California Elementary School Rankings
Compare academic results, growth from grades 3 to 5, and school climate. Start with the statewide rankings, then look for a school that fits your child and your daily life.
Top 25 California elementary schools
Public and charter schools in the comprehensive-school comparison group, ranked within this level. Small score differences should not decide your choice.
Top California elementary schools
sorted by Scope Score · 2024–25 CAASPP| # | School | County | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buckeye Union Mandarin Immersion CharterEl Dorado | El Dorado | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 97/100 |
| 2 | Cold Spring ElementarySanta Barbara | Santa Barbara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 97/100 |
| 3 | Bullis CharterSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 96/100 |
| 4 | Golden ElementaryOrange | Orange | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 94/100 |
| 5 | North HillsboroughSan Mateo | San Mateo | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 92/100 |
| 6 | William Faria ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 7 | Murdock-Portal ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 8 | Ohlone ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 9 | Santiago Hills ElementaryOrange | Orange | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 10 | Sage CanyonSan Diego | San Diego | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 11 | Cornerstone at Pedregal ElementaryLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 12 | Carmel Del Mar ElementarySan Diego | San Diego | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 13 | Montecito UnionSanta Barbara | Santa Barbara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 14 | Wonderland Avenue ElementaryLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 15 | Third Street ElementaryLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 16 | Wagner Ranch ElementaryContra Costa | Contra Costa | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
| 17 | John Muir ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
| 18 | Millikin ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
| 19 | Herbert Hoover ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
| 20 | Harold William KolbAlameda | Alameda | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
| 21 | Warm Springs ElementaryAlameda | Alameda | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 87/100 |
| 22 | Nelson S. Dilworth ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 87/100 |
| 23 | Covington ElementarySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 87/100 |
| 24 | Orchard HillsOrange | Orange | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 87/100 |
| 25 | Aurelia Pennekamp ElementaryLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 87/100 |
A rank orders schools on one composite number; it doesn't sit in a classroom. Splitting "exceeded" from "met" recovers real differences a single proficiency rate erases — researcher Andrew Ho called percent-proficient a "funhouse mirror" that distorts what's actually happening at a school (Educational Researcher, 2008). Weighting growth alongside those levels tracks a school's real effect on students better than proficiency-only ratings do, tested against real school-lottery outcomes (Angrist, Hull, Pathak & Walters, American Economic Review: Insights, 2024). Neither study — nor this table — sees class size, teacher turnover, or how a campus actually feels to walk into. Two schools a point apart here are effectively tied. Full methodology and citations →
Turn a ranking into a shortlist
Check your options
Confirm attendance boundaries, eligibility, applications and transportation with the school or district. A place on this list does not guarantee admission.
Compare the evidence
Open school profiles to compare results, growth where available, and climate. Look at support for your child's needs alongside the overall score.
Ask on a visit
How do you support early readers, and how do families hear about their progress?
What the data cannot tell you →Read the patterns behind the results.
These observations can overlap. Compare reported attainment with cohort change, then ask who shares in those results. They do not establish school effectiveness.
The average Exceeded rate across the reported grades and subjects is at least 50%.
The average Met + Exceeded rate across the reported grades and subjects is at least 65%.
The school’s aggregate cohort-change index clears our stronger-gains threshold. This is a school-level comparison across years, not tracking of individual children.
Strength across reading, math and official California growth. Each part needs evidence; missing information cannot count as a strength.
Reading and math results have improved across three reporting years. This describes a recent record, not a prediction or proof of what caused it.
Browse on the map →Is there a single "best" elementary school in California?
By Scope Score, Buckeye Union Mandarin Immersion Charter in El Dorado County ranks highest among 5,721 scored elementary schools for 2024–25 CAASPP (97/100). But one number can't tell you which school is best for your kid: a family chasing AP access and a family prioritizing a calm, low-absenteeism campus could reasonably land on different schools from the rankings above. Source: CDE 2024–25 CAASPP, analyzed by SchoolScope.
