Best Elementary Schools in North Carolina

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Find the best North Carolina 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 North Carolina 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 EOG test scores by the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction. The most recent update was on Wednesday, September 3, 2025.

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School														Students/Teachers											Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)							Ranking (2025 vs 2024)					ID
Rank (of 1490)	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
881	Ashley Elementary	Public	3-5	810 Trainer Drive	Fayetteville	28304	Cumberland County	Cumberland County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 484-4156	180	14	12.5	98.3%	45 (25.0%)	80 (44.4%)	18 (10.0%)	21 (11.7%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (8.3%)	$12,222			$1,413			$10,809	41.9	39.2	948	67		370001100394
882	Reedy Creek Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	10801 Plaza Rd Ext	Charlotte	28215	Mecklenburg County	Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(980) 343-6480	850	55	15.3	99.6%	59 (6.9%)	408 (48.0%)	269 (31.6%)	56 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	57 (6.7%)	$9,604			$751			$8,853	41.9	37.6	976	94		370297002170
883	Whitewater Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	11600 White Rapids Rd	Charlotte	28214	Mecklenburg County	Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(980) 343-0003	832	47	17.6	99.6%	70 (8.4%)	381 (45.8%)	305 (36.7%)	35 (4.2%)	1 (0.1%)	6 (0.7%)	34 (4.1%)	$9,291			$1,057			$8,234	41.8	40.7	921	38		370297003018
884	E K Powe Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	913 9th Street	Durham	27705	Durham County	Durham Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 560-3963	454	36	12.7	99.3%	170 (37.4%)	81 (17.8%)	161 (35.5%)	10 (2.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (6.8%)	$12,287			$1,073			$11,214	41.8	50.5	736	148		370126000568
885	Tar River Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2642 Philo White Rd	Franklinton	27525	Granville County	Granville County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 528-2767	370	24	15.6	99.2%	193 (52.2%)	64 (17.3%)	82 (22.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (8.4%)	$9,962			$879			$9,083	41.7	49.4	756	129		370180003227
886	Davenport A+ School	Public	PK, KG-5	901 College Avenue SW	Lenoir	28645	Caldwell County	Caldwell County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(828) 754-6941	429	25	17.4	99.3%	163 (38.0%)	56 (13.1%)	162 (37.8%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (10.3%)	$9,609			$958			$8,651	41.7	36.7	981	95		370058000223
887	Mineral Springs Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1426 Green Lake Rd	Ellerbe	28338	Richmond County	Richmond County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(910) 582-7915	441	24	18.3	99.3%	155 (35.1%)	97 (22.0%)	134 (30.4%)	12 (2.7%)	8 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (7.9%)	$10,516			$1,652			$8,864	41.7	51.2	726	161		370387001555
888	J Glenn Edwards Elementary	Public	K-5	3115 Cemetery Rd	Sanford	27332	Lee County	Lee County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(919) 774-3733	587	36	16.4	99.5%	179 (30.5%)	98 (16.7%)	272 (46.3%)	7 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	28 (4.8%)	$9,176			$1,462			$7,714	41.6	54.8	664	224		370256002209
889	Lake Lure Classical Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	1058 Island Creek Rd.	Lake Lure	28746	Rutherford County	Lake Lure Classical Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(828) 625-9292	481	27	17.6		394 (81.9%)	17 (3.5%)	27 (5.6%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	37 (7.7%)								41.6	62.3	537	352		370031803187
890	Welcome Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	5701 Old Hwy 52	Lexington	27295	Davidson County	Davidson County Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(336) 731-3361	638	39	16.4	99.5%	450 (70.5%)	44 (6.9%)	89 (13.9%)	19 (3.0%)	3 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (5.2%)	$8,344			$696			$7,649	41.5	33.4	1040	150		370114000483

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Other SchoolDigger ranking lists for North Carolina

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New! SchoolDigger ranking lists for NC student subgroups:

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

About our rankings:

Schooldigger calculates school rankings based on EOG Mathematics, EOG Reading, EOG Science test scores released by the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.
These rankings were last updated on September 3, 2025, and are based on the most recent test scores available. We update rankings as we receive new test scores from the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction, usually on a yearly basis.
Our sources of data include the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education and the North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.
For more information about our ranking process, please see our Ranking FAQ. Details about our methodology are here.

Educational resources:

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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 North Carolina Dept of Public Instruction.