Best High Schools in District Of Columbia

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Find the best District Of Columbia high 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 District Of Columbia 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 DC Science and DC CAPE test scores by the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education. The most recent update was on Thursday, August 21, 2025.

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School	Students/Teachers	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)	Ranking (2025 vs 2024)	ID
11	Bard High School Early College DC (Bard DC)	Public	9-12	1351 Alabama Ave SE	Washington	20032	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 898-4664	331	32	10.3	0 (0.0%)	300 (90.6%)	21 (6.3%)	1 (0.3%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.5%)	$28,406	$4,409	$23,997	45.5	28.8	22	11	110003000529
12	Richard Wright PCS for Journalism and Media Arts	Public, Charter	8-12	475 School Street SW	Washington	20024	District Of Columbia	Richard Wright PCS for Journalism and Media Arts	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 388-1011	300	26	11.7	3 (1.0%)	293 (97.7%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$32,581	$3,041	$29,539	45.1	40.9	12		110008200441
13	Phelps Architecture Construction and Engineering High School	Public	9-12	704 26th St. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 729-4360	350	33	10.6	3 (0.9%)	310 (88.6%)	30 (8.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.7%)	$31,347	$4,632	$26,715	43.2	41.1	11	2	110003000407
14	E.L. Haynes PCS - High School	Public, Charter	9-12	4501 Kansas Avenue NW	Washington	20011	District Of Columbia	E.L. Haynes PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 667-4446	446	50	8.8	2 (0.4%)	121 (27.1%)	315 (70.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.8%)	$32,628	$3,208	$29,420	42.3	47.1	8	6	110004300433
15	Paul PCS - International High School	Public, Charter	9-12	5800 8th Street NW	Washington	20011	District Of Columbia	Paul PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 291-7499	439	48	9.1	1 (0.2%)	206 (46.9%)	224 (51.0%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	$32,812	$4,765	$28,048	41.9	42.7	10	5	110003900477
16	Friendship PCS - Technology Preparatory High School	Public, Charter	9-12	2705 Martin Luther King Jr Av	Washington	20032	District Of Columbia	Friendship PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 562-1681	307	40	7.6	0 (0.0%)	302 (98.4%)	5 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$34,587	$4,936	$29,650	40.8	40.6	13	3	110000800496
17	Columbia Heights Education Campus	Public	6-12	3101 16th St. NW	Washington	20010	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 939-7700	1,563	149	10.4	14 (0.9%)	445 (28.5%)	1,070 (68.5%)	21 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	11 (0.7%)	$31,052	$4,969	$26,083	38.2	28.9	21	4	110003000396
18	Thurgood Marshall Academy PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	2427 Martin Luther King Jr Av	Washington	20020	District Of Columbia	Thurgood Marshall Academy PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 563-6862	373	34	10.9	0 (0.0%)	372 (99.7%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$38,343	$5,409	$32,935	35.4	29.1	20	2	110003400249
19	Girls Global Academy PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	733 8th Street NW	Washington	20001	District Of Columbia	Girls Global Academy PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 600-4822	183	26	7.1	1 (0.5%)	153 (83.6%)	23 (12.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.7%)	$31,657	$1,785	$29,872	35.3	30.5	17	2	110011300537
20	Cesar Chavez Public Charter Schools for Public Policy	Public, Charter	6-12	3701 Hayes Street NE	Washington	20019	District Of Columbia	Cesar Chavez PCS for Public Policy	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 398-2230	367	41	8.9	1 (0.3%)	320 (87.2%)	40 (10.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.4%)	$36,042	$7,046	$28,996	35	36.7	15	5	110000500456

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New! SchoolDigger ranking lists for DC student subgroups:

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About our rankings:

Schooldigger calculates school rankings based on DC CAPE English II, DC CAPE Algebra II, DC CAPE Algebra I, DC CAPE Geometry, DC CAPE English I, DC Science Science test scores released by the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education.
These rankings were last updated on August 21, 2025, and are based on the most recent test scores available. We update rankings as we receive new test scores from the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent 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 D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education.
For more information about our ranking process, please see our Ranking FAQ. Details about our methodology are here.