The patterns above offer questions to investigate alongside the ranking. Read the underlying subject results, cohort comparisons and student-group evidence; neither a badge nor a rank explains what caused the results.
Why we don't publish a "worst schools" list
Scores correlate strongly with poverty and English-learner concentration. A bottom-ranked list built from Scope Score alone would mostly describe neighborhood income, not what a school does for its students — and we'd rather not hand that list to anyone. Lower-scoring elementary schools are still visible on SchoolScope, shown with their growth trajectory and climate data as context, not as a headline.
What to look for in an elementary school
SchoolScope ranks elementary schools with the Scope Score, a 0–100 rating. The six weighted dimensions: exceeded-standard rate (42%), met-or-exceeded rate (23%), grade-to-grade growth (20%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). Elementary schools are only ever compared to other elementary schools — never to middle or high schools. Source: CDE CAASPP, 2024–25.
Our data across thousands of California elementary schools surfaces three signals that matter most:
- Exceeded rate, not just proficiency. Two schools can both show 80% "met or exceeded standard" — but if one has 60% exceeded and the other has 20% exceeded, they're not the same school. The exceeded rate separates schools that clear the bar from schools that raise it.
- How far one cohort moves from 3rd to 5th grade. The tempting comparison — this year's 5th graders against this year's 3rd graders — is two different sets of children sitting two different tests, and the bar rises with each grade. The Scope Score follows one school's returning cohort instead: its 5th graders this year against its own 3rd graders two years earlier — mostly, not exactly, the same kids — and compares that growth with other elementary schools with sufficient cohort data. Enrollment changes mean this is not an individual-student growth measure.
- Attendance in context. Chronic absenteeism describes missed school time. Illness, transportation, housing and other circumstances can affect attendance; ask how the school helps students stay connected and catch up.
California elementary averages
California's scored elementary schools average a 21.4% exceeded rate on the 2024–25 CAASPP. Schools above that benchmark are doing something right. (CDE CAASPP)
Top districts for elementary
Districts with the highest average elementary Scope Scores (minimum 3 schools).
Search elementary schools near you
Find and compare elementary schools by name, city, or zip code.
Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024–25
Frequently asked questions about ranking California elementary schools
How are California elementary schools ranked?
SchoolScope ranks elementary schools with the Scope Score, a 0–100 rating built from 6 weighted measures: exceeded-standard rate (42%), met-or-exceeded rate (23%), grade-to-grade growth (20%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). Schools are compared only to others at the same level — never mixed with a different grade band, and never averaged into a single letter grade. See the full methodology.
How many elementary schools are there in California?
SchoolScope has Scope Scores for 5,721 California elementary schools using 2024–25 CAASPP results. This is the scored comprehensive-school comparison group, not a complete statewide school inventory. That count includes traditional public and charter schools; private elementary schools aren't scored, since they don't report the same state testing data.
What is the best elementary school in California?
By Scope Score, Buckeye Union Mandarin Immersion Charter in El Dorado County ranks highest among 5,721 scored elementary schools, at 97 out of 100 for 2024–25 CAASPP in the comprehensive-school comparison group. "Best" still depends on what a family is optimizing for — academics, growth, or campus culture can point to different answers.
What are the top 25 elementary schools in California?
The top 25 scored elementary schools by Scope Score are ranked in the table on this page, with county, percentile, score and band. Explore the interactive map to find schools near you and open their full profiles.
What are the worst elementary schools in California?
We don't publish a "worst schools" list. Scores correlate strongly with poverty and English-learner concentration, so a bottom-ranked list built from Scope Score alone would mostly describe neighborhood income, not what a school does for its students. Lower-scoring elementary schools stay visible on SchoolScope, shown with growth trajectory and climate data as context.
Is the Scope Score the same as a GreatSchools or Niche rating?
No two rating sites use the same inputs. SchoolScope uses the CDE data year shown on this page and separates "exceeded standard" from "met standard" — a split we haven't found surfaced prominently elsewhere. Whether other sites weight growth or absenteeism internally, we can't say; their formulas aren't fully public. Compare what's visible to parents.