The Best Schools in Boston 2013

To assemble this year’s Best Schools list, we spent months compiling numbers—released by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education—from 147 municipalities in Greater Boston. The schools in the cities and towns that topped our proprietary ranking stood out across 20 different categories, including student-to-teacher ratio, average class size, expenditures per pupil, rate of college matriculation, and results on tests such as the SAT and the MCAS.

Below is a sortable list ranking the cities and towns in the Greater Boston Area. (For more on how we determined the rankings, see our methodology below.)

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District	Rank	Enrollment	Avg. Class Size	Graduation Rate	% Attending College	Per Pupil Expenditures	% Scoring 3-5 on AP Exams	SAT Reading	SAT Writing	SAT Math	Student Teacher Ratio	Gr-10 ELA	Gr-10 Math	Gr-10 SCI	Gr-8 ELA	Gr-8 MTH	Gr-8 SCI	Gr-5 ELA	Gr-5 MTH	Gr-5 SCI	Gr-3 ELA	Gr-3 MTH
Dover	1	523	18.3	97.5	91.6	$17,607	96	596	602	621	12.3	100	98	100	96	79	76	84	86	80	86	84
Sherborn	2	405	17.3	97.5	91.6	$15,129	96	596	602	621	11.7	100	98	100	96	79	76	83	85	85	86	86
Lexington	3	6,506	19.3	95.9	86.5	$16,358	96.1	612	617	637	12.1	99	95	95	97	87	77	86	89	82	86	86
Carlisle	4	638	19.8	92.9	86.3	$15,908	96.4	587	586	601	11.8	98	92	95	98	94	89	84	86	80	91	89
Boxborough	5	437	19.7	94.2	85.2	$14,222	96.9	611	612	650	13.2	96	94	94	95	84	76	84	89	78	88	90
Concord	6	2,140	17.1	92.9	86.3	$16,637	96.4	587	586	601	12.8	98	92	95	96	76	80	85	86	81	86	86
Lincoln	7	1,241	16.2	97.3	87.3	$20,776	92.6	581	577	606	9.8	99	96	84	89	61	58	78	79	77	75	82
Westford	8	5,259	18.7	98.5	92.5	$11,179	91.7	580	573	608	14.9	99	96	94	96	89	79	84	86	82	78	80
Wayland	9	2,717	18	96.4	87.5	$15,198	91.5	591	594	617	14.2	99	95	92	99	84	85	75	79	75	80	78
Wellesley	10	4,954	17.4	98.3	88.4	$15,421	95.1	623	631	631	13.9	98	96	73	96	81	64	83	75	63	86	77
Weston	11	2,374	22.6	96.6	85.1	$19,352	79.2	603	617	633	11.9	99	95	86	94	72	73	82	77	75	84	80
Harvard	12	1,210	19	96.3	86.9	$13,476	92.1	603	594	609	15.8	100	98	93	97	73	72	93	84	85	85	77
Winchester	13	4,396	19.8	97.6	84.5	$11,822	81.1	589	599	614	14.8	100	98	92	97	83	80	84	88	82	82	85
Sharon	14	3,433	18.1	95.1	90.3	$14,151	95.7	585	590	600	13.1	97	94	92	93	75	58	82	78	82	83	87
Manchester	15	465	21.1	95.7	80.9	$13,274	91.5	569	563	585	12.9	97	97	93	96	84	80	90	85	79	89	87
Sudbury	16	3,006	20.5	97.3	87.3	$12,359	92.6	581	577	606	14.3	99	96	84	94	80	70	89	86	84	84	78
Westborough	17	3,515	16.4	97.5	90.7	$14,007	89.1	556	558	589	13.3	98	93	96	96	77	75	79	74	78	80	80
