CA's Best Schools 2025: Rankings For Elementary, Middle, High School, College

California is an educational powerhouse, boasting some of the best public and private schools and universities in the country and even the world. To be among the best schools in California means you’re among the best anywhere.

Several agencies, including U.S. News & World Report, Niche, and the Princeton Review ranked schools according to several metrics, including scores, college placement, career placement, diversity, online reviews, and more. Here are some of the top five schools for 2025 in different categories, according to these rankers. Click on the links to get the full list.

Best Public Elementary Schools (U.S. News)

1. Murdock-Portal Elementary School, San Jose
2. William Faria Elementary School, Cupertino (tied for number 1)
3. Millikin Elementary School, Santa Clara
4. North Star Academy School, Redwood City
5. Argonaut Elementary School, Saratoga

Best Public Middle Schools (U.S. News)

1. Whitney (Gretchen) High School, Cerritos (starts in 7th grade)
2. Science Academy STEM Magnet School, North Hollywood
3. Oxford Academy, Cypress
4. Petaluma Accelerated Charter School, Petaluma
5. Bullis Charter School, Los Altos

Best Public High Schools (U.S. News)

1. Whitney High School, Cerritos
2. Oxford Academy, Cypress
3. Science Academy STEM Magnet School, North Hollywood
4. Dr. Richard A. Vladovic Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy, Wilmington
5. California Academy of Mathematics and Science, Carson

Best Public High Schools (Niche)

1. California Academy of Mathematics & Science, Long Beach
2. Girls Academic Leadership Academy: Dr. Michelle King School for STEM, Los Angeles
3. California School of the Arts, Duarte
4. Orange County School of the Arts, Santa Ana
5. Troy High School, Fullerton

Best School Districts (Niche)

1. La Cañada Unified School District
2. Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District
3. San Dieguito Union High School District
4. Palo Alto Unified School District
5. Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District

Best Colleges (Niche)

1. Stanford University (3rd in nation)
2. California Institute of Technology (9th in nation)
3. Harvard Mudd College (16th in nation)
4. University of California, Los Angeles (23rd in nation)
5. Claremont McKenna College (23rd in nation)

Best Colleges (U.S. News)

1. Stanford University (4th in nation)
2. California Institute of Technology (11th in nation)
3. University of California, Berkeley (15th in nation)
4. University of California, Los Angeles (17th in nation)
5. University of Southern California (28th in nation)