indicators, 2022 and 2024
Changes in the shares below NAEP Basic and at or above NAEP Proficient.
Achievement levels are grade-specific performance standards. Percentage changes should be read within the same grade and achievement indicator.
The Nation’s Report Card — National Trends and Student Skills
| Grade 4 — Below NAEP Basic | 25% | 24% | −1 pp |
| Grade 4 — At or above NAEP Proficient | 36% | 39% | +3 pp |
| Grade 8 — Below NAEP Basic | 38% | 39% | +1 pp |
| Grade 8 — At or above NAEP Proficient | 26% | 28% | +2 pp |
The Grade 8 Distribution Moved in Opposite Directions
- Grade 4 moved in the same favorable direction on both selected achievement indicators: the below-Basic share declined while the at-or-above-Proficient share increased.
- Grade 8 followed a different pattern. The share reaching at least NAEP Proficient increased, but the below-Basic share also increased. That split is consistent with the percentile results, where higher-performing students gained while lower-performing students lost ground.
Data Sources, Measurement and Comparability
Official national data
The results come from the National Center for Education Statistics and The Nation’s Report Card for the 2024 NAEP mathematics assessment at grades 4 and 8.
Assessment population
NAEP administered the 2024 mathematics assessment to nationally representative samples of fourth- and eighth-grade students. About 117,900 Grade 4 students in 6,100 schools and 115,200 Grade 8 students in 5,410 schools were assessed from January through March 2024.
Score scale
Mathematics results at grades 4 and 8 are reported on 0–500 scales. The scales are developed separately for each grade. A Grade 8 score therefore cannot be interpreted as a direct continuation of the Grade 4 scale.
Rounded values and statistical comparisons
NAEP displays average scores and percentages as rounded values, while changes and statistical tests are calculated from unrounded estimates. This is why the Grade 4 averages shown as 236 in 2022 and 237 in 2024 correspond to an officially reported two-point increase.
Achievement levels
NAEP Basic, NAEP Proficient, and NAEP Advanced are assessment-specific performance standards. NAEP Proficient is not intended to represent the same standard as grade-level proficiency used by a state or school district. Federal law continues to require NAEP achievement levels to be used on a trial basis.
2022 comparison
The 2022 assessment is the immediately preceding Grade 4 and Grade 8 NAEP mathematics cycle. NAEP did not administer the planned 2021 mathematics assessment because of the COVID-19 pandemic.