Holliston	18	2,820	16.6	97.8	86.3	$12,089	94.2	553	556	573	13.3	99	96	95	93	74	65	82	83	81	81	73
Brookline	19	7,112	17.7	92.9	79.9	$16,556	94.7	587	591	614	13.8	96	92	84	94	80	66	80	78	64	77	78
Newton	20	12,335	19.3	94.9	79.9	$16,397	92.5	587	595	614	15.4	96	94	87	93	80	63	84	82	71	80	78
Westwood	21	3,167	18.6	96	86.7	$13,999	90	550	547	566	15.0	99	96	93	94	75	59	87	83	83	86	83
Boxford	22	778	16.3	97	83.7	$12,006	76.1	539	536	568	13.0	99	98	94	94	81	76	81	76	81	83	80
Belmont	23	4,065	21.3	95.7	84.3	$11,969	94.1	586	591	612	17.1	99	95	95	95	78	77	83	84	71	86	85
Acton	24	2,512	22.5	94.2	85.2	$11,480	96.9	611	612	650	18.1	96	94	94	95	84	76	82	82	76	80	82
Cohasset	25	1,584	20.6	98.9	90	$13,320	83	555	549	563	13.6	97	98	86	97	78	65	81	83	76	80	87
Essex	26	272	21.3	95.7	80.9	$13,274	91.5	569	563	585	12.9	97	97	93	96	84	80	79	89	70	82	64
Middleton	27	809	16.3	97	83.7	$11,762	76.1	539	536	568	12.6	99	98	94	94	81	76	77	74	81	76	80
Hopkinton	28	3,414	19.9	97.5	85.2	$12,298	83.2	556	564	583	14.1	98	95	96	95	79	63	79	80	73	86	86
Bolton	29	767	19	94.3	87.9	$12,498	90.1	563	554	581	15.5	94	92	88	96	82	71	87	87	90	76	72
Southborough	30	1,422	18.7	95.4	87.8	$13,831	90.2	567	570	585	13.3	100	96	92	91	64	57	78	70	68	83	89
Topsfield	31	597	15.8	97	83.7	$11,862	76.1	539	536	568	12.7	99	98	95	94	81	76	85	73	79	74	68
Needham	32	5,476	19.3	95.4	88.6	$13,602	95	581	582	594	15.4	98	95	91	92	74	71	80	73	65	81	77
Andover	33	6,225	20.9	95.5	89.1	$13,697	81	560	562	586	14.1	95	92	88	96	76	65	84	82	79	83	82
Wenham	34	249	19.1	97.8	84.2	$14,644	83.2	576	567	579	13.1	99	95	91	98	67	60	74	63	65	95	95
Hamilton	35	1,012	19.3	97.3	84.2	$14,644	83.2	576	567	579	13.1	99	95	91	98	67	60	70.5	76	71.5	89.5	87
Bedford	36	2,514	15.5	94	85.4	$16,963	92.6	572	571	592	12.2	95	89	85	95	72	56	73	70	56	68	68
Medfield	37	2,788	19.6	99.1	91.5	$11,364	81.4	577	582	602	14.7	98	96	96	95	72	68	75	75	68	78	68
Hingham	38	4,202	19.9	94.4	87.8	$11,213	94.2	556	566	565	15.3	98	95	90	94	72	56	84	83	80	83	82
Northborough	39	1,893	18.1	95.4	87.8	$12,324	90.2	567	570	585	13.8	100	96	92	92	65	70	73	66	75	73	73
Marblehead	40	3,251	18.7	96.3	82.6	$12,727	86	559	567	579	13.6	99	94	87	94	74	70	76	69	69	79	77
Littleton	41	1,576	20	92.6	84.4	$12,692	89.9	565	563	569	14.2	98	92	93	94	81	64	78	72	66	80	74
Medway	42	2,482	18.3	96.7	82.4	$11,641	71.4	538	551	564	15.1	99	96	88	93	74	62	83	79	81	80	84
Norwell	43	2,331	20.8	96.5	91.3	$11,524	72.8	537	542	553	16.5	98	94	92	96	74	67	84	82	86	82	81
Duxbury	44	3,242	20.7	96.9	83.6	$11,729	79.4	541	550	568	14.0	99	97	96	96	74	63	79	77	75	82	71
Arlington	45	4,903	18.5	88.5	79.9	$12,942	84.6	564	559	565	14.8	97	89	83	94	76	65	81	78	80	80	69
Scituate	46	3,220	18.9	91.4	85	$11,381	75.7	537	550	555	14.7	95	90	78	96	78	62	84	85	85	78	79
