Michigan’s five best-ranked public elementary schools are keeping their top-five spots according to the latest analyses from U.S. News and World Report.
Meanwhile, nearly all of the top 50 schools statewide are in the southern half of the state’s lower peninsula.
The media platform released its rankings for the 2026 Best Elementary and Middle Schools on Tuesday, Oct. 28. According to a news release, the report covered 47,000 public elementary and 23,000 middle schools ranked both at the state and district levels.
The U.S. News ranking focuses on state assessments of students who were proficient or above proficient in math and reading or language arts, while also accounting for student background and achievement, as well as student-teacher ratios.
In Michigan, many of the top 50 are located in Southeastern and West Michigan.
That includes five elementaries in Ann Arbor Public Schools, Three in Byron Center Public Schools and two in Birmingham, Forest Hills, Grand Haven Area, Northville and Spring Lake public schools.
The following are the top 50, including each school’s home district and city, its previous 2025 state ranking, its enrollment, student-teacher ratio, and proficiency scores in math and reading.
For more information, visit USNews.com.
50. Cross Creek Charter Academy
District: Cross Creek Charter AcademyCity: Byron Center2025 state ranking: No. 74Enrollment: 807Student-teacher ratio: 21-1Math proficiency: 71%Reading proficiency: 70%
49. Wass Elementary School
District: Troy School DistrictCity: Troy2025 state ranking: No. 88Enrollment: 431Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 71%Reading proficiency: 78%
48. George Defer Elementary School
District: Grosse Pointe Public SchoolsCity: Grosse Pointe Park2025 state ranking: No. 20Enrollment: 464Student-teacher ratio: 18-1Math proficiency: 67%Reading proficiency: 82%
47. Rochester Community Schools Virtual Campus
District: Rochester Community School DistrictCity: Rochester Hills2025 state ranking: No. 54Enrollment: 96Student-teacher ratio: 11-1Math proficiency: 63%Reading proficiency: 71%
46. Pierce Elementary School
District: Birmingham Public SchoolsCity: Birmingham2025 state ranking: No. 75Enrollment: 514Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 77%
45. Hill Elementary School
District: Davison Community SchoolsCity: Davison2025 state ranking: No. 38Enrollment: 261Student-teacher ratio: 20-1Math proficiency: 72%Reading proficiency: 72%
44. Weidman Elementary School
District: Chippewa Hills School District City: Weidman2025 state ranking: No. 48Enrollment: 255Student-teacher ratio: 15-1Math proficiency: 67%Reading proficiency: 77%
43. Lake Hills Elementary School
District: Grand Haven Area Public SchoolsCity: Spring Lake2025 state ranking: No. 58Enrollment: 275Student-teacher ratio: 15-1Math proficiency: 67%Reading proficiency: 77%
42. Lakewood Elementary School
District: West Ottawa Public School DistrictCity: Holland2025 state ranking: No. 32Enrollment: 308Student-teacher ratio: 12-1Math proficiency: 67%Reading proficiency: 77%
41. Quarton Elementary
District: Birmingham Public SchoolsCity: Birmingham2025 state ranking: No. 16Enrollment: 366Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 72%Reading proficiency: 87%
40. Valley View Elementary School
District: Rockford Public SchoolsCity: Rockford2025 state ranking: No. 55Enrollment: 617Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 79%Reading proficiency: 74%
39. Okemos Public Montessoricentral
District: Okemos Public SchoolsCity: Okemos2025 state ranking: No. 22Enrollment: 323Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 67%Reading proficiency: 87%
38. Plymouth Scholars Charter Academy
District: Plymouth Scholars Charter AcademyCity: Plymouth2025 state ranking: No. 47Enrollment: 804Student-teacher ratio: 22-1Math proficiency: 76%Reading proficiency: 76%
37. Knapp Forest Elementary School
District: Forest Hills Public SchoolsCity: Grand Rapids2025 state ranking: No. 39Enrollment: 557Student-teacher ratio: 19-1Math proficiency: 76%Reading proficiency: 79%
36. Way Elementary School
District: Bloomfield Hills SchoolsCity: Bloomfield Hills2025 state ranking: No. 40Enrollment: 473Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 77%
35. Dutton Elementary School
District: Caledonia Community SchoolsCity: Caledonia2025 state ranking: No. 59Enrollment: 299Student-teacher ratio: 15-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 67%
34. New Buffalo Elementary School
District: New Buffalo Area SchoolsCity: New Buffalo2025 state ranking: No. 36Enrollment: 216Student-teacher ratio: 11-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 72%
33. Bach Elementary School
District: Ann Arbor Public SchoolsCity: Ann Arbor2025 state ranking: No. 28Enrollment: 322Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 72%Reading proficiency: 77%
32. Wines Elementary School
District: Ann Arbor Public SchoolsCity: Ann Arbor2025 state ranking: No. 26Enrollment: 416Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 77%
31. South Arbor Charter Academy
District: South Arbor Charter AcademyCity: Ypsilanti2025 state ranking: No. 44Enrollment: 802Student-teacher ratio: 20-1Math proficiency: 70%Reading proficiency: 78%
30. Wattles Elementary School
District: Troy School DistrictCity: Troy2025 state ranking: No. 29Enrollment: 412Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 73%Reading proficiency: 77%
29. Messmore Elementary School
District: Utica Community SchoolsCity: Sterling Heights2025 state ranking: No. 30Enrollment: 333Student-teacher ratio: 18-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 77%
