NC ยท 2024-25 school year
Public schools in North Carolina
North Carolina has 2,705 open public schools run by 374 districts and other education agencies, enrolling 1,550,037 students. Schools average 16.3 students per teacher, compared with 15.3 nationally.
State totals
- Districts
- 374
- Schools
- 2,705
- Students
- 1,550,037
- Teachers (FTE)
- 94,744
- Students per teacher
- 16.3
- US: 15.3
- Charter schools
- 213
- Total spending
- $17.9 billion
- 2020 finance data
- Spending per pupil
- $11,869
- 2020 finance data. US: $16,826
In the 2020 finance data, districts in North Carolina spent $11,869 per pupil, which is below the US figure of $16,826. Dollars are nominal and not adjusted for regional costs or inflation.
Download all 2,705 North Carolina schools (CSV)School districts in North Carolina
All 374 districts and agencies, largest first. Filter by name or city, or sort any column.
| Wake County Schools | Cary | 198 | 163,325 | 15.3 | $11,914 |
| Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools | Charlotte | 186 | 147,299 | 16.5 | $14,569 |
| Guilford County Schools | Greensboro | 120 | 67,620 | 15.1 | $11,714 |
| Winston Salem / Forsyth County Schools | Winston Salem | 81 | 52,430 | 14.2 | $12,038 |
| Cumberland County Schools | Fayetteville | 86 | 49,002 | 16.8 | $10,810 |
| Union County Public Schools | Monroe | 52 | 41,404 | 16.5 | $10,582 |
| Johnston County Public Schools | Smithfield | 48 | 37,320 | 17.0 | $10,820 |
| Cabarrus County Schools | Concord | 43 | 35,772 | 16.5 | $11,589 |
| Durham Public Schools | Durham | 57 | 31,865 | 15.0 | $13,973 |
| Gaston County Schools | Gastonia | 56 | 30,995 | 15.9 | $11,130 |
| Onslow County Schools | Jacksonville | 39 | 27,551 | 15.7 | $12,211 |
| New Hanover County Schools | Wilmington | 42 | 25,155 | 15.3 | $12,057 |
| Pitt County Schools | Greenville | 40 | 24,470 | 15.3 | $11,240 |
| Alamance-Burlington Schools | Burlington | 38 | 22,661 | 16.4 | $11,168 |
| Buncombe County Schools | Asheville | 45 | 22,452 | 15.1 | $12,802 |
| Public Schools of Robeson County | Lumberton | 37 | 21,301 | 15.9 | $11,612 |
| Iredell-Statesville Schools | Statesville | 38 | 21,017 | 16.6 | $11,112 |
| Harnett County Schools | Lillington | 29 | 20,095 | 17.3 | $9,949 |
| Davidson County Schools | Lexington | 35 | 17,985 | 16.2 | $9,689 |
| Rowan-Salisbury Schools | Salisbury | 32 | 17,683 | 17.3 | $12,091 |
| Wayne County Public Schools | Goldsboro | 33 | 17,150 | 18.1 | $10,361 |
| Catawba County Schools | Newton | 28 | 16,003 | 17.4 | $10,778 |
| Randolph County School System | Asheboro | 32 | 14,994 | 15.5 | $11,744 |
| Cleveland County Schools | Shelby | 28 | 14,504 | 15.6 | $11,287 |
| Brunswick County Schools | Bolivia | 20 | 13,561 | 15.3 | $15,358 |
| Nash County Public Schools | Nashville | 23 | 13,178 | 20.2 | $10,696 |
| Moore County Schools | Carthage | 23 | 13,085 | 18.0 | $10,460 |
| Henderson County Schools | Hendersonville | 23 | 12,619 | 14.9 | $10,630 |
| Craven County Board of Education | New Bern | 26 | 12,152 | 17.6 | $10,755 |
| Lincoln County Schools | Lincolnton | 23 | 11,710 | 15.3 | $10,089 |
| Burke County Schools | Morganton | 27 | 11,667 | 16.8 | $10,655 |
| Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools | Chapel Hill | 20 | 11,353 | 12.7 | $16,177 |
| Rockingham County Schools | Eden | 23 | 11,114 | 17.5 | $11,089 |
| Pender County Schools | Burgaw | 19 | 11,073 | 18.0 | $10,900 |
| Caldwell County Schools | Lenoir | 25 | 10,667 | 17.5 | $11,764 |