Stow	47	869	20.5	94.3	87.9	$12,498	90.1	563	554	581	15.5	94	92	88	93	72	45	78	84	81	71	75
Lynnfield	48	2,261	21	98	85.8	$11,475	76	535	541	558	14.6	96	90	94	93	70	58	83	67	77	87	90
Berlin	49	223	16.3	95.7	92.5	$15,240	65	544	548	556	12.2	97	94	91	93	50	47	69	74	65	85	73
Reading	50	4,483	20.4	96.6	84.5	$10,976	88.5	547	545	562	14.6	97	93	86	94	74	60	75	75	62	75	76
Lancaster	51	750	19.5	94.3	87.9	$12,498	90.1	563	554	581	15.5	94	92	88	90	66	57	68	76	64	65	78
West Newbury	52	462	20.9	92.6	83.4	$11,189	72.4	542	537	544	14.3	96	90	88	90	57	51	85	84	73	81	76
Norfolk	53	926	21.6	91.8	86.5	$12,203	72.1	541	543	554	14.3	98	90	93	92	60	54	81	79	74	82	77
Natick	54	5,065	20	94.3	79	$12,649	80.4	536	532	564	14.7	94	88	90	92	70	64	72	70	74	82	83
Braintree	55	5,549	18.5	95.1	81.5	$11,176	91.8	533	529	550	14.3	95	91	88	89	73	54	75	72	69	78	80
Boylston	56	379	16.3	95.7	92.5	$15,240	65.3	544	548	556	12.2	97	94	91	93	50	47	78	64	72	69	67
Chelmsford	57	5,138	19.9	93.8	87.2	$11,049	80.1	550	548	577	15.1	96	90	78	91	66	66	67	63	66	75	75
Wrentham	58	1,155	20.4	91.8	86.5	$10,506	72.1	541	543	554	15.5	98	90	93	92	60	54	74	72	82	85	83
Plympton	59	242	15.8	98.1	79.4	$11,671	72.2	515	506	550	13.4	93	89	79	90	61	49	72	75	88	70	87
North Reading	60	2,606	21.6	94.7	84.3	$11,842	66.7	542	527	562	12.9	96	88	85	92	63	54	74	78	73	79	80
Walpole	61	4,015	21	94.8	87.9	$11,692	84.9	533	531	526	14.9	95	87	86	92	63	60	80	71	76	78	72
Franklin	62	5,868	21.3	92.8	83.9	$10,708	79.9	537	540	561	15.4	95	91	86	93	72	65	79	77	66	73	73
Canton	63	3,262	19.9	96.8	85.9	$13,414	61.6	510	515	548	14.2	93	83	86	90	62	63	79	76	67	77	79
Foxborough	64	2,753	17.2	99	73.9	$12,855	84.2	522	530	543	13.4	94	86	81	91	67	58	68	68	62	73	73
Milton	65	3,934	18.6	93.8	85.8	$12,613	65.6	514	507	528	14.3	95	87	82	90	71	48	82	82	64	71	76
Swampscott	66	2,283	21	95.7	78.8	$12,592	67.3	522	529	521	13.1	97	93	88	91	61	58	70	62	70	77	79
Newburyport	67	2,349	20.2	93.6	82.2	$13,369	84.6	551	558	563	13.5	97	93	90	83	69	48	69	58	59	72	59
Ashland	68	2,573	19.6	96.2	80.1	$12,007	84.3	543	526	578	15.2	98	96	90	89	70	50	65	70	55	67	63
Rockport	69	931	14.7	90.5	78.2	$14,618	58	518	524	512	11.3	92	83	81	94	71	67	65	56	56	68	78
Plainville	70	802	21.4	91.8	86.5	$11,873	72.1	541	543	554	16.0	98	90	93	92	60	54	67	65	68	70	62
Georgetown	71	1,558	22.8	92.1	76.9	$9,961	92.3	547	547	561	14.5	95	86	85	92	53	50	72	82	55	74	74
Dedham	72	2,826	16.8	88.3	67	$15,459	67.9	494	493	512	12.3	89	89	78	89	61	47	75	76	70	77	74
West Bridgewater	73	1,344	19.7	95.1	79.5	$10,395	49.3	489	502	503	14.3	96	95	88	91	59	67	73	78	67	83	72
