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Best Public Schools in Zip Code 30518

At a glance

Schools

14,236

Students

Districts

5-star schools

Top rankedBuford Middle School9^th of 578 Georgia middle schools

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Biggest riser

Sycamore Elementary School up 90 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Sycamore Elementary School 11.5 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

5★

4★

2 schools without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

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Summary:

ZIP code 30518, covering Buford and Sugar Hill in Gwinnett County, Georgia, is served by 11 schools—6 elementary, 3 middle, and 2 high schools—spanning two districts: Gwinnett County (ranked 66th in the state) and Buford City (ranked 2nd), creating a unique mix of large-county and elite city-system options for roughly 14,200 students.

The standout performer is North Gwinnett Middle School, ranked 20th in Georgia with near-universal proficiency in Algebra I (98.1%) and Biology (96.9%), plus a remarkably low 4.2% chronic absenteeism rate. Buford High School is equally impressive, ranking 23rd statewide with a 93.3% graduation rate and strong science scores. White Oak Elementary School is the hidden gem of the Gwinnett side, outperforming even the Buford City elementary schools in 5th grade math (76% vs. 68.5%) and science (80% vs. 69.7%) despite serving a more diverse population. At the other end, Sycamore Elementary School lags the area with 44.1% math proficiency and the highest poverty rate (61.7% free/reduced lunch), though it has improved its state rank by 167 spots in two years.

