A recent analysis of public school systems across the United States has placed several West Coast states among the lowest performers, with California ranking 31st out of 50 states and Washington, D.C. Massachusetts, conversely, earned the top spot.
The WalletHub 2026 study compared school systems based on 32 measures of quality and safety, assigning California an overall score of 50.27 out of 100. The state secured 29th place for educational quality and 36th for safety. California schools did, however, record positive marks, including the second-lowest share of high school students reporting threats or injuries on campus and a tie for the third-highest median ACT score. However, the state ranked last in pupil-to-student ratio.
Washington performed better than its Pacific neighbors, achieving 28th place overall. It was 28th in quality and seventh in safety. Oregon fared significantly worse, ranking 48th overall with a score of 40.10, placing 47th in quality and 45th in safety. Only Oklahoma, Alaska, and New Mexico finished lower in the overall standings.
California's school system was ranked just one spot ahead of Texas, which scored 50.22, and behind North Carolina and Washington, D.C.
Massachusetts was identified as the nation's best school system, with a score of 74.74. It led in quality and was second in safety. The state also showed strong performance in fourth- and eighth-grade math and reading scores, alongside the highest share of students achieving at least a score of 3 on an AP exam.
Other states rounding out the top five were Connecticut, New Jersey, New Hampshire, and Wisconsin. At the other end of the spectrum, New Mexico was ranked last with a score of 29.96, followed by Alaska, Oklahoma, Oregon, and West Virginia.
WalletHub's analysis considered factors beyond funding and academic results, including class sizes, teacher qualifications, graduation and dropout rates, test scores, bullying incidents, campus violence, and students' access to illegal drugs. Quality contributed 80% to each state's final score, while safety accounted for the remaining 20%.