These Are The Top Elementary Schools In New Hampshire, U.S. News Says In New Ranking

BEDFORD, NH — The Riddle Brook School in Bedford is the best public elementary school in New Hampshire, according to a new ranking Tuesday from U.S. News & World Report.

U.S. News researchers based the 2026 ranking of the nation’s best public elementary schools on publicly available data from the U.S. Department of Education. Elementary schools are analyzed as either pre-K-5 or pre-K-6. For schools that have a wider grade span, only tests through fifth grade were considered.

The top 25 public elementary schools in the Granite State are:

1. Riddle Brook School in Bedford
2. Rye Elementary School
3. Mason Elementary School
4. Lafayette Regional School in Franconia
5. Bernice A. Ray School in Hanover
6. Peter Woodbury School in Bedford
7. New Franklin School in Portsmouth
8. Grantham Village School
9. Memorial School in Bedford
10. Windham Center School
11. Mont Vernon Village School
12. Little Harbor School in Portsmouth
13. Moharimet School in Madbury
14. Mast Way School in Lee
15. Mary C. Dondero Elementary School in Portsmouth
16. Bridge-Hebron Village School in Bridgewater
17. Hollis Upper Elementary School
18. Henry W. Moore School in Candia
19. Swasey Central School in Brentwood
20. Sunapee Central School
21. Hooksett Memorial School
22. New Boston Central School
23. Enfield Village School
24. Golden Brook Elementary School in Windham
25. South Range Elementary School in Derry

The report includes about 47,000 public elementary schools ranked at the state and district levels based on publicly available data from the U.S. Department of Education.

For district-level rankings, at least two of the top-performing schools must rank in the top 75 percent of the overall elementary or middle school rankings to qualify for recognition.

“The 2026 Best Elementary and Middle Schools rankings highlight institutions that excel in fostering student achievement and providing exceptional learning environments for all,” U.S. News said of the report.

The Clark-Wilkins School in Amherst was 26th on the list, while the Adeline C. Marston School in Hampton and the North Hampton School were 29th and 30th in the state. The highest-ranking school in Nashua was the New Searles School, which ranked 42nd on the list, while the North Salem Elementary School was 47th. The Lincoln Street Elementary School in Exeter was 57th, the Christa McAuliffe Elementary School was 62nd, Reeds Ferry School in Merrimack was 92nd, the Mill Falls Charter School in Manchester was 95th, and the North Londonderry Elementary School was 118th. The Heron Pond Elementary School in Milford was listed in the 166th to 221st slot.

The rankings methodology focuses on state assessments of students who were proficient or above proficient in mathematics and reading/language arts, while accounting for student background and achievement in core subjects. Student-teacher ratios are applied to break ties in the overall score.

Editor's note: This post was partially scripted by another Patch staffer, not New Hampshire's editor, for publication on New Hampshire sites.