Best schools in Iowa (2025)
The top five of 1,287 schools in each category, with links to the full top 100. Rankings use the Success Index (US), built only from official American data.
Iowa has 1,287 schools educating 490,314 students in 2025: 1,281 public, 6 charter.
The median Enrollment across Iowa is 314. Students enrolled in the latest NCES directory year.
Best elementary schools in Iowa
Schools classified as elementary by NCES.
Forest Grove Elementary
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades K–6
332 students
Pleasant View Elementary School
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades K–6
621 students
Taft Elementary School
Humboldt · Public elementary · Grades 1–4
369 students
Shuler Elementary School
Clive · Public elementary · Grades K–5
592 students
Lincoln Elementary School
Pella · Public elementary · Grades PK–3
254 students
Best middle schools in Iowa
Schools classified as middle schools by NCES.
Solon Middle School
Solon · Public middle · Grades 6–8
320 students
Waukee Middle School
Waukee · Public middle · Grades 6–8
867 students
Center Point-Urbana Middle School
Center Point · Public middle · Grades 6–8
290 students
Dallas Center-Grimes Middle School
Dallas Center · Public middle · Grades 5–6
586 students
Decorah Middle School
Decorah · Public middle · Grades 5–8
432 students
Best high schools in Iowa
Schools classified as high schools by NCES.
Woodward-Granger High School
Woodward · Public high · Grades 9–12
270 students
Denver Senior High School
Denver · Public high · Grades 9–12
278 students
Solon High School
Solon · Public high · Grades 9–12
471 students
Decorah High School
Decorah · Public high · Grades 9–12
555 students
Van Meter High School
Van Meter · Public high · Grades 9–12
316 students
Best traditional public schools in Iowa
District-run public schools.
Forest Grove Elementary
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades K–6
332 students
Solon Middle School
Solon · Public middle · Grades 6–8
320 students
Waukee Middle School
Waukee · Public middle · Grades 6–8
867 students
Pleasant View Elementary School
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades K–6
621 students
Taft Elementary School
Humboldt · Public elementary · Grades 1–4
369 students
Best charter schools in Iowa
Publicly funded charter schools.
Great Oaks High School and Career Center
Des Moines · Charter high · Grades 9–12
72 students
West Central Charter High School
Maynard · Charter high · Grades 9–12
97 students
Horizon Science Academy Des Moines
Des Moines · Charter elementary · Grades PK–4
150 students
Empowering Excellence Charter School
Cedar Rapids · Charter high · Grades 9–12
120 students
Best schools by math proficiency in Iowa
Schools ranked by the share of tested students proficient or above in math on the state assessment (EDFacts, all students), for schools with 30 or more tested students.
Mitchellville Elementary
Mitchellville · Public elementary · Grades PK–5
255 students
Hopewell Elementary
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades PK–6
658 students
Northeast Elementary
Ankeny · Public elementary · Grades K–5
595 students
Pleasant View Elementary School
Bettendorf · Public elementary · Grades K–6
621 students
Grundy Center High School
Grundy Center · Public high · Grades 9–12
241 students
Best schools by reading proficiency in Iowa
Schools ranked by the share of tested students proficient or above in reading/language arts (EDFacts, all students).
Grundy Center High School
Grundy Center · Public high · Grades 9–12
241 students
West Bend-Mallard Elementary School
West Bend · Public elementary · Grades PK–4
173 students
Gilbert Middle School
Gilbert · Public middle · Grades 6–8
408 students
Andrew Elementary School
Andrew · Public elementary · Grades PK–6
125 students
Denver Senior High School
Denver · Public high · Grades 9–12
278 students
Best lowest student–teacher ratio in Iowa
Schools with the fewest students per FTE teacher, among schools with at least 100 students.
Emmetsburg Middle School
Emmetsburg · Public middle · Grades 5–8
199 students
Riverside Elementary School
Sioux City · Public elementary · Grades PK–5
227 students
Prescott Elementary School
Dubuque · Public elementary · Grades PK–5
352 students
Audubon Elementary School
Dubuque · Public elementary · Grades PK–5
247 students
Marnie Simons Elementary School
Hamburg · Public elementary · Grades PK–5
102 students
Best largest schools in Iowa
Schools with the highest enrollment.
Lincoln High School
Des Moines · Public high · Grades 9–12
2,364 students
Linn-Mar High School
Marion · Public high · Grades 9–12
2,229 students
Valley High School
West Des Moines · Public high · Grades 10–12
2,178 students
Roosevelt High School
Des Moines · Public high · Grades 9–12
2,051 students
East High School
Des Moines · Public high · Grades 9–12
1,952 students
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Frequently asked questions
What is the best elementary school in Iowa?
Forest Grove Elementary in Bettendorf ranks first among elementary schools in Iowa with a Success Index (US) of 94.8 out of 100 (Enrollment: 332).
How are elementary schools in Iowa ranked?
Each school's Success Index (US) combines 4 factors: math proficiency (30%), reading proficiency (30%), community advantage (fewer free/reduced-price lunch) (25%), students per teacher (15%). Each factor is a percentile against schools of the same type across United States. Schools with fewer than 60 students are excluded from rankings.
Are these 2025 rankings official?
No. They are computed by Success Tutoring from official American data (Urban Institute Education Data Portal (NCES CCD, EDFacts); NCES Common Core of Data). States set their own assessments and proficiency cut scores, so proficiency rates are most comparable within a state. Use the state rankings for like-for-like comparisons.