The Best Schools in America's 50 Largest Cities

The top school in the Colorado Springs, Colorado, area is the Fountain Valley School. The private boarding school educates students in grades 9-12 and charges an annual tuition of $30,500, though boarding more than doubles the cost.

Fountain Valley School has a 100% graduation rate, and its students report average SAT and ACT scores well above average. The school earned an overall grade of A+ from school data platform Niche as well as top marks for its academics and college prep.

There are over 600 schools in and around Raleigh, North Carolina’s capital region, and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics ranks as the best among them. The magnet school offers small class sizes, with an average of seven students per teacher, and gets top marks for academics, teachers, college prep, and clubs and activities.

The school, which currently has a campus in Durham with student resident halls, plans to open a second campus in fall 2022 in Morganton. Popular colleges and universities for graduates include highly competitive in-state institutions, including UNC Chapel Hill, NC State University, and Duke University.

The Miami area’s top school is the Ransom Everglades School, located in Coconut Grove, Florida. The private school educates students in grades 6-12 and has an enrollment of 1,130. The school earned an A+ overall grade from school data platform Niche as well as A+ grades for its academics, teachers, and college prep.

Ransom Everglades School ranks as Florida’s top high school for STEM education. It opened a new STEM center for students in the fall of 2020, providing students with laboratories for earth sciences, biology, chemistry, and physics, as well as classrooms, an auditorium, and more.

Cape Henry Collegiate, a private pre-K-12 school in Virginia Beach, Virginia, ranks as the best school in the area. The school has small class sizes, with 11 students per teacher on average, and it gets top marks for academics, sports, clubs and activities, and college prep.

While annual tuition costs at Cape Henry top $21,000, more than one in every four students receive some form of financial aid. The school boasts a 100% graduation rate, and popular colleges and universities among graduates include James Madison University, Virginia Tech, and University of Virginia.

The College Preparatory School ranks as the top school in Oakland, California. The private high school is not just the best in the city, but the top private high school in the entire state. The school earned an A+ overall grade from Niche as well as top marks for its academics, teachers, diversity, and college prep.

The school’s students have among the best academic performance of high schools in the country. College Prep has an average graduation rate of 100%. Its students reported an average SAT score is 1470 out of 1600, and average ACT score of 34 out of 36 — both well above the typical score.