These Are The Best School Districts In CA, New Ranking Says

One of the most important considerations of California parents when choosing a place to live is the quality of the school district.

According to the 2026 Best School Districts in America list recently released by the education ranking service Niche, the best school district in the Golden State is La Canada Unified School District.

The district has 3,937 students in grades K-12 with a student-teacher ratio of 24 to 1, according to Niche. According to state test scores, 83% of students are at least proficient in math and 87% in reading.

Other school districts in California that got an "A" or better grade are, in the order ranked, are:

1. La Canada Unified School District, A+
2. Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District, A+
3. San Dieguito Union High School District, A+
4. Palo Alto Unified School District, A+
5. Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District, A+
6. San Marino Unified School District, A+
7. Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District, A+
8. South Pasadena Unified School District, A+
9. Fremont Union High School District, A+
10. Redondo Beach Unified School District, A+
11. Piedmont City Unified School District, A+
12. Arcadia Unified School District, A+
13. Acalanes Union High School District, A+
14. Carmel Unified School District, A+
15. San Mateo Union High School District, A+
16. Tamalpais Union High School District, A+
17. Pleasanton Unified School District, A+
18. Oak Park Unified School District, A+
19. Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, A+
20. Irvine Unified School District, A+
21. Poway Unified School District, A+
22. El Segundo Unified School District, A+
23. Sequoia Union High School District, A+
24. Manhattan Beach Unified School District, A+
25. Huntington Beach Union High School District, A+
26. Fullerton Joint Union High School District, A+
27. Los Alamitos Unified School District, A+
28. San Ramon Valley Unified School District, A+
29. William S. Hart Union High School District, A+
30. Laguna Beach Unified School District, A+
31. Carlsbad Unified School District, A+
32. Walnut Valley Unified School District, A+
33. Coronado Unified School District, A+
34. Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, A+
35. Capistrano Unified School District, A+
36. Beverly Hills Unified School District, A+
37. Rocklin Unified School District, A+
38. Davis Joint Unified School District, A+
39. Roseville Joint Union High School District, A+
40. ABC Unified School District, A+
41. Albany City Unified School District, A+
42. Dublin Unified School District, A+
43. Torrance Unified School District, A+
44. Tahoe-Truckee Unified School District, A+
45. Conejo Valley Unified School District, A+
46. San Luis Coastal Unified School District, A+
47. Berkeley Unified School District, A
48. Las Virgenes Unified School District
49. San Marcos Unified School District
50. Santa Clara Unified School District
51. Campbell Union High School District
52. Newport-Mesa Unified School District
53. Murrieta Valley Unified School District
54. San Gabriel Unified School District
55. Placer Union High School District
56. Temple City Unified School District
57. Santa Barbara Unified School District
58. Tustin Unified School District
59. Kingsburg Joint Union High School District
60. Castro Valley Unified School District
61. Saint Helena Unified School District
62. Chaffey Joint Union High School District
63. Clovis Unified School District
64. Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District
65. Shasta Union High School District
66. Bonita Unified School District
67. Pacific Grove Unified School District
68. Wiseburn Unified School District
69. Santa Cruz City High School District
70. Temecula Valley Unified School District
71. Alameda Unified School District
72. Glendora Unified School District
73. Folsom-Cordova Unified School District
74. Brea-Olinda Unified School District
75. Burbank Unified School District
76. Whittier Union High School District
77. Claremont Unified School District
78. Sutter Union High School District
79. Garden Grove Unified School District
80. Fremont Unified School District
81. Alhambra Unified School District
82. Milpitas Unified School District
83. Glendale Unified School District
84. Lammersville Joint Unified School District
85. El Dorado Union High School District
86. Ripon Unified School District
87. Chico Unified School District
88. Los Angeles County Office Of Education
89. Benicia Unified School District
90. San Francisco Unified School District
91. Moorpark Unified School District
92. Delano Joint Union High School District
93. Culver City Unified School District
94. Saddleback Valley Unified School District
95. Chino Valley Unified School District
96. Liberty Union High School District (Brentwood)
97. East Side Union High School District
98. Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District
99. Monrovia Unified School District
100. San Diego Unified School District
101. Petaluma Joint Union High School District
102. Redlands Unified School District
103. Elk Grove Unified School District
104. Corona-Norco Unified School District
105. Simi Valley Unified School District

Niche also released its best public high schools rankings.

Niche said its rankings, now in the 11th year, differ from others that rely almost exclusively on test scores and academic performance in that it also includes input from students, alumni and parents, as well as quantitative data from sources such as the U.S. Department of Education to evaluate teachers, resources and facilities.