California High Schools Rankings: California high schools graduate 88% of students. Fewer than half leave college-ready.
We score 2,160 California high schools on seven dimensions — grade 11 scores, graduation, college/career readiness, attendance, suspensions, and English Learner progress. Graduation rates cluster high; readiness is where schools separate.
Renaissance Arts Academy (Los Angeles County) is California's top-scoring high school in SchoolScope's 2024–25 analysis, with a Scope Score of 97 out of 100 — one school of 2,160 scored. Source: CDE CAASPP, analyzed by SchoolScope. · Jump to the top 25 ↓
What kind of school are you looking for?
A single ranking rewards one kind of school. We classify every scored school into an archetype instead — the character of the school, read from its data. Start with the kind that fits your kid; the full top 25 follows.
A high-ceiling school — students here are pushed to exceed, not just meet, the standard.
A growth engine — students gain measurably more here than at peer schools.
Browse on the map →Strong across every dimension we measure — academics, growth, culture, and engagement.
On an upward trajectory — scores are improving faster than average. Worth a closer look.
Browse on the map →A solid, reliable choice — most students meet proficiency standards consistently.
Strong school culture with high family engagement, even if test scores are still developing.
Every school has strengths the data doesn’t fully capture. Visit and see for yourself.
The top 25 rankings
Ranked by Scope Score across 7 dimensions — a reference table, not a verdict. Two schools a point apart are effectively tied.
Is there a single "best" high school in California?
By Scope Score, Renaissance Arts Academy in Los Angeles County ranks highest among 2,160 scored high 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 table below. Source: CDE 2024–25 CAASPP, analyzed by SchoolScope.
The archetypes above are the more useful starting point than the number one school in the state — they show why a school scores where it does, not just where it lands. Two schools a point apart in the rankings table are effectively tied; the exceeded rate, the growth trajectory, and the climate numbers underneath tell you more than the rank does.
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 high schools are still visible on SchoolScope, shown with their growth trajectory and climate data as context, not as a headline.
How are California high schools scored?
The seven weighted dimensions: graduation rate (25%), exceeded-standard rate (22%), college readiness (20%), met-or-exceeded rate (18%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). College-going rate is shown on school profiles as context but is never scored. Sources: CDE CAASPP, ACGR graduation data, and College/Career Indicator files.
Graduation rate carries the highest weight — it's the most fundamental outcome measure. College readiness (AP pass rate or A-G completion) captures whether a school prepares students for what comes after.
What we can't show you: SAT/ACT scores (no longer reported by CDE), course rigor, or college acceptance data. These are not publicly available at the school level in California.
Honest limitations
There is no growth metric for high school (only one grade tested). College-going rate data lags by ~2 years. Not all schools have AP programs, so AP readiness data is absent for some schools — the Scope Score adjusts by redistributing weight to available dimensions.
Why exceeded rate matters even more for high school
At the high school level, "met standard" on the CAASPP roughly corresponds to on-track for community college readiness. "Exceeded standard" is closer to four-year university readiness. The gap between these two levels is the gap between two very different post-secondary paths.
California high school averages
California's scored high schools average a 15.8% exceeded rate on the grade 11 CAASPP (2024–25). Schools well above this benchmark are giving students a measurably stronger foundation for college. (CDE CAASPP)
Top districts for high school
Districts with the highest average high school Scope Scores (minimum 3 schools).
Search high schools near you
Find and compare high schools by name, city, or zip code.
Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25
Frequently asked questions about ranking California high schools
How are California high schools ranked?
SchoolScope ranks high schools with the Scope Score, a 0–100 rating built from 7 weighted measures: graduation rate (25%), exceeded-standard rate (22%), college readiness (20%), met-or-exceeded rate (18%), 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 high schools are there in California?
SchoolScope has Scope Scores for 2,160 California high schools for the 2024–25 CAASPP school year, built from CDE data. That count includes traditional public and charter schools; private high schools aren't scored, since they don't report the same state testing data.
What is the best high school in California?
By Scope Score, Renaissance Arts Academy in Los Angeles County ranks highest among 2,160 scored high schools, at 97 out of 100 for 2024–25 CAASPP. "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 high schools in California?
The top 25 scored high schools by Scope Score are ranked in the table on this page, each with county and score band. Browse all 2,160 scored high schools on the interactive map, filterable by score, growth, and archetype.
What are the worst high 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 high 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 pulls current-year CDE data 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.