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1 / 25#25. Sheldon High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Elk Grove Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,492 (23:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
Best high schools in the Sacramento metro area
According to the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics, 15.5 million students attend public high school every year, and more than 3.76 million are expected to graduate in 2025. However, those students have a wide variety of experiences over the course of their high school careers.
To start, issues surrounding equal educational access persist throughout the United States. A January 2025 report published in Frontiers found that disparities across socioeconomic status, race, gender, and geography can lead to negative outcomes and the perpetuation of systemic barriers.
Outside of these issues, students also pursue many different paths within high school. Roughly 8.3 million high schoolers attend educational programs to prepare for careers in fields like transportation, landscaping, and culinary arts. Meanwhile, nearly 2.5 million are in dual enrollment programs that offer high school and college credit for the same course, allowing students to get a jump on higher education degrees.
Dual enrollment programs are particularly useful considering that more than 3 in 5 (61%) high school graduates head to college, per a 2024 Bureau of Labor Statistics report. Unfortunately, high school doesn't always guarantee college success. In 2024, the average SAT score declined for the third straight year, and nearly 2 in 5 (39%) test-takers met or exceeded the test's college readiness benchmarks. ACT scores are also on the decline year over year, down to 19.4 out of 36, and just 3 in 10 students met at least three of the ACT's college readiness benchmarks.
With that said, attending a quality high school will typically help prepare students for their next steps in life, whether that's college, technical school, or going straight into the workforce. Stacker compiled a list of the best high schools in the Sacramento metro area using data from Niche, which uses seven weighted factors for its rankings. Most of the score is based on academics, but other factors include culture and diversity; sports; clubs and activities; resources; and surveys of parents, teachers, and students.
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2 / 25#24. Al-Arqam Islamic School and College Preparatory School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sacramento, CA
- Enrollment: 464 (14:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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3 / 25#23. Da Vinci Charter Academy
- School type: Public School
- Location: Davis Joint Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 611 (20:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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4 / 25#22. Cosumnes Oaks High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Elk Grove Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,212 (23:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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5 / 25#21. Sacramento Waldorf School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Fair Oaks, CA
- Enrollment: 415 (6:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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6 / 25#20. Oak Ridge High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: El Dorado Union High School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,516 (25:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
SEALANDSKYPHOTO // Shutterstock
7 / 25#19. Rocklin High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Rocklin Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,098 (23:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
DenisProduction.com // Shutterstock
8 / 25#18. Del Oro High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Placer Union High School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,620 (23:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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9 / 25#17. Antelope High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Roseville Joint Union High School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,741 (24:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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10 / 25#16. Davis School For Independent Study
- School type: Public School
- Location: Davis Joint Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 168 (13:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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11 / 25#15. Pleasant Grove High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Elk Grove Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,520 (22:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
LStockStudio // Shutterstock
12 / 25#14. Natomas Pacific Pathways Prep
- School type: Public School
- Location: Natomas Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 621 (18:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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13 / 25#13. Mira Loma High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: San Juan Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,678 (24:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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14 / 25#12. Whitney High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Rocklin Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,984 (22:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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15 / 25#11. Jesuit High School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sacramento, CA
- Enrollment: 1,072 (17:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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16 / 25#10. Franklin High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Elk Grove Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,587 (22:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
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17 / 25#9. Western Sierra Collegiate Academy
- School type: Public School
- Location: Rocklin, CA
- Enrollment: 770 (20:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A
Mircea Moira // Shutterstock
18 / 25#8. Folsom High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Folsom-Cordova Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,718 (26:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
panitanphoto // Shutterstock
19 / 25#7. Vista Del Lago High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Folsom-Cordova Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,745 (24:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
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20 / 25#6. West Campus
- School type: Public School
- Location: Sacramento City Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 838 (27:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
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21 / 25#5. Christian Brothers High School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sacramento, CA
- Enrollment: 1,127 (16:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
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22 / 25#4. St. Francis Catholic High School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sacramento, CA
- Enrollment: 728 (15:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
Monkey Business Images // Shutterstock
23 / 25#3. Davis Senior High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Davis Joint Unified School District, CA
- Enrollment: 1,801 (22:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
maroke // Shutterstock
24 / 25#2. Granite Bay High School
- School type: Public School
- Location: Roseville Joint Union High School District, CA
- Enrollment: 2,050 (23:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
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25 / 25#1. Sacramento Country Day School
- School type: Private School
- Location: Sacramento, CA
- Enrollment: 598 (9:1 student to teacher ratio)
- Niche grade: A+
This story features data reporting by Rob Powell, writing by Jill Jaracz, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 97 metros.
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