Here are the top 20 New Jersey public high schools, including the nation’s best STEM school
⚠️ High Technology High School in Lincroft ranked No. 1 among U.S. STEM high schools.
➡️ U.S. News reviewed 522 New Jersey schools across 347 districts.
🔴 44.1% of eligible New Jersey schools landed in the nation's top 25%.
New Jersey public high schools show up big in an annual nationwide ranking by U.S. News and World Report.
The publication evaluated more than 27,000 eligible U.S. public high schools.
New Jersey’s top ranked high school was also the top STEM high school in the entire country — High Technology High School.
Out of 522 New Jersey schools reviewed across 347 districts, 415 schools made the rankings for 2026-2027.
New Jersey had the second best showing as a state, with 44.1% of its schools ranking in the top quarter of U.S. high schools.
The state was behind only Massachusetts, which had 46.7%, or nearly half, of the state's eligible high schools in the top 25% of rankings. Maryland was in third with 42.7%, Florida in fourth and Connecticut in fifth place.
What U.S. News looked at when ranking NJ schools
Six key performance indicators were considered, which include student achievement on state-required assessments, strong graduation rates, and college readiness measures.
Schools were also evaluated on how effectively they serve all students, with college readiness specifically measured through student participation and performance on Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate exams.
Of the top 20 public high schools in the state, roughly half are vocational.
These are NJ's top public high schools this year
Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt
New Jersey high school students are assessed in math, English language arts and science via the New Jersey Student Learning Assessments.
High school students are required to study a world language as well as visual and performing arts to graduate, according to the New Jersey Department of Education.
Read More: How New Jersey's public high schools ranked nationally in 2025-2026
Here are the other five public high schools ranked in the state's top 20 this year:
#16 Science Park High School
Newark Public School District
#16 in New Jersey Rankings, #312 in National Rankings
Student enrollment grades 9-12: 861
#17 High Tech High School - Secaucus
Hudson County Schools of Technology School District
#17 in New Jersey Rankings, #334 in National Rankings
Student enrollment grades 9-12: 790
#18 Northern Valley Regional High School at Demarest
Northern Valley Regional High School District
Student enrollment grades 9-12: 1,038
#18 in New Jersey Rankings, #346 in National Rankings
#19 Monmouth County Academy of Allied Health and Science - Neptune
Monmouth County Vocational School District
Student enrollment grades 9-12: 300
#19 in New Jersey Rankings, #348 in National Rankings
#20 Elizabeth High School
Elizabeth Public Schools
Student enrollment grades 9-12: 1,268
#20 in New Jersey Rankings, #354 in National Rankings
NJ towns paying the most taxes for public schools
Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5
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