California High School Rankings
Compare grade 11 results, graduation, college and career readiness, and school climate. Use the rankings as a starting point, then check the courses and pathways your teenager can actually access.
Top 25 California high 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 high schools
sorted by Scope Score · 2024–25 CAASPP| # | School | County | Standing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Whitney (Gretchen) HighLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 97/100 |
| 2 | California Academy of Mathematics and ScienceLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 96/100 |
| 3 | Oxford AcademyOrange | Orange | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 96/100 |
| 4 | Science Academy STEM MagnetLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 96/100 |
| 5 | Dr. TJ Owens Gilroy Early College AcademySanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 96/100 |
| 6 | Dr. Richard A. Vladovic Harbor Teacher PreparationLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 94/100 |
| 7 | Palo Alto Middle College HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 94/100 |
| 8 | Canyon Crest AcademySan Diego | San Diego | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 94/100 |
| 9 | Lynbrook HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 93/100 |
| 10 | La Canada HighLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 93/100 |
| 11 | Piedmont HighAlameda | Alameda | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 93/100 |
| 12 | Riverside STEM AcademyRiverside | Riverside | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 93/100 |
| 13 | Saratoga HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 92/100 |
| 14 | Eunice Sato Academy of Math & ScienceLos Angeles | Los Angeles | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 92/100 |
| 15 | Henry M. Gunn HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 16 | Miramonte HighContra Costa | Contra Costa | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 17 | Oak Park HighVentura | Ventura | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 18 | Mission San Jose HighAlameda | Alameda | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 91/100 |
| 19 | Monta Vista HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 20 | University HighFresno | Fresno | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 21 | Pacific Collegiate CharterSanta Cruz | Santa Cruz | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 22 | University PreparatorySan Bernardino | San Bernardino | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 23 | Cupertino HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 90/100 |
| 24 | West CampusSacramento | Sacramento | 99th percentile · StrongScope Score 89/100 |
| 25 | Palo Alto HighSanta Clara | Santa Clara | 98th percentile · StrongScope Score 88/100 |
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
Who can enroll in advanced courses and career pathways, and what support helps students complete them?
What the data cannot tell you →What kind of school are you looking for?
These data patterns offer another way to explore comprehensive public and charter schools. Look for academic strengths, growth or school climate alongside the overall ranking.
A high-ceiling school — students here are pushed to exceed, not just meet, the standard.
A growth engine — its returning cohort gains more, grade to grade, than at most schools in the state.
Browse on the map →No weak spot — academics, culture, engagement, and growth where we can measure it.
On the rise — students here gain faster than average, even with overall scores still catching up. 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.
Is there a single "best" high school in California?
By Scope Score, Whitney (Gretchen) High in Los Angeles County ranks highest among 1,647 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 rankings above. 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 (CDE's AP course-or-exam readiness measure, 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). Reporting years can differ across measures; check the source year on each profile. College/career readiness includes several pathways, not just AP. When a scoring dimension is unavailable, its weight is redistributed across the 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 19.8% exceeded rate on the grade 11 CAASPP (2024–25). A higher exceeded rate describes stronger test results among the students tested; it does not isolate the school’s contribution or predict an individual student’s college outcome. (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 1,647 California high 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 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, Whitney (Gretchen) High in Los Angeles County ranks highest among 1,647 scored high 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 high schools in California?
The top 25 scored high 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 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 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.