Best High Schools in Iowa

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Find the best Iowa 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 Iowa 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 ISASP test scores by the Iowa Department of Education. The most recent update was on Wednesday, August 20, 2025.

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School														Students/Teachers											Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)							Ranking (2025 vs 2024)					ID
Rank (of 340)	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
111	North Mahaska Junior-Senior High School	Public	7-12	2163 135th St	New Sharon	50207	Mahaska County	North Mahaska Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 637-4187	275	21	13	24.7%	258 (93.8%)	2 (0.7%)	5 (1.8%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.9%)	$15,724			$178			$15,545	66.5	65.7	117	6		192085001245
112	Highland High School	Public	9-12	1715 Vine Avenue	Riverside	52327	Washington County	Highland Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(319) 648-2891	149	14	10.3	21.5%	127 (85.2%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (12.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.3%)	$15,774			$112			$15,662	66.4	56	168	56		191401000839
113	Carlisle High School	Public	9-12	430 School St	Carlisle	50047	Warren County	Carlisle Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 989-0831	754	36	20.8	23.3%	615 (81.6%)	9 (1.2%)	79 (10.5%)	19 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (3.8%)	$11,863			$126			$11,737	66.3	72.8	75	38		190627000215
114	Montezuma High School	Public	9-12	504 N. 4th St.	Montezuma	50171	Poweshiek County	Montezuma Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(641) 623-5121	140	12	11.8	32.9%	132 (94.3%)	3 (2.1%)	2 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.1%)	$19,393			$194			$19,199	66.3	64.8	120	6		191959001150
115	Woodward-Granger High School	Public	9-12	306 W 3rd St	Woodward	50276	Dallas County	Woodward-Granger Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(515) 438-2115	270	23	11.9	20.7%	260 (96.3%)	1 (0.4%)	4 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.9%)	$21,963			$616			$21,347	66.1	60.1	146	31		193201001868
116	Stanton High School	Public	6-12	605 Elliott Street	Stanton	51573	Montgomery County	Stanton Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(712) 829-2162	153	10	14.6	26.1%	143 (93.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (3.9%)	$13,107			$259			$12,850	65.7	51.8	184	68		192724001589
117	Shenandoah High School	Public	9-12	1000 Mustang Dr	Shenandoah	51601	Page County	Shenandoah Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(712) 246-4727	300	24	12.3	45.0%	268 (89.3%)	1 (0.3%)	20 (6.7%)	2 (0.7%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (2.7%)	$15,504			$473			$15,031	65.4	77	48	69		192607001482
118	Kee High School	Public	9-12	569 Center St	Lansing	52151	Allamakee County	Eastern Allamakee Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(563) 538-4201	87	16	5.3	47.1%	76 (87.4%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (6.9%)	1 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.6%)	$20,047			$351			$19,696	65.1	75.1	62	56		191041000663
119	Washington High School	Public	9-12	600 W Bluff St	Cherokee	51012	Cherokee County	Cherokee Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(712) 225-6755	366	28	12.9	39.9%	299 (81.7%)	1 (0.3%)	37 (10.1%)	7 (1.9%)	3 (0.8%)	2 (0.5%)	17 (4.6%)	$14,371			$120			$14,251	64.9	58.3	156	37		190717000333
120	Missouri Valley High School	Public	9-12	605 E Lincoln Highway	Missouri Valley	51555	Harrison County	Missouri Valley Community School District	No	(n/a)	No	No	(712) 642-2706	228	23	10	39.0%	207 (90.8%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (4.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	1 (0.4%)	8 (3.5%)	$15,699			$303			$15,396	64.9	51	188	68		191944001146

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About our rankings:

Schooldigger calculates school rankings based on ISASP English Language Arts, ISASP Mathematics, ISASP Science test scores released by the Iowa Department of Education.
These rankings were last updated on August 20, 2025, and are based on the most recent test scores available. We update rankings as we receive new test scores from the Iowa 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 Iowa Department of Education.
For more information about our ranking process, please see our Ranking FAQ. Details about our methodology are here.

Educational resources:

Per-Pupil Spending: Understanding the Breakdown of Federal, State, and Local Funds

Public School Districts and Their Services: A Comprehensive Guide