Best Elementary Schools in California

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Find the best California elementary schools with SchoolDigger.com! Focused on test scores for accurate rankings, our user-friendly site simplifies your search. Empower your decisions by exploring top-rated schools, only on SchoolDigger.com - the ultimate guide to K-12 schools!

Year after year, SchoolDigger is always the first to publish California test scores and rankings. Other sites use stale test score data that are several years old! Be in the know with the very latest performance metrics.

The list is updated annually upon the release of the CAST and Smarter Balanced Assessments test scores by the California Department of Education. The most recent update was on Thursday, October 10, 2024.

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School															Students/Teachers											Per Pupil Expenditures (2018)							Ranking (2024 vs 2023)
ID	Rank (of 5862)	School	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Disc Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel from Federal Funds	Total from Federal Funds	Personnel from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Total from State and Local Funds	Average Standard Score (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Rank (2023)	Rank Change from 2023	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)
063393012359	1931	Lincoln Elementary	Public	K-6	705 California St.	Salinas	93901	Monterey County	Salinas City Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(831) 753-5625	644	27	23.8	36.2%	34 (5.3%)	1 (0.2%)	584 (90.7%)	3 (0.5%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (2.8%)	$6,257							62.8	52	2433	502
061437011452	1932	Ramblewood Elementary	Public	K-6	1351 Lightland Rd.	San Jose	95121	Santa Clara County	Franklin-McKinley Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 283-6275	255	11	22.3	52.5%	9 (3.5%)	8 (3.1%)	95 (37.3%)	135 (52.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.1%)								62.8	68.1	1671	261
063543006033	1933	Bowers Elementary	Public	K-5	2755 Barkley Ave.	Santa Clara	95051	Santa Clara County	Santa Clara Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(408) 423-1100	242	12	20.1	58.7%	29 (12.0%)	1 (0.4%)	129 (53.3%)	63 (26.0%)	1 (0.4%)	2 (0.8%)	17 (7.0%)	$15,641							62.8	54.2	2327	394
061884008615	1934	Tom Hawkins Elementary	Public	K-8	475 Darlene Ln.	Tracy	95377	San Joaquin County	Jefferson Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 839-2380	918	41	22.3	37.3%	171 (18.6%)	51 (5.6%)	326 (35.5%)	292 (31.8%)	13 (1.4%)	4 (0.4%)	61 (6.6%)	$7,127							62.8	63.2	1878	56
063432005458	1935	Field Elementary	Public	K-6	4375 Bannock Ave.	San Diego	92117	San Diego County	San Diego Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(858) 800-5900	263	13	20.2	65.8%	44 (16.7%)	5 (1.9%)	183 (69.6%)	11 (4.2%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (7.2%)	$10,041							62.8	47.3	2678	743
060248714407	1936	Excel Academy Charter	Public, Virtual, Charter, Alternative	K-12	1 Technology Dr.	Irvine	92618	Orange County	Excel Academy Charter District	Yes	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(949) 387-7822	602	53	11.4	48.7%	152 (25.2%)	22 (3.7%)	272 (45.2%)	78 (13.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.8%)	72 (12.0%)								62.8	74.5	1403	533
062718011317	1937	Dr. J. Michael McGrath Elementary	Public	K-6	21501 Deputy Jake Way	Newhall	91321	Los Angeles County	Newhall	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 291-4090	419	15	27.9	87.8%	21 (5.0%)	10 (2.4%)	336 (80.2%)	24 (5.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (6.7%)	$9,541							62.8	57.9	2146	209
060236812222	1938	ICEF Vista Elementary Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	4471 Inglewood Blvd.	Los Angeles	90066	Los Angeles County	ICEF Vista Elementary Academy District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(323) 298-6400	266	11	24.1	100.0%	1 (0.4%)	6 (2.3%)	257 (96.6%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)								62.8	40.4	3101	1163
060189611766	1939	Albert Einstein Academies	Public, Charter	K-8	3035 Ash St.	San Diego	92102	San Diego County	Albert Einstein Academies District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(858) 859-1550	1,438	59	24.4	42.4%	443 (30.8%)	31 (2.2%)	840 (58.4%)	23 (1.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	100 (7.0%)								62.7	60.9	2018	79
061452001702	1940	Freshwater Elementary	Public	K-6	75 Greenwood Heights Dr.	Eureka	95503	Humboldt County	Freshwater Elementary	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(707) 442-2969	265	12	22	45.3%	190 (71.7%)	1 (0.4%)	32 (12.1%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (2.3%)	2 (0.8%)	34 (12.8%)	$8,993							62.7	64	1847	93

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New! SchoolDigger ranking lists for CA student subgroups:

Female Students Male Students Asian Students African American Students Hispanic Students White Students Multi-racial Students English Language Learner Students Special Education Students Low Socio Economic Status Students Migrant Students Homeless Students Military Connected Students

About our rankings:

Schooldigger calculates school rankings based on Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy, Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics, CAST Science test scores released by the California Department of Education.
These rankings were last updated on October 10, 2024, and are based on the most recent test scores available. We update rankings as we receive new test scores from the California Department of Education, usually on a yearly basis.
Our sources of data include the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education and the California Department of Education.
For more information about our ranking process, please see our Ranking FAQ. Details about our methodology are here.

Educational resources:

Girl in a wheelchair raising her hand in a classroom setting

Understanding an IEP: The Ultimate Guide for Parents and Educators

Public School Districts and Their Services: A Comprehensive Guide

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.