Ipswich	74	2,048	19.8	95.3	87.6	$11,369	65.9	535	529	531	14.7	98	93	86	92	64	46	70	68	62	57	66
Newbury	75	614	18.6	90.2	74.9	$12,399	58.6	506	504	541	13.9	92	85	77	88	67	62	82	69	83	65	68
Burlington	76	3,606	18.8	89	82.2	$15,008	73.1	527	527	539	12.8	96	88	75	86	60	56	70	49	64	65	61
Halifax	77	582	19.2	98.1	79.4	$11,023	72.2	515	506	550	15.8	93	89	79	90	61	49	72	65	75	75	70
Mansfield	78	4,497	20.5	94.4	82.7	$10,554	81.6	523	520	553	18.9	97	93	87	88	62	48	79	75	62	75	68
Merrimac	79	356	20.9	92.6	83.4	$11,189	72.4	542	537	544	14.3	96	90	88	90	57	51	64	50	39	73	67
Wakefield	80	3,388	19.3	89.5	81.7	$12,009	78.6	524	525	537	13.9	92	87	81	87	62	51	71	63	64	69	66
Hanover	81	2,684	21.3	97.5	91.4	$10,965	51	497	491	506	15.7	97	89	88	88	57	59	70	60	73	82	79
Marshfield	82	4,483	23.4	95.3	84.5	$10,776	70.8	514	514	527	13.9	96	88	83	90	58	33	80	71	73	74	71
Easton	83	3,880	19.8	93.1	87.5	$10,922	60.9	533	527	541	15.3	95	87	72	91	67	62	65	65	54	73	71
Wilmington	84	3,559	19.5	91.4	85	$12,330	84	510	513	543	13.2	96	92	76	85	54	36	70	70	55	69	64
Stoneham	85	2,401	16.5	91.2	86.1	$12,449	71.5	508	514	515	13.4	93	81	78	86	56	45	74	67	62	66	67
Nahant	86	185	27.2	95.7	78.8	$10,886	67.3	522	529	521	16.8	97	93	88	91	61	58	90	60	80	72	79
Groveland	87	607	21.5	92.6	83.4	$11,189	72.4	542	537	544	14.3	96	90	88	90	57	51	70	55	37	62	67
Cambridge	88	6,222	15.9	83.2	76.5	$26,305	80.9	502	497	509	10.4	86	83	65	71	50	38	59	54	45	64	65
Rowley	89	547	18.6	90.2	74.9	$12,399	58.6	506	504	541	13.9	92	85	77	88	67	62	73	63	81	62	51
North Andover	90	4,766	22	93.1	86.9	$11,503	77	528	525	545	16.3	95	83	88	87	60	47	71	64	55	72	65
Kingston	91	1,134	22.9	98.1	79.4	$10,200	72.2	515	506	550	18.3	93	89	79	90	61	49	75	63	71	79	76
Melrose	92	3,679	22.7	94.1	84.4	$10,588	66.2	512	512	515	14.9	93	81	64	87	63	52	75	71	66	79	71
Millis	93	1,451	19.2	96.6	86	$10,645	72.7	519	516	526	16.3	98	78	84	86	51	38	71	79	58	51	67
Pembroke	94	3,329	20.3	93.8	76.7	$10,375	73.4	503	497	513	16.3	96	90	82	86	68	55	65	66	60	68	68
Norwood	95	3,547	18.1	88.7	77.5	$13,616	85	478	479	507	13.1	91	77	67	87	54	52	68	63	55	65	67
Amesbury	96	2,337	19.7	83.9	80.1	$12,966	74.4	529	506	524	15.2	90	86	73	83	55	55	64	49	53	76	74
Watertown	97	2,688	17.1	85.8	76.9	$16,008	76.3	487	483	513	12.4	89	80	72	89	59	37	58	51	46	67	68
Maynard	98	1,352	16.8	81.3	77.9	$13,545	85.1	519	522	517	13.3	93	82	85	77	44	48	68	53	54	65	50
Salisbury	99	529	18	90.2	74.9	$12,399	58.6	506	504	541	13.9	92	85	77	88	62	62	47	58	44	59	63
Danvers	100	3,593	19.3	90	78.7	$12,590	65.2	507	507	528	14.0	89	85	76	85	61	42	63	57	44	73	65
Norton	101	2,629	20.6	85.1	82.1	$11,762	62.6	515	496	519	14.5	92	83	83	86	52	43	63	72	59	67	65
