San Marcos · San Diego County

Schools in San Marcos

San Marcos’s 10 public elementary schools run from the 30th to the 95th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Elementary · 10 schools

from 30th to 95th · among 5,726 California elementary schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Discovery Elementary: 95th percentile, Strong
  • Double Peak: 93rd percentile, Strong
  • San Elijo Elementary: 88th percentile, Strong
  • Paloma Elementary: 84th percentile, Strong
  • Richland Elementary: 74th percentile, Solid
  • Knob Hill Elementary: 72nd percentile, Solid
  • Twin Oaks Elementary: 62nd percentile, Solid
  • La Mirada Academy: 59th percentile, Solid
  • Baypoint Preparatory Academy - San Diego: 51st percentile, Solid
  • San Marcos Elementary: 30th percentile, Developing
0Needs Support
1Developing
5Solid
4Strong

One dot per school.

Middle and high school pictures

Middle · 6 schools

from 6th to 84th · among 2,529 California middle schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Double Peak: 84th percentile, Strong
  • Woodland Park Middle: 63rd percentile, Solid
  • San Elijo Middle: 62nd percentile, Solid
  • Baypoint Preparatory Academy - San Diego: 61st percentile, Solid
  • San Marcos Middle: 56th percentile, Solid
  • La Mirada Academy: 6th percentile, Needs Support
1Needs Support
0Developing
4Solid
1Strong

High · 4 schools

from 5th to 85th · among 1,498 California high schools we score · spring 2025 tests

  • High Tech High North County: 85th percentile, Strong
  • San Marcos High: 59th percentile, Solid
  • Mission Hills High: 58th percentile, Solid
  • Foothills High: 5th percentile, Needs Support
1Needs Support
0Developing
2Solid
1Strong

One dot per school. Each stage is placed only among California schools at its own level. 3 of the 17 ranked schools teach two levels, so they appear in more than one picture.

Schools around San Marcos

20 listed public schools with mapped locations.

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Percentile among California schools at the same level

  • Strong75th+
  • Solid50–74th
  • Developing25–49th
  • Needs Supportbelow 25th
  • Not scored

The school lists on this page are also available without the map.

Elementary schools

Which elementary schools in San Marcos score highest?

Discovery Elementary is highest, at the 95th percentile.

That’s higher than 95 in 100 of the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Highest in San Marcos

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level. What patterns mean

  • Discovery ElementarySan Marcos Unified · High ceiling · Broad base · Grade-to-grade gains
    95thStrongScope Score 74
  • Double PeakSan Marcos Unified · Broad base · Grade-to-grade gains
    93rdStrongScope Score 70
  • San Elijo ElementarySan Marcos Unified · Broad base
    88thStrongScope Score 63
Show the other 7 elementary schools
Context

The average San Marcos elementary school had 12 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once.

Middle schools

Which middle schools in San Marcos score highest?

Double Peak is highest, at the 84th percentile.

That’s higher than 84 in 100 of the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Highest in San Marcos

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

Show the other 3 middle schools
Context

The average San Marcos middle school had 15 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California middle school we score had 18 in 100.

High schools

Which high schools in San Marcos score highest?

High Tech High North County is highest, at the 85th percentile.

That’s higher than 85 in 100 of the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests).

Highest in San Marcos

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

Show the other 1 high school
  • Foothills HighSan Marcos Unified · Check how it admits students.
    5thNeeds SupportScope Score 36
Context

The average San Marcos high school had 42 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California high school we score had 22 in 100.

3 high schools not ranked statewide

Continuation schools and alternative schools enroll students differently from a regular school, so each is compared only with schools of its kind. The others have no statewide percentile this year.

3 private schools have a San Marcos address. They don’t take California’s state tests, so we don’t score them. See them in the private-school directory →

Which places nearby can you look at next?

School districts

More places (6)

ZIP codes

Before kindergarten

Common questions

Which public schools in San Marcos rank highest?

Elementary: Discovery Elementary, 95th percentile (Strong). Middle: Double Peak, 84th percentile (Strong). High: High Tech High North County, 85th percentile (Strong). Each percentile is among the California schools at the same level we score. A rank doesn’t decide fit or whether a child can enroll.

Does living in San Marcos decide which school my child attends?

No. A city can hold schools from more than one district, and attendance boundaries decide which school serves an address. Confirm the school for your address with the district.
More questions (3)

Are the public schools in San Marcos good?

San Marcos’s 10 public elementary schools run from the 30th to the 95th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 4 Strong, 5 Solid and 1 Developing. San Marcos’s 6 public middle schools run from the 6th to the 84th percentile among the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 1 Strong, 4 Solid and 1 Needs Support. San Marcos’s 4 public high schools run from the 5th to the 85th percentile among the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). By band: 1 Strong, 2 Solid and 1 Needs Support. A percentile compares a school with California public schools at the same level that we score. How we score schools.

How does chronic absence in San Marcos compare with California?

The average San Marcos elementary school had 12 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once. The average San Marcos middle school had 15 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California middle school we score had 18 in 100. The average San Marcos high school had 42 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California high school we score had 22 in 100. These are averages of school rates: each school counts once, whatever its size.

Where do these results come from?

California’s state tests (CAASPP): spring 2026 for elementary and middle schools, spring 2025 for high schools, and chronic-absence rates for 2025–26, published by the California Department of Education. Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s calculations. How we score schools.

Sources and methodology

This page lists the public schools with a San Marcos address, which can belong to more than one school district.

Data source: California Department of Education · CAASPP 2025–26 elementary and middle school; 2024–25 high school

Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s own calculations from these state files.

View CDE data ↗ (opens in a new tab)How Scope Scores work →

Download these schools (CSV)Free to use under CC BY 4.0 with attribution.