The most striking contrast is between the two high schools: Lanier High School actually graduates students at a slightly higher rate (94.8%) than Buford High, yet its chronic absenteeism is 25.1%—nearly triple Buford's 9.7%—suggesting many students are earning diplomas while missing significant instruction. Attendance is the clearest predictor of success here: the top-ranked schools (North Gwinnett Middle, White Oak) have absenteeism below 5%, while the lower performers (Lanier High, Sycamore) exceed 10%. Notably, all three middle schools achieve 100% proficiency in Algebra I for accelerated students, but overall math proficiency varies widely, from North Gwinnett's 81.5-87.7% down to Lanier Middle's 59.5-65.2%. Spending per student does not correlate with outcomes—North Gwinnett Middle spends the least ($11,953) yet achieves the best results, while Buford Elementary School spends the most ($23,993) but serves only PK-K students with no test scores.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				Milestones Assessment Algebra I (2026)	Milestones Assessment Biology (2026)	Milestones Assessment United States History (2026)	Milestones Assessment Mathematics (2026)						Milestones Assessment Science (2026)		Milestones Assessment Social Studies (2026)	Milestones Assessment HS Physical Science (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Milestones Assessment Algebra I End of Course	Milestones Assessment Biology End of Course	Milestones Assessment United States History End of Course	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 3rd Grade	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 4th Grade	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 5th Grade	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 6th Grade	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 7th Grade	Milestones Assessment Mathematics 8th Grade	Milestones Assessment Science 5th Grade	Milestones Assessment Science 8th Grade	Milestones Assessment Social Studies 8th Grade	Milestones Assessment HS Physical Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Buford High School	Public	9-12	2455 Buford Hwy	Buford	30518	Gwinnett County	Buford City	No	No	No	No	(770) 945-6768	1,966	115	17.1	34.9%	860 (43.7%)	265 (13.5%)	554 (28.2%)	176 (9.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	110 (5.6%)	85.3	23^rd of 455 public high schools	94.9%		87.5	26^th of 451 public high schools	94.2%	3	76.7	79.7	60.6											$13,895	$141	$13,754
Buford Elementary School	Public	PK-K	2500 Sawnee Ave	Buford	30518	Gwinnett County	Buford City	No	No	No	No	(770) 945-5248	431	34	12.6	34.1%	211 (49.0%)	46 (10.7%)	113 (26.2%)	37 (8.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.6%)								(n/a)														$23,993	$623	$23,370
Buford Middle School	Public	6-8	2750 Sawnee Ave	Buford	30518	Gwinnett County	Buford City	No	No	No	Yes	(770) 904-3690	1,426	88	16.2	36.7%	640 (44.9%)	169 (11.9%)	384 (26.9%)	160 (11.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	73 (5.1%)	96.6	9^th of 578 public middle schools	98.4%		95.1	32^nd of 585 public middle schools	94.5%	23	100.0						72.2	75.2	88.9		68.0	66.5		$12,872	$319	$12,553
Buford Academy	Public	1-2	2705 Robert Bell Pkwy	Buford	30518	Gwinnett County	Buford City	No	No	No	Yes	(678) 482-6960	816	61	13.4	39.8%	361 (44.2%)	81 (9.9%)	242 (29.7%)	86 (10.5%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	43 (5.3%)								(n/a)														$17,433	$584	$16,849
Buford Senior Academy	Public	3-5	2700 Robert Bell Pkwy	Buford	30518	Gwinnett County	Buford City	No	No	No	Yes	(678) 546-0414	1,368	85	16.1	36.8%	627 (45.8%)	137 (10.0%)	372 (27.2%)	145 (10.6%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	86 (6.3%)	91.2	116^th of 1219 public elementary schools	90.5%		90.9	122^nd of 1238 public elementary schools	90.1%	6				74.1	71.3	68.5				69.7				$12,081	$331	$11,750
Sugar Hill Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	939 Level Creek Rd	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	No	(770) 945-5735	1,156	88	13.2	49.0%	331 (28.6%)	222 (19.2%)	319 (27.6%)	207 (17.9%)	3 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	73 (6.3%)	87.2	157^th of 1219 public elementary schools	87.1%		82.6	208^th of 1238 public elementary schools	83.2%	51				65.4	69.4	64.1				68.0				$14,984	$715	$14,269
Sycamore Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	5695 Sycamore Rd	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	Yes	(678) 714-5770	751	65	11.5	61.7%	197 (26.2%)	129 (17.2%)	318 (42.3%)	66 (8.8%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (5.2%)	70.8	314^th of 1219 public elementary schools	74.2%		62.9	404^th of 1238 public elementary schools	67.4%	90				57.5	67.8	44.1				54.0				$15,648	$845	$14,803
Lanier Middle School	Public	6-8	6482 Suwanee Dam Rd	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	No	(770) 945-8419	1,369	96	14.2	50.5%	443 (32.4%)	276 (20.2%)	399 (29.1%)	159 (11.6%)	3 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	88 (6.4%)	75.5	128^th of 578 public middle schools	77.9%		88.3	62^nd of 585 public middle schools	89.4%	66	100.0						59.5	65.2	63.0			62.9	48.9	$14,211	$496	$13,714
White Oak Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	6442 Suwanee Dam Rd	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	No	(678) 546-5550	722	57	12.6	32.3%	330 (45.7%)	108 (15.0%)	141 (19.5%)	90 (12.5%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	49 (6.8%)	92.7	101^st of 1219 public elementary schools	91.7%		91.2	117^th of 1238 public elementary schools	90.5%	16				69.5	71.5	76.0				80.0				$15,718	$922	$14,796
North Gwinnett Middle School	Public	6-8	170 Peachtree Industrial Blvd	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	No	(678) 745-2300	2,360	139	16.9	21.3%	777 (32.9%)	284 (12.0%)	200 (8.5%)	968 (41.0%)	3 (0.1%)	2 (0.1%)	126 (5.3%)	93	20^th of 578 public middle schools	96.5%		98.9	7^th of 585 public middle schools	98.8%	13	98.1	96.9					81.5	87.6	87.7			85.6	78.7	$11,953	$445	$11,508
Lanier High School	Public	9-12	918 Buford Hwy	Sugar Hill	30518	Gwinnett County	Gwinnett County	No	No	No	No	(678) 765-4040	1,871	113	16.5	45.0%	617 (33.0%)	390 (20.8%)	557 (29.8%)	205 (11.0%)	4 (0.2%)	3 (0.2%)	95 (5.1%)	61.2	104^th of 455 public high schools	77.1%		64	104^th of 451 public high schools	76.9%		45.8	59.0	46.3											$13,294	$398	$12,896

Cities Near Zip Code 30518

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Sugar Hill	0.79 mi	7	31^st
Buford	2.15 mi	12	30^th
Suwanee	3.55 mi	16	12^th
Cumming	4.74 mi	32	23^rd
Lawrenceville	5.33 mi	40	181^st

See the top GA Georgia cities

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

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.