North Carolina · NCES CCD 2024-25
Best School Districts in North Carolina Top 50 districts ranked by average school quality score, based on student-teacher ratios, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.
50 Districts ranked
727,031 Students enrolled
46/100 Avg quality score
C Top grade The ranking in one line
Elkin City Schools in Elkin leads North Carolina's districts with an average school quality score of 58.5/100 across 4 schools.
58.5/100 top district score (grade C)
4 schools in Elkin City Schools
1,239 students in the top district
46/100 average across the top 50 # District Grade Students Schools Avg S:T Per-Pupil $ Avg Quality 1 Elkin City Schools Elkin C 1,239 4 12.5:1 $12,606 58.5 2 Polk County Schools Columbus C 2,166 7 14.6:1 $15,096 55.9 3 Alexander County Schools Taylorsville C- 4,525 12 15.7:1 $12,879 54 4 Stokes County Schools Danbury C- 5,606 19 15:1 $13,084 53.6 5 Gates County Schools Gatesville C- 1,497 5 13:1 $16,417 52.4 6 Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Chapel Hill C- 11,561 20 12.4:1 $16,534 51.3 7 Watauga County Schools Boone C- 4,754 11 15.6:1 $12,698 51.2 8 Carteret County Public Schools Beaufort C- 8,081 18 13.5:1 $13,086 50.6 9 Jones County Schools Trenton C- 1,067 5 13.8:1 $17,274 50.2 10 Orange County Schools Hillsborough D 7,208 13 13.4:1 $14,085 49.9 11 Weldon City Schools Weldon D 659 4 14.8:1 $19,454 49.5 12 Buncombe County Schools Asheville D 22,091 45 13.9:1 $13,190 49.1 13 Lincoln County Schools Lincolnton D 11,629 22 15.5:1 $10,582 49 14 Yadkin County Schools Yadkinville D 5,243 14 16:1 $12,232 47.9 15 Greene County Schools Snow Hill D 2,668 6 14.1:1 $15,182 47.8 16 Macon County Schools Franklin D 4,450 12 15.7:1 $13,154 47.8 17 Wilkes County Schools North Wilkesboro D 8,673 22 16.1:1 $12,156 47 18 Randolph County School System Asheboro D 15,383 32 15.7:1 $11,621 46.7 19 Avery County Schools Newland D 1,904 8 12.3:1 $15,311 46.5 20 Beaufort County Schools Washington D 5,975 14 14.9:1 $14,227 46.1 21 Durham Public Schools Durham D 31,531 54 13.2:1 $14,937 45.6 22 Wake County Schools Cary D 159,778 197 14.3:1 $11,859 45.6 23 New Hanover County Schools Wilmington D 25,244 42 14.3:1 $13,724 45.4 24 Chatham County Schools Pittsboro D 9,129 21 13.9:1 $13,461 45.4 25 Dare County Schools Nags Head D 5,181 11 12.6:1 $13,375 45.1 26 Pitt County Schools Greenville D 24,091 39 15:1 $11,733 45.1 27 Washington County Schools Plymouth D 1,104 5 15.7:1 $17,233 45 28 Asheville City Schools Asheville D 4,137 9 14.6:1 $15,998 44.4 29 Cleveland County Schools Shelby D 14,406 28 14.3:1 $11,957 44.1 30 Madison County Schools Marshall D 2,108 7 14:1 $14,773 43.9 31 Whiteville City Schools Whiteville D 2,104 5 11.9:1 $14,263 43.6 32 Mcdowell County Schools Marion D 5,776 15 14.9:1 $12,857 43.5 33 Clinton City Schools Clinton D 3,051 5 15.2:1 $11,956 43.4 34 Edgecombe County Public Schools Tarboro D 5,419 14 14.9:1 $13,224 43.3 35 Clay County Schools Hayesville D 1,314 4 14.5:1 $14,506 43.3 36 Davidson County Schools Lexington D 17,964 36 15.8:1 $10,930 43.2 37 Mitchell County Schools Bakersville D 1,722 7 15.1:1 $13,939 43.1 38 Davie County Schools Mocksville D 6,114 13 14.2:1 $11,624 42.6 39 Cherokee County Schools Murphy D 3,146 13 13.5:1 $15,950 42.6 40 Duplin County Schools Kenansville D 9,905 13 16.9:1 $10,965 42.5 41 Bladen County Schools Elizabethtown D 3,983 13 15.7:1 $13,797 42.4 42 Johnston County Public Schools Smithfield D 37,286 48 15.7:1 $10,788 42.3 43 Elizabeth City-Pasquotank Public Schools Elizabeth City D 4,834 13 14.3:1 $13,245 42.2 44 Cabarrus County Schools Concord D 34,810 44 16.3:1 $10,831 42.2 45 Northampton County Schools Jackson D 1,291 6 15.1:1 $20,192 42.2 46 Hickory City Schools Hickory D 3,877 9 15.1:1 $11,646 42 47 Transylvania County Schools Brevard D 3,312 9 11.5:1 $13,904 42 48 Jackson County Public Schools Sylva D 3,557 9 14.9:1 $13,534 41.8 49 Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Charlotte D 144,197 180 17.5:1 $11,853 41.7 50 Gaston County Schools Gastonia D 30,281 56 16.6:1 $11,409 41.4
Frequently Asked Questions What are the best school districts in North Carolina? ▼ The top-ranked district in North Carolina is Elkin City Schools in Elkin with 1,239 students across 4 schools. Average quality score: 58.5/100. 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 North Carolina? ▼ North Carolina has 50+ school districts serving 1,544,406 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 16.4:1.
Explore More for North Carolina 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.