Carver	102	1,737	19.7	83.2	75.2	$12,144	78	524	509	517	14.2	96	87	73	80	56	39	69	69	60	63	55
Hanson	103	1,316	22.7	92.6	72.5	$10,527	67	490	499	524	19.4	90	85	83	86	60	48	70	63	62	74	78
Plymouth	104	7,975	18	86.5	69.3	$13,448	62.7	498	489	515	13.3	93	82	78	82	58	48	64	62	59	65	63
Hull	105	1,067	19.3	88.4	69.1	$14,019	51.2	510	517	526	12.5	95	86	77	80	53	34	61	54	47	67	69
Stoughton	106	3,753	17.2	91.3	82.7	$11,729	54.1	463	460	494	13.1	90	78	75	83	59	53	68	61	57	63	60
Tewksbury	107	3,805	20.6	91.5	79.7	$12,068	65	507	498	511	15.9	91	86	72	87	55	49	60	54	50	68	72
Waltham	108	5,098	16.1	81.5	63.8	$19,741	83.5	485	482	502	11.6	88	78	68	83	51	34	62	53	50	50	50
Framingham	109	8,201	18.6	85.3	63.3	$15,769	90.3	514	517	554	12.9	90	87	85	77	46	39	54	45	45	52	50
Billerica	110	5,513	20	88.4	75.9	$12,628	83	498	498	537	15.1	89	83	78	87	51	43	58	51	39	62	59
Bridgewater-Raynham	111	5,441	23.4	93.4	76.1	$11,221	68.5	494	486	510	16.7	90	71	66	84	65	51	63	57	63	68	66
Hudson	112	2,896	17.7	82	79.7	$12,551	60.9	489	493	509	12.6	97	86	69	80	49	40	56	60	35	62	60
Woburn	113	4,766	17.4	85.3	74.1	$13,413	70.3	484	479	506	13.4	88	73	52	80	46	42	70	61	65	65	63
Milford	114	4,167	19	85.1	72.9	$12,212	53.4	483	475	499	13.2	89	82	70	88	57	46	59	54	63	59	58
Avon	115	746	16.2	74.1	72.5	$12,225	50	438	422	444	12.3	87	82	70	88	59	43	67	66	54	78	73
East Bridgewater	116	2,246	28.2	91.7	78.9	$10,559	53.3	490	497	511	18.2	93	82	75	87	58	52	74	67	77	61	53
Winthrop	117	1,975	18.8	83.1	73.2	$11,627	48.7	481	479	506	12.8	91	83	62	85	56	44	63	50	48	55	62
Beverly	118	4,335	21	81	71.6	$12,719	56.2	497	500	515	15.3	90	77	75	83	56	47	64	56	49	59	61
Whitman	119	1,762	23.3	92.6	72.5	$10,527	67	490	499	524	19.4	90	85	83	80	47	37	56.5	55.5	40	63.5	72.5
Quincy	120	9,266	19.4	89.7	70.2	$13,584	75.9	464	463	523	14.5	87	78	68	80	45	41	56	57	54	58	58
Weymouth	121	6,897	20.7	84.8	69.6	$11,528	81.3	498	486	510	16.7	91	79	81	77	43	36	62	52	54	66	67
Gloucester	122	3,016	17.7	86.1	61.3	$13,818	74.2	499	486	521	12.4	90	71	63	75	37	30	58	54	55	66	56
Peabody	123	6,103	19.2	83.2	67.9	$12,729	61.8	493	491	509	13.9	87	76	66	79	50	42	63	48	52	68	61
Medford	124	4,677	16.3	80.5	70.6	$13,093	78.6	487	489	488	12.5	89	79	66	78	43	44	54	49	48	51	51
Bellingham	125	2,457	19.6	81.3	68.9	$11,550	40.3	496	479	494	14.7	91	81	69	79	59	49	61	43	67	69	60
Marlborough	126	4,589	18	80.1	71.2	$13,949	67.3	502	494	522	13.4	82	78	63	78	45	31	60	51	54	55	46
Abington	127	2,031	24.3	84.3	84.3	$11,415	54.3	490	480	508	16.4	86	74	75	86	63	40	63	60	47	56	54
Rockland	128	2,199	19.3	84.1	82.5	$12,895	47.9	481	489	492	14.8	91	83	52	75	44	25	58	46	54	56	60
Saugus	129	2,850	19.8	85.1	77.5	$12,744	49.1	475	477	495	13.5	83	75	63	75	38	22	57	60	47	58	62
