Education

These are the 10 best Texas public schools for 2025. Did your child’s school make the grade?

Empty classroom with no students
Empty classroom with no students Getty Images/iStockphoto

Sending your child to a good school matters for parents.

One way to figure out if your child’s school is trustworthy is by looking at rankings. Niche is an online platform that uses more than 2.5 million reviews from students, parents and teachers to help determinethe best educational institutions.

Their 2025 Best Public Schools in America list ranked a Dallas high school as the ninth-best public school in the country. But Niche also narrowed it down by each state. For that list, Texas’ No. 1 and No. 2 public schools in Texas are again located in Dallas.

Niche determines its scores based on data from the U.S. Department of Education, as well as user opinions. The site looks at test scores, reading and math proficiency, teacher quality and graduation rates. Grades (A+ to D-) are assigned to a school based on how they perform in comparison to other schools.

Out of 2,114 Texas public schools, the first 73 are graded as A+ schools. Here are the top ten public schools in Texas.

No. 1: School for the Talented and Gifted, Dallas

  • Dallas Independent School District (ISD)

  • Public Magnet school (Magnet schools are free public schools that offer specialized or career-focused teaching, according to the U.S. World and Report)

  • 534 students

  • 18:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 95 percent graduation rate

  • 95 percent proficient in both math and reading

  • Ranked No. 9 in the country for best public school

School for the Talented and Gifted is consistently ranked as a top public school in the country as well as in Texas.
School for the Talented and Gifted is consistently ranked as a top public school in the country as well as in Texas. Courtesy photo by Dallas ISD

No. 2: School of Science and Engineering, Dallas

  • Dallas ISD

  • Public Magnet school

  • 490 students

  • 18:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 95 percent graduation rate

  • 95 percent proficient in both math and reading

No. 3 Liberal Arts and Science Academy, Austin

  • Austin ISD

  • Public Magnet school

  • 1,432 students

  • 18:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 99 percent graduation rate

  • 99 percent proficient in reading, 91 percent in math

No. 4: Carnegie Vanguard High School, Houston

  • Houston ISD

  • Public Magnet school

  • 823 students

  • 22:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 100 percent graduation rate

  • 99 percent proficient in reading, 95 percent in math

No. 5: Westlake High School, Austin

  • Eanes ISD

  • Public school

  • 2,825 students

  • 14:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 99 percent graduation rate

  • 89 percent proficient in reading, 78 percent in math

No. 6: South Texas ISD Science Academy, Mercedes

  • South Texas ISD

  • Public Magnet school

  • 795 students

  • 13:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 95 percent graduation rate

  • 82 percent proficient in reading, 67 percent in math

No. 7: Carroll Senior High School, Southlake

  • Carroll ISD

  • Public school

  • 1,444 students

  • 15:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 99 percent graduation rate

  • 99 percent proficient in both reading and math

No. 8: BASIS San Antonio– Shavano Campus, San Antonio

  • BASIS Texas Charter Schools

  • Public Charter school (Charter schools are tuition-free public schools; however, they operate independently, which allows them more freedom and flexibility, according to U.S. News & World Report)

  • 1,018 students

  • 16:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 95 percent graduation rate

  • 90 percent proficient in reading, 84 percent in math

No. 9: Westwood High IB World School, Austin

  • Round Rock ISD

  • Public school

  • 2,820 students

  • 17:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 99 percent graduation rate

  • 78 percent proficient in reading, 61 percent in math

No. 10: Debakey H.S. for Health Professions, Houston

  • Houston ISD

  • Public Magnet school

  • 916 students

  • 17:1 student to teacher ratio

  • 95 percent graduation rate

  • 99 percent proficient in reading, 83 percent in math

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Ella Gonzales
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Ella Gonzales is a service journalism reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. She is part of a team of local journalists who answer reader questions and write about life in North Texas. Ella mainly writes about local restaurants and where to find good deals around town.
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