Georgia · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best-Resourced School Districts in Georgia

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

City Schools of Decatur in Decatur leads Georgia's districts with an average school quality score of 57.7/100 across 9 schools.

57.7/100
top district score (grade C): 9
schools in City Schools of Decatur: 5,655
students in the top district: 48/100
average across the top 50

#	District	Grade	Students	Schools	Avg S:T	Per-Pupil $	Avg Quality
1	City Schools of DecaturDecatur	C	5,655	9	11.1:1	$16,939	57.7
2	Wilkinson CountyIrwinton	C	1,119	4	12.7:1	$18,397	55
3	Jasper CountyMonticello	C-	2,573	4	16.4:1	$13,279	54.8
4	Chickamauga CityChickamauga	C-	1,277	3	15.3:1	$11,637	53.7
5	Cartersville CityCartersville	C-	4,497	4	15.7:1	$13,141	51.8
6	Vidalia CityVidalia	C-	2,366	4	13.5:1	$14,575	51.5
7	Burke CountyWaynesboro	C-	3,990	5	12.3:1	$19,444	51.2
8	Early CountyBlakely	C-	1,668	3	8.6:1	$18,154	51
9	Schley CountyEllaville	C-	1,231	2	14.6:1	$12,721	50
10	Towns CountyHiawassee	C-	1,002	3	10.7:1	$18,874	50
11	Wheeler CountyAlamo	D	873	3	12.9:1	$15,865	48.3
12	Marietta CityMarietta	D	8,711	13	11.9:1	$17,612	48.1
13	Trion CityTrion	D	1,327	3	13.4:1	$12,693	48
14	Whitfield CountyDalton	D	12,317	22	13.1:1	$13,284	47.9
15	Rome CityRome	D	6,573	8	12.4:1	$14,188	47.9
16	Appling CountyBaxley	D	3,463	5	14:1	$14,476	47.8
17	Fayette CountyFayetteville	D	20,070	24	13.8:1	$14,041	47.7
18	Dalton Public SchoolsDalton	D	7,675	10	12.4:1	$14,396	47.6
19	Echols CountyStatenville	D	891	2	15.2:1	$12,391	47.5
20	Dade CountyTrenton	D	2,063	4	14:1	$12,452	47.3
21	Taylor CountyButler	D	1,229	4	11.4:1	$16,136	47.3
22	Lumpkin CountyDahlonega	D	3,749	5	14.6:1	$13,571	47.2
23	Lee CountyLeesburg	D	6,333	8	14.3:1	$11,377	47
24	Irwin CountyOcilla	D	1,622	3	12.9:1	$14,707	47
25	Lincoln CountyLincolnton	D	1,231	3	14.7:1	$14,353	47
26	Oconee CountyWatkinsville	D	8,531	11	13.7:1	$11,903	46.8
27	Catoosa CountyRinggold	D	10,426	16	12.5:1	$14,153	46.8
28	Turner CountyAshburn	D	1,189	3	11.7:1	$16,906	46.7
29	Terrell CountyDawson	D	1,035	3	13.2:1	$17,581	46.7
30	Lowndes CountyValdosta	D	10,728	11	13.8:1	$12,014	46.5
31	Oglethorpe CountyLexington	D	2,211	4	13.7:1	$13,653	46.5
32	Habersham CountyClarkesville	D	7,204	14	13.8:1	$14,587	46.4
33	Chattahoochee CountyCusseta	D	970	3	15:1	$13,053	46.3
34	Candler CountyMetter	D	2,201	4	16.2:1	$12,651	46.3
35	Cherokee CountyCanton	D	41,891	37	14.3:1	$13,292	46
36	Tattnall CountyReidsville	D	3,591	5	12.7:1	$14,290	46
37	Emanuel CountySwainsboro	D	4,059	6	12.7:1	$13,940	45.8
38	Troup CountyLagrange	D	12,280	19	14:1	$13,298	45.6
39	Putnam CountyEatonton	D	2,978	4	12.4:1	$16,867	45.5
40	Bremen CityBremen	D	2,355	4	16.6:1	$11,851	45.5
41	Wilkes CountyWashington	D	1,265	4	13.7:1	$16,070	45.5
42	Coweta CountyNewnan	D	23,200	29	14.5:1	$12,925	45.5
43	Jackson CountyJefferson	D	9,918	10	13.5:1	$13,848	45.4
44	Savannah-Chatham CountySavannah	D	36,326	58	13.8:1	$15,342	45.2
45	Jefferson CityJefferson	D	4,166	4	16.1:1	$11,395	45
46	Cook CountyAdel	D	3,096	4	12.4:1	$14,353	45
47	Heard CountyFranklin	D	2,195	6	14.4:1	$13,632	45
48	Pelham CityPelham	D	1,387	3	11.4:1	$13,718	45
49	Ware CountyWaycross	D	5,973	9	13.2:1	$15,387	44.9
50	Cobb CountyMarietta	D	106,703	110	13.7:1	$14,680	44.8

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best school districts in Georgia? ▼

The top-ranked district in Georgia is City Schools of Decatur in Decatur with 5,655 students across 9 schools. Average quality score: 57.7/100. 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 Georgia? ▼

Georgia has 50+ school districts serving 1,738,641 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 14.4:1.

Explore More for Georgia

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.