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As a national nonprofit, we believe that every family should have access to high-quality education information to support their child’s learning. GreatSchools ratings offer a snapshot of school quality to help answer some of parents’ most common questions, such as:
GreatSchools ratings are designed to help families explore these questions using data that reflects multiple aspects of school quality. It starts with the overall GreatSchools Rating — a 1–10 score that provides a simple yet meaningful indicator of how well a school performs compared to other schools in the same state. Ratings at the lower end of the scale (1–4) signal that the school is below average, 5–6 indicate average, and 7–10 are above average.
Ratings vary based on data availability and/or relevance to schools’ grade levels. The 1–10 GreatSchools Rating is based on up to three themed ratings, each designed to capture a different aspect of school success:
Student progress — or growth — measures how much a child learns in a given year, based on changes in their state test scores. Our Student Progress Rating assesses whether students are making expected or above-average academic gains, regardless of their starting point. In states without publicly available student-level growth data, we apply an Academic Progress Rating, a proxy calculation of growth based on school-level trends.
We give more weight to the Student Progress Rating when calculating the overall GreatSchools Rating because research shows that growth is less correlated with students’ socioeconomic backgrounds and is therefore a more accurate measure of a school’s impact on student learning.
*Note: Growth data is less common for high schools, since many students take state tests in only one year.
The College Readiness Rating measures how well high schools prepare students for success in college and career, compared to others in the state. It incorporates SAT/ACT scores, graduation rates, and participation in advanced courses, including Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), and dual enrollment.
*Note: This rating only applies to high schools.
The Test Score Rating reflects how students perform on state assessments across grades and subjects, compared to other schools in the state. On our school profiles, we break out test score data by race/ethnicity and student income to help parents understand how well the school supports learners from different backgrounds. This rating is an important factor in understanding school quality as it indicates how well students are meeting the state’s grade-level proficiency standards.
For a more detailed description of our ratings methodology, click here.
Strong relationships between families and schools are rooted in trust — and trust starts with transparency. That’s why we are committed to providing families with rich, disaggregated data (where available) that helps them understand how schools are serving all students.
Transparency also fosters knowledge, broadens understanding, and facilitates more productive conversations among parents, educators, and the broader community. We are continually evolving our approach to presenting school quality, reflecting what research shows matters most and what families value. To support this mission, we regularly:
Where data is missing, we strive to highlight its importance among decision-makers and push for the transparency families deserve.
For over 25 years, GreatSchools has been a trusted source for families seeking clear, actionable information about school quality. We are the only national nonprofit that collects and analyzes data from all 50 states, D.C., and the federal government to create the most comprehensive and accessible public school profiles in the United States.
Each year, millions of families — nearly half of all preK–12 households in the U.S. — visit ľĹÖÝÖ±˛Ą to compare schools, understand their educational options, and access free, research-backed resources to support their child’s learning journey.
GreatSchools ratings go beyond test scores to highlight student growth, college readiness, and other key indicators that reflect how well schools serve all students, not just those already performing at grade level. Whether families are choosing a new school or seeking improvements in their current one, our ratings help spark informed conversations with educators, school leaders, and community members.
To ensure our ratings provide the most accurate and meaningful picture of school quality, we regularly refine our methodology in collaboration with researchers, education experts, and data partners. These updates reflect both the latest evidence about what matters for student success and our commitment to continuous improvement based on parent feedback.
Each of the themed ratings is updated as new data becomes available, which may cause the overall 1–10 GreatSchools Rating to change. Because states release data at different times, these updates occur routinely throughout the year. To see the most recent update for a specific rating, check the “Sources” section on the school’s profile. Learn more about updates to and .
The GreatSchools Rating is a helpful starting point for understanding a school’s academic performance and student outcomes. We encourage parents to explore multiple sources of information — like school visits, conversations with educators, and feedback from other families — to determine if a school is the right fit for their child.
GreatSchools uses publicly available data from all 50 state departments of education and the District of Columbia. We also incorporate data from federal sources, such as the U.S. Department of Education’s Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), including school directory and enrollment data.
Schools must have enough publicly available data in at least one of our themed categories — student progress, test scores, or college readiness — to receive a GreatSchools Rating. If sufficient data isn’t available, we are unable to generate a GreatSchools Rating for that school. Learn more about .
Yes. The Student Progress Rating measures how much academic growth students make over time, regardless of where they start. A school with high-achieving students can still earn a high Student Progress Rating if its students continue to make strong academic gains year over year.
No. Community Reviews allow parents and students to share their experiences with a school, but they do not influence the numerical GreatSchools Rating. This rating is based solely on objective data, including student progress, test scores, and college readiness indicators.
No. GreatSchools Ratings are only assigned to public schools, including public charter schools. Because private schools are not required to publicly report performance data in a consistent way across states, we cannot produce a rating for them.
For additional questions, please visit our .
To learn more or get involved in GreatSchools’ work with education agencies and community partners to improve access to school quality data, please contact us.
Yes! Sign me up for updates relevant to my child's grade.