U.S. News & World Report’s 2026-2027 Best High Schools rankings are out, and New Jersey’s top 20 stretches from the Jersey Shore to the Hudson River.
High Technology High School in Lincroft holds the No. 1 spot again. According to U.S. News, the Monmouth County school ranks No. 28 nationally, has a 100% graduation rate, and enrolls 284 students in grades 9 to 12.
What Changed
16 schools from last year’s top 20 returned, and four are new: Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School in Somerset (No. 13), Science Park High School in Newark (No. 16), High Tech High School in Secaucus (No. 17), and Elizabeth High School (No. 20).
Four dropped out of the top 20: STEM Innovation Academy of the Oranges, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School North, Infinity Institute in Jersey City, and Livingston High School.
Among the returning schools, Bergen County Academies fell from No. 2 to No. 6, and Dr. Ronald E. McNair High School in Jersey City dropped from No. 4 to No. 9. PCTI STEM Academy in Wayne climbed from No. 16 to No. 12, and Woodbridge Academy Magnet School rose from No. 8 to No. 5.
County Vocational Schools Dominate
The top eight are all in county vocational-technical school districts, according to the districts U.S. News lists, along with 13 of the top 20. Six are in traditional school districts, including Glen Ridge, Millburn, and Northern Valley Regional, and one, Thomas Edison EnergySmart, is a charter school.
U.S. News says charter and magnet schools are eligible because they’re publicly funded.
How the Rankings Work
U.S. News, working with RTI International, ranked nearly 18,000 public high schools nationally out of more than 27,000 it reviewed. A school’s overall score combines six indicators: college readiness (30%); state assessment proficiency (20%); state assessment performance compared with what U.S. News expected given a school’s demographics (20%); college curriculum breadth (10%); performance of underserved students (10%); and graduation rate (10%).
Most of the data is from the 2023-24 school year, so the rankings reflect that year’s students, not this year’s.
The Full List
| NJ rank | School | Town | National rank | Graduation rate | Students (9-12) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | High Technology High School | Lincroft | 28 | 100% | 284 |
| 2 | Edison Academy Magnet School | Edison | 40 | 100% | 173 |
| 3 | Union County Magnet High School | Scotch Plains | 59 | 100% | 297 |
| 4 | Biotechnology High School | Freehold | 72 | 100% | 315 |
| 5 | Woodbridge Academy Magnet School | Woodbridge | 75 | 100% | 288 |
| 6 | Bergen County Academies | Hackensack | 78 | 99% | 1,130 |
| 7 | Academy for Information Technology | Scotch Plains | 83 | 100% | 307 |
| 8 | Bergen County Technical High School – Teterboro | Teterboro | 84 | 99% | 665 |
| 9 | Dr. Ronald E McNair High School | Jersey City | 114 | 100% | 716 |
| 10 | Academy for Allied Health Sciences | Scotch Plains | 126 | 100% | 308 |
| 11 | Marine Academy of Science and Technology | Highlands | 156 | 98% | 276 |
| 12 | PCTI STEM Academy | Wayne | 250 | 99% | 1,040 |
| 13 | Thomas Edison EnergySmart Charter School | Somerset | 261 | 100% | 167 |
| 14 | Glen Ridge High School | Glen Ridge | 290 | 98% | 518 |
| 15 | Millburn High School | Millburn | 294 | 98% | 1,380 |
| 16 | Science Park High School | Newark | 312 | 98% | 861 |
| 17 | High Tech High School | Secaucus | 334 | 100% | 790 |
| 18 | Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest | Demarest | 346 | 98% | 1,038 |
| 19 | Monmouth County Academy of Allied Health and Science | Neptune | 348 | 100% | 300 |
| 20 | Elizabeth High School | Elizabeth | 354 | — | — |
Source: U.S. News & World Report, 2026-2027 Best High Schools. Towns as listed by U.S. News.
Why It Matters
For parents deciding where to live or which public high school to apply to, rankings like these can show where students are doing well. Eleven of the 20 schools list 100% graduation rates, according to U.S. News. But test scores and exam participation tell only part of the story, and no ranking captures what a school offers outside the classroom.
The New Jersey Digest is a new jersey magazine that has chronicled daily life in the Garden State for over 10 years.