Educational resources:

No Child Left Behind (NCLB): A Comprehensive Analysis of Its Impact on Education

Student-Teacher Ratios and their Impact on Class Sizes & School Selection

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education.

School														Students/Teachers											Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)							Ranking (2025 vs 2024)					ID
Rank (of 35)	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 (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Rank (2024)	Rank Change from 2024	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	ID
11	Bard High School Early College DC (Bard DC)	Public	9-12	1351 Alabama Ave SE	Washington	20032	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 898-4664	331	32	10.3		0 (0.0%)	300 (90.6%)	21 (6.3%)	1 (0.3%)	4 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.5%)	$28,406			$4,409			$23,997	45.5	28.8	22	11		110003000529
12	Richard Wright PCS for Journalism and Media Arts	Public, Charter	8-12	475 School Street SW	Washington	20024	District Of Columbia	Richard Wright PCS for Journalism and Media Arts	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 388-1011	300	26	11.7		3 (1.0%)	293 (97.7%)	4 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$32,581			$3,041			$29,539	45.1	40.9	12			110008200441
13	Phelps Architecture Construction and Engineering High School	Public	9-12	704 26th St. NE	Washington	20002	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 729-4360	350	33	10.6		3 (0.9%)	310 (88.6%)	30 (8.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.7%)	$31,347			$4,632			$26,715	43.2	41.1	11	2		110003000407
14	E.L. Haynes PCS - High School	Public, Charter	9-12	4501 Kansas Avenue NW	Washington	20011	District Of Columbia	E.L. Haynes PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 667-4446	446	50	8.8		2 (0.4%)	121 (27.1%)	315 (70.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.8%)	$32,628			$3,208			$29,420	42.3	47.1	8	6		110004300433
15	Paul PCS - International High School	Public, Charter	9-12	5800 8th Street NW	Washington	20011	District Of Columbia	Paul PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 291-7499	439	48	9.1		1 (0.2%)	206 (46.9%)	224 (51.0%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	$32,812			$4,765			$28,048	41.9	42.7	10	5		110003900477
16	Friendship PCS - Technology Preparatory High School	Public, Charter	9-12	2705 Martin Luther King Jr Av	Washington	20032	District Of Columbia	Friendship PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 562-1681	307	40	7.6		0 (0.0%)	302 (98.4%)	5 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$34,587			$4,936			$29,650	40.8	40.6	13	3		110000800496
17	Columbia Heights Education Campus	Public	6-12	3101 16th St. NW	Washington	20010	District Of Columbia	District of Columbia Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 939-7700	1,563	149	10.4		14 (0.9%)	445 (28.5%)	1,070 (68.5%)	21 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	11 (0.7%)	$31,052			$4,969			$26,083	38.2	28.9	21	4		110003000396
18	Thurgood Marshall Academy PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	2427 Martin Luther King Jr Av	Washington	20020	District Of Columbia	Thurgood Marshall Academy PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 563-6862	373	34	10.9		0 (0.0%)	372 (99.7%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$38,343			$5,409			$32,935	35.4	29.1	20	2		110003400249
19	Girls Global Academy PCS	Public, Charter	9-12	733 8th Street NW	Washington	20001	District Of Columbia	Girls Global Academy PCS	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 600-4822	183	26	7.1		1 (0.5%)	153 (83.6%)	23 (12.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.7%)	$31,657			$1,785			$29,872	35.3	30.5	17	2		110011300537
20	Cesar Chavez Public Charter Schools for Public Policy	Public, Charter	6-12	3701 Hayes Street NE	Washington	20019	District Of Columbia	Cesar Chavez PCS for Public Policy	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(202) 398-2230	367	41	8.9		1 (0.3%)	320 (87.2%)	40 (10.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.4%)	$36,042			$7,046			$28,996	35	36.7	15	5		110000500456