| Wilson County Schools | Wilson | 25 | 10,451 | 16.2 | $10,975 |
| Duplin County Schools | Kenansville | 13 | 9,822 | 16.2 | $10,644 |
| Lee County Schools | Sanford | 16 | 9,168 | 16.0 | $10,479 |
| Chatham County Schools | Pittsboro | 21 | 8,987 | 13.9 | $13,796 |
| Stanly County Schools | Albemarle | 23 | 8,743 | 15.3 | $10,412 |
| Hoke County Schools | Raeford | 14 | 8,732 | 15.8 | $10,864 |
| Wilkes County Schools | North Wilkesboro | 22 | 8,547 | 15.1 | $11,019 |
| Lenoir County Public Schools | Kinston | 17 | 8,331 | 15.5 | $10,782 |
| Sampson County Schools | Clinton | 18 | 7,986 | 17.1 | $11,574 |
| Franklin County Schools | Louisburg | 16 | 7,978 | 15.5 | $11,116 |
| Carteret County Public Schools | Beaufort | 17 | 7,847 | 15.8 | $12,052 |
| Rutherford County Schools | Forest City | 18 | 7,394 | 18.4 | $14,407 |
| Surry County Schools | Dobson | 20 | 7,318 | 15.4 | $10,950 |
| Orange County Schools | Hillsborough | 13 | 6,982 | 15.4 | $15,857 |
| Richmond County Schools | Hamlet | 15 | 6,504 | 17.4 | $11,749 |
Showing 1 to 50 of 374
North Carolina district rankings
Ratio and spending lists include only districts with 1,000 or more students, so very small districts do not dominate. These are factual sorts, not quality ratings.
Largest districts
- 1.Wake County Schools163,325
- 2.Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools147,299
- 3.Guilford County Schools67,620
- 4.Winston Salem / Forsyth County Schools52,430
- 5.Cumberland County Schools49,002
- 6.Union County Public Schools41,404
- 7.Johnston County Public Schools37,320
- 8.Cabarrus County Schools35,772
- 9.Durham Public Schools31,865
- 10.Gaston County Schools30,995
Lowest student-teacher ratio
- 1.Transylvania County Schools12.2
- 2.Madison County Schools12.2
- 3.Alleghany County Schools12.6
- 4.Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools12.7
- 5.Asheville City Schools13.0
- 6.Falls Lake Academy13.0
- 7.Pamlico County Schools13.1
- 8.Franklin Academy13.4
- 9.Mitchell County Schools13.5
- 10.Voyager Academy13.5
Highest student-teacher ratio
- 1.Union Preparatory Academy at Indian Trai47.0
- 2.Pine Springs Preparatory Academy45.9
- 3.Langtree Charter Academy32.0
- 4.Pinnacle Classical Academy28.0
- 5.Excelsior Classical Academy25.2
- 6.Sugar Creek Charter23.4
- 7.American Leadership Academy - Johnston22.9
- 8.Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy21.8
- 9.Wake Preparatory Academy21.6
- 10.Queen's Grant Community School21.5
Highest spending per pupil (2020)
- 1.Avery County Schools$19,225
- 2.Caswell County Schools$18,508
- 3.Northampton County Schools$17,918
- 4.Jones County Schools$17,051
- 5.Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools$16,177
- 6.Orange County Schools$15,857
- 7.Pamlico County Schools$15,817
- 8.Sugar Creek Charter$15,801
- 9.Swain County Schools$15,567
- 10.Halifax County Schools$15,416
Lowest spending per pupil (2020)
- 1.North Carolina Cyber Academy$7,374
- 2.Union Academy Charter School$7,450
- 3.NC Virtual Academy$7,554
- 4.Lincoln Charter School$7,620
- 5.NC Leadership Charter Academy$7,690
- 6.Uwharrie Charter Academy$7,700
- 7.Franklin Academy$7,868
- 8.Cornerstone Charter Academy$8,279
- 9.American Leadership Academy-Coastal$8,342
- 10.Phoenix Academy Inc$8,436
Most charter schools
Schools by level
611 high schools, 478 middle schools and 1,469 elementary schools. The largest of each are listed below; use search or a district page for the rest.