Taunton	130	7,681	21	77.4	69	$10,824	79.6	492	477	495	15.2	81	64	56	73	44	37	54	50	42	59	62
Revere	131	6,648	20.1	76.8	66.5	$13,347	59.4	441	431	458	14.2	84	75	60	81	48	39	54	50	47	52	54
Holbrook	132	1,238	19.4	71.2	82.8	$13,937	42	427	406	459	14.7	86	69	46	73	27	12	70	65	62	62	61
Salem	133	4,395	15.6	78	67.4	$14,628	62.1	478	468	487	10.8	77	60	50	70	41	26	46	43	36	45	47
Middleborough	134	3,295	27.2	90.5	68.7	$11,426	52.7	486	464	497	15.7	85	61	60	81	36	34	57	52	51	62	59
Malden	135	6,573	21.1	77.2	73.2	$12,358	43.2	448	445	478	15.0	85	77	66	77	50	34	43	44	37	44	48
Somerville	136	4,922	17.8	78.1	66.2	$16,108	68.7	451	456	473	12.4	74	59	55	65	32	30	46	43	39	49	45
Wareham	137	2,822	17.3	79.2	52.4	$12,241	40.8	459	452	464	12.9	86	55	44	74	40	31	53	48	38	54	54
Haverhill	138	7,052	18.5	69.6	68.7	$11,528	61.6	502	483	515	14.7	79	65	47	71	33	27	41	34	38	53	50
Methuen	139	7,055	23.5	78.7	77.5	$11,722	44.4	477	470	490	15.2	79	59	59	71	41	25	44	43	33	49	47
Lowell	140	13,879	19.2	73.3	73.7	$12,780	69.6	456	449	490	13.9	77	68	49	64	39	18	39	37	23	39	47
Randolph	141	2,957	27.8	70.7	72.7	$14,912	38.5	427	420	462	12.3	74	65	53	70	36	21	42	40	28	55	56
Boston	142	55,114	17.7	65.9	66.2	$16,902	49.3	431	427	464	12.9	73	65	46	63	35	15	38	39	17	35	38
Brockton	143	16,595	19.9	74.5	74.4	$12,540	54.7	426	419	444	14.8	79	66	55	68	32	19	37	32	20	36	37
Lynn	144	14,139	19.5	73.7	56.1	$12,693	39.4	435	421	454	14.7	80	67	55	59	28	17	48	41	32	41	46
Everett	145	6,672	19.8	75.4	60.9	$12,040	40.1	435	419	443	13.7	77	57	36	68	28	14	44	37	23	44	55
Chelsea	146	5,891	21.2	58.3	58.3	$13,708	33.9	401	386	435	14.1	68	54	39	57	32	20	30	35	19	34	46
Lawrence	147	13,145	20.6	60.6	77.8	$13,463	27.3	400	396	409	13.6	55	34	22	54	19	11	33	27	19	36	39

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METHODOLOGY

We gathered the most recent available data on area schools from the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (doe.mass.edu). We also consulted town and school websites if necessary. Our rankings were then computed by statistician George Recck, who is the director of the Math Resource Center at Babson College. Recck calculated the mean scores for each category, and then ranked the towns based on a weighted average of each school data point’s difference from the mean. Only schools whose districts lie all or partially within the Greater Boston I-495 boundary were included. To calculate rankings for towns within regional school districts, we used data for regional high or middle schools where applicable. Additional research by Natalie Covate, Alexandra Graziano, Damon Hatheway, Patrick Lauppe, Zoe Marquedant, and Molly Mirhashem.