California · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best-Resourced School Districts in California

Top 50 districts ranked by average school quality score, based on student-teacher ratios, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.

Compiled by PlainSchools, Education-data publisher · August 26, 2026

The ranking in one line

Hillsborough City Elementary in Hillsborough leads California's districts with an average school quality score of 57.5/100 across 4 schools.

57.5/100
top district score (grade C): 4
schools in Hillsborough City Elementary: 1,294
students in the top district: 47/100
average across the top 50

#	District	Grade	Students	Schools	Avg S:T	Per-Pupil $	Avg Quality
1	Hillsborough City ElementaryHillsborough	C	1,294	4	14.7:1	$29,167	57.5
2	Los Angeles County Office of EducationDowney	C	1,533	8	11.7:1	-	56.8
3	Piedmont City UnifiedPiedmont	C-	2,336	6	17:1	$23,442	53.5
4	Holtville UnifiedHoltville	C-	1,573	6	15.9:1	$18,698	52.7
5	Goleta Union ElementaryGoleta	C-	3,416	9	19.3:1	$22,980	52.2
6	Portola Valley ElementaryPortola Valley	C-	515	2	14.4:1	$32,905	51.5
7	Manhattan Beach UnifiedManhattan Beach	C-	5,895	7	23.4:1	$18,039	50.9
8	Palos Verdes Peninsula UnifiedPalos Verdes Estates	C-	10,457	17	22.2:1	$14,998	50
9	Fallbrook Union HighFallbrook	C-	2,096	3	22.7:1	$19,198	50
10	Shasta Union HighRedding	D	4,265	5	18.6:1	$15,160	49.8
11	Tamalpais Union HighLarkspur	D	4,837	5	15.6:1	$22,335	49.6
12	Kingsburg Elementary CharterKingsburg	D	2,135	7	20.2:1	-	49.4
13	Ventura County Office of EducationCamarillo	D	601	5	6.8:1	-	49.2
14	Rosedale Union ElementaryBakersfield	D	6,041	9	22.3:1	$13,538	48.9
15	Brea-Olinda UnifiedBrea	D	5,811	10	19.7:1	$15,906	48.1
16	Tulare County Office of EducationVisalia	D	1,636	5	13.7:1	-	47.8
17	Brawley Union HighBrawley	D	2,055	3	22.3:1	$19,218	47.3
18	San Pasqual Valley UnifiedWinterhaven	D	591	5	12.8:1	$30,514	47.2
19	Kings Canyon Joint UnifiedReedley	D	9,684	21	22.9:1	$18,527	46.7
20	Santa Barbara UnifiedSanta Barbara	D	12,583	20	16.9:1	$18,088	46.7
21	Columbia ElementaryRedding	D	754	3	13.6:1	$17,279	46.7
22	Yreka Union HighYreka	D	733	3	12.1:1	$17,385	46.7
23	Tahoe-Truckee UnifiedTruckee	D	3,965	11	18:1	$22,692	46.5
24	Lassen Union HighSusanville	D	864	3	13.5:1	$15,065	46.3
25	Saint Helena UnifiedSt. Helena	D	1,121	4	13.2:1	$38,622	46.3
26	Lammersville Joint UnifiedMountain House	D	7,520	8	22.4:1	$11,535	45.8
27	Jefferson ElementaryTracy	D	2,623	4	20.5:1	$11,551	45.8
28	Bishop UnifiedBishop	D	1,930	6	13.5:1	$16,848	45.7
29	Central Union HighEl Centro	D	4,093	5	17.3:1	$19,038	45.6
30	Petaluma Joint Union HighPetaluma	D	4,926	10	19.8:1	-	45.3
31	Pacific Grove UnifiedPacific Grove	D	1,772	5	16:1	$25,660	45.2
32	Orinda Union ElementaryOrinda	D	2,516	5	21.6:1	$16,280	45
33	Heber ElementaryHeber	D	1,186	2	21.2:1	$20,237	45
34	Reed Union ElementaryTiburon	D	1,024	3	16.2:1	$24,974	45
35	Saugus UnionSanta Clarita	D	9,097	15	27.2:1	$14,043	44.9
36	Los Altos ElementaryLos Altos	D	3,355	9	19.1:1	$22,999	44.8
37	Gravenstein Union ElementarySebastopol	D	768	3	18.8:1	$17,042	44.7
38	Fresno County Office of EducationFresno	D	748	3	8.4:1	-	44.7
39	Berkeley UnifiedBerkeley	D	9,073	17	16.9:1	$22,710	44.5
40	Las Lomitas ElementaryMenlo Park	D	1,151	2	17.7:1	$30,841	44.5
41	Oak Park UnifiedOak Park	D	4,236	7	24.6:1	$14,447	44.1
42	Cypress ElementaryCypress	D	3,389	6	24.2:1	$16,126	44
43	Hamilton UnifiedHamilton City	D	711	3	21.3:1	$15,051	44
44	Madera County Superintendent of SchoolsMadera	D	663	4	16.4:1	$71,630	44
45	Rancho Santa Fe ElementaryRancho Santa Fe	D	574	2	11.8:1	$24,352	44
46	Laton Joint UnifiedLaton	D	628	4	15.9:1	$20,922	43.8
47	San Diego County Office of EducationSan Diego	D	1,036	7	8.6:1	-	43.6
48	Modoc Joint UnifiedAlturas	D	832	6	10.8:1	$15,958	43.5
49	Laguna Beach UnifiedLaguna Beach	D	2,456	4	17.4:1	$30,217	43.3
50	Oroville Union HighOroville	D	2,346	4	14.4:1	$17,877	43.3

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best school districts in California? ▼

The top-ranked district in California is Hillsborough City Elementary in Hillsborough with 1,294 students across 4 schools. Average quality score: 57.5/100. Rankings are based on average school quality scores from NCES data.

How are district rankings calculated? ▼

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES data: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be ranked.

How many school districts are in California? ▼

California has 50+ school districts serving 5,787,663 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 21.5:1.

Explore More for California

All Schools → Best Schools → Highest Spending → Funding Equity → Absenteeism Data →

Methodology

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 metrics: student-teacher ratio, school counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism rates. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be included. This measures school-level resources, not test scores. Higher average scores indicate districts where schools generally have smaller classes, better counselor access, and lower absenteeism.

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.