High schools 611
- Myers Park High School Charlotte, 3,225 students
- Ardrey Kell High School Charlotte, 3,036 students
- Apex Friendship High Apex, 2,748 students
- Enloe High Raleigh, 2,643 students
- Panther Creek High Cary, 2,609 students
- South Mecklenburg High School Charlotte, 2,534 students
- William Amos Hough High Cornelius, 2,518 students
- Millbrook High Raleigh, 2,498 students
- Apex High Apex, 2,449 students
- East Mecklenburg High School Charlotte, 2,422 students
- Leesville Road High Raleigh, 2,411 students
- Palisades High School Charlotte, 2,332 students
- Rolesville High Rolesville, 2,321 students
- Green Hope High Cary, 2,304 students
- Pinecrest High Southern Pines, 2,290 students
Middle schools 478
- Mills Park Middle Cary, 1,632 students
- Alston Ridge Middle Cary, 1,494 students
- Porter Ridge Middle School Indian Trail, 1,447 students
- Community House Middle Charlotte, 1,425 students
- Apex Friendship Middle Apex, 1,412 students
- Harris Road Middle Concord, 1,368 students
- Jay M. Robinson Middle Charlotte, 1,333 students
- Weddington Middle Matthews, 1,324 students
- Cuthbertson Middle Waxhaw, 1,323 students
- Bailey Middle Cornelius, 1,315 students
- Marvin Ridge Middle Waxhaw, 1,277 students
- Herbert Akins Road Middle Fuquay-Varina, 1,253 students
- Randolph Middle Charlotte, 1,215 students
- Southwest Middle School Charlotte, 1,205 students
- Archer Lodge Middle Wendell, 1,204 students
Elementary schools 1,469
- South Academy of International Languages Charlotte, 1,259 students
- Pine Springs Preparatory Academy Holly Springs, 1,258 students
- Davidson K-8 School Davidson, 1,185 students
- Wallace Elementary Wallace, 1,120 students
- Rose Hill-Magnolia Elementary Rose Hill, 1,118 students
- Rea Farms STEAM Academy Charlotte, 1,098 students
- Cox Mill Elementary Concord, 1,086 students
- The Math and Science Academy of Apex Apex, 1,080 students
- Olive Chapel Elementary Apex, 1,066 students
- Benhaven Elementary Sanford, 1,065 students
- W R Odell Elementary Concord, 1,052 students
- Four Oaks Elementary Four Oaks, 1,051 students
- Weddington Hills Elementary Concord, 1,038 students
- Polenta Elementary Garner, 1,010 students
- Herbert Akins Rd Elementary Fuquay-Varina, 988 students
Cities with the most public schools
- Charlotte 182 schools
- Raleigh 100 schools
- Greensboro 78 schools
- Durham 71 schools
- Fayetteville 68 schools
- Wilmington 44 schools
- Concord 35 schools
- Winston Salem 35 schools
- Asheville 34 schools
- Cary 33 schools
- Winston-Salem 31 schools
- High Point 27 schools
- Lexington 27 schools
- Jacksonville 26 