28. Chandler Woods Charter Academy
District: Chandler Woods Charter AcademyCity: Belmont2025 state ranking: No. 24Enrollment: 752Student-teacher ratio: 21-1Math proficiency: 75%Reading proficiency: 73%
27. Gardens Elementary School
District: Marysville Public SchoolsCity: Marysville2025 state ranking: No. 35Enrollment: 475Student-teacher ratio: 24-1Math proficiency: 79%Reading proficiency: 75%
26. Eberwhite School
District: Ann Arbor Public SchoolsCity: Ann Arbor 2025 state ranking: No. 33Enrollment: 368Student-teacher ratio: 15-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 77%
25. Hamilton Elementary School
District: Troy School DistrictCity: Troy2025 state ranking: No. 42Enrollment: 449Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 78%Reading proficiency: 81%
24. Winn Elementary School
District: Shepherd Public SchoolsCity: Shepherd2025 state ranking: No. 41Enrollment: 222Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 85%Reading proficiency: 75%
23. Riverview Elementary School
District: Big Rapids Public SchoolsCity: Big Rapids2025 state ranking: No. 27Enrollment: 321Student-teacher ratio: 18-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 82%
22. Creekside Elementary School
District: Hartland Consolidated SchoolsCity: Hartland2025 state ranking: No. 14Enrollment: 409Student-teacher ratio: 14-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 82%
21. Ada Elementary School
District: Forest Hills Public SchoolsCity: Ada2025 state ranking: No. 18Enrollment: 310Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 82%
20. Marshall Elementary School
District: Byron Center Public SchoolsCity: Byron Center2025 state ranking: No. 25Enrollment: 528Student-teacher ratio: 19-1Math proficiency: 84%Reading proficiency: 78%
19. Schroeder Elementary School
District: Troy School DistrictCity: Troy2025 state ranking: No. 11Enrollment: 443Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 83%
18. Jeffers Elementary School
District: Spring Lake Public SchoolsCity: Spring Lake2025 state ranking: No. 23Enrollment: 368Student-teacher ratio: 12-1Math proficiency: 87%Reading proficiency: 77%
17. Handley School
District: Saginaw City SchoolsCity: Saginaw2025 state ranking: No. 31Enrollment: 320Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 82%
16. Rosy Mound School
District: Grand Haven Area Public SchoolsCity: Grand Haven2025 state ranking: No. 19Enrollment: 268Student-teacher ratio: 15-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 82%
15. Conant Elementary School
District: Bloomfield Hills SchoolsCity: Bloomfield Hills2025 state ranking: No. 17Enrollment: 500Student-teacher ratio: 14-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 82%
14. Hemmeter Elementary School
District: Saginaw Township Community SchoolsCity: Saginaw2025 state ranking: No. 9Enrollment: 318Student-teacher ratio: 22-1Math proficiency: 77%Reading proficiency: 87%
13. Moraine Elementary School
District: Northville Public SchoolsCity: Northville2025 state ranking: No. 15Enrollment: 403Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 81%Reading proficiency: 84%
12. King Elementary School
District: Ann Arbor Public SchoolsCity: Ann Arbor2025 state ranking: No. 12Enrollment: 512Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 85%Reading proficiency: 81%
11. Countryside Elementary School
District: Byron Center Public SchoolsCity: Byron Center2025 state ranking: No. 13Enrollment: 617Student-teacher ratio: 21-1Math proficiency: 87%Reading proficiency: 81%
10. Bemis Elementary School
District: Troy School DistrictCity: Troy2025 state ranking: No. 8Enrollment: 453Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 83%Reading proficiency: 85%
9. Caledonia Elementary School
District: Caledonia Community SchoolsCity: Caledonia2025 state ranking: No. 21Enrollment: 308Student-teacher ratio: 18-1Math proficiency: 87%Reading proficiency: 82%
8. Angell School
District: Ann Arbor Public SchoolsCity: Ann Arbor2025 state ranking: No. 10Enrollment: 288Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 87%Reading proficiency: 82%
7. Holmes Elementary School
District: Spring Lake Public SchoolsCity: Spring Lake2025 state ranking: No. 7Enrollment: 420Student-teacher ratio: 13-1Math proficiency: 82%Reading proficiency: 87%
6. Amerman Elementary School
District: Northville Public SchoolsCity: Northville2025 state ranking: No. 6Enrollment: 556Student-teacher ratio: 19-1Math proficiency: 85%Reading proficiency: 89%
5. Brown Elementary School
District: Byron Center Public SchoolsCity: Byron Center2025 state ranking: No. 5Enrollment: 600Student-teacher ratio: 21-1Math proficiency: 93%Reading proficiency: 90%
4. Avondale Gifted and Talented Education
District: Avondale School DistrictCity: Rochester Hills2025 state ranking: No. 4Enrollment: 328Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 97%Reading proficiency: 98%
3. Crestwood Accelerated Program
District: Crestwood School DistrictCity: Dearborn Heights2025 state ranking: No. 3Enrollment: 18Student-teacher ratio: 16-1Math proficiency: 95%Reading proficiency: 95%
2. Webster Elementary School
District: Livonia Public SchoolsCity: Livonia2025 state ranking: No. 2Enrollment: 272Student-teacher ratio: 17-1Math proficiency: 98%Reading proficiency: 98%
1. Gallimore Elementary School
District: Plymouth-Canton Community SchoolsCity: Canton2025 state ranking: No. 1Enrollment: 315Student-teacher ratio: 14-1Math proficiency: 100%Reading proficiency: 100%
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