Virginia · NCES CCD 2024-25
Best-Resourced School Districts in Virginia 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
50 Districts ranked
516,229 Students enrolled
54/100 Avg quality score
C+ Top grade The ranking in one line
Arlington County Public Schools in Arlington leads Virginia's districts with an average school quality score of 60/100 across 36 schools.
60/100 top district score (grade C+)
36 schools in Arlington County Public Schools
27,562 students in the top district
54/100 average across the top 50
# District Grade Students Schools Avg S:T Per-Pupil $ Avg Quality 1 Arlington County Public Schools Arlington C+ 27,562 36 12.6:1 $23,424 60 2 Albemarle County Public Schools Charlottesville C 13,937 24 13.6:1 $17,536 59.5 3 Grayson County Public Schools Independence C 1,561 6 12:1 $16,370 59.2 4 Botetourt County Public Schools Fincastle C 4,492 11 13.5:1 $13,903 58.8 5 Franklin County Public Schools Rocky Mount C 6,252 14 13.7:1 $15,045 57.4 6 Charlottesville City Public Schools Charlottesville C 4,485 9 11.8:1 $19,953 57 7 Falls Church City Public Schools Falls Church C 2,496 5 12.4:1 $24,047 57 8 Sussex County Public Schools Stony Creek C 998 3 12.4:1 $24,850 56 9 Loudoun County Public Schools Ashburn C 81,678 96 12.7:1 $19,934 55.8 10 Surry County Public Schools Surry C 681 3 8.4:1 $25,743 55.7 11 Goochland County Public Schools Goochland C 2,642 5 13.3:1 $15,045 55.6 12 Hanover County Public Schools Ashland C 17,066 23 13.9:1 $13,035 55.3 13 York County Public Schools Yorktown C 12,640 19 - $13,844 55 14 Gloucester County Public Schools Gloucester C 5,054 8 13.2:1 $14,604 55 15 Montgomery County Public Schools Christiansburg C- 9,693 19 12.1:1 $14,114 54.8 16 West Point Public Schools West Point C- 810 2 13:1 $15,928 54.5 17 Pittsylvania County Public Schools Chatham C- 7,918 18 12.3:1 $14,072 54.4 18 Augusta County Public Schools Verona C- 10,076 18 14:1 $13,991 54.3 19 Amherst County Public Schools Amherst C- 3,987 9 11.8:1 $14,301 54.3 20 King and Queen County Public Schools King and Queen Ch C- 858 3 9.3:1 $16,570 54.3 21 Roanoke County Public Schools Roanoke C- 13,811 26 14:1 $13,365 54.2 22 Bedford County Public Schools Bedford C- 9,084 19 14.5:1 $13,519 54.1 23 Carroll County Public Schools Hillsville C- 3,505 9 12.6:1 $14,021 54 24 Mathews County Public Schools Mathews C- 911 3 9.9:1 $19,565 53.7 25 Salem City Public Schools Salem C- 3,750 6 12.8:1 $14,892 53.3 26 Bath County Public Schools Warm Springs C- 504 3 - $22,792 53.3 27 Madison County Public Schools Madison C- 1,680 4 12.9:1 $15,330 53.3 28 Powhatan County Public Schools Powhatan C- 4,241 5 13:1 $13,138 53.2 29 Wise County Public Schools Wise C- 5,913 11 13:1 $13,973 53 30 Galax City Public Schools Galax C- 1,393 3 15.1:1 $14,113 53 31 Colonial Beach Public Schools Colonial Beach C- 574 2 22.9:1 $18,601 53 32 Henrico County Public Schools Henrico C- 50,389 68 15.3:1 $12,973 53 33 Southampton County Public Schools Courtland C- 2,579 6 13.7:1 $15,083 52.8 34 Lunenburg County Public Schools Kenbridge C- 1,575 4 13.6:1 $14,848 52.8 35 Smyth County Public Schools Marion C- 3,981 13 11.2:1 $15,196 52.7 36 Scott County Public Schools Gate City C- 4,024 14 16.3:1 $12,841 52.6 37 Appomattox County Public Schools Appomattox C- 2,361 4 14.2:1 $12,435 52.5 38 Harrisonburg City Public Schools Harrisonburg C- 6,682 9 11.5:1 $15,787 52.4 39 Poquoson City Public Schools Poquoson C- 2,055 4 17.2:1 $13,306 52.3 40 Northumberland County Public Schools Heathsville C- 1,200 3 10.3:1 $18,689 52 41 Alexandria City Public Schools Alexandria C- 16,040 18 14.5:1 $21,716 51.9 42 Accomack County Public Schools Accomac C- 4,726 11 12.1:1 $14,426 51.9 43 Stafford County Public Schools Stafford C- 31,105 32 14.6:1 $13,431 51.8 44 Prince William County Public Schools Manassas C- 91,101 95 15.4:1 $15,373 51.4 45 Fauquier County Public Schools Warrenton C- 10,837 19 14.3:1 $15,817 51.4 46 Colonial Heights City Public Schools Colonial Heights C- 2,843 5 13:1 $15,988 51.2 47 Campbell County Public Schools Rustburg C- 7,873 13 13.7:1 $13,250 51.1 48 Roanoke City Public Schools Roanoke C- 13,597 24 13:1 $18,406 51 49 Amelia County Public Schools Amelia C- 1,663 3 14:1 $14,096 51 50 Richmond County Public Schools Warsaw C- 1,346 2 15:1 $14,612 51
Frequently Asked Questions What are the best school districts in Virginia? ▼ The top-ranked district in Virginia is Arlington County Public Schools in Arlington with 27,562 students across 36 schools. Average quality score: 60/100. 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 Virginia? ▼ Virginia has 50+ school districts serving 1,253,620 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 13.9:1.
Explore More for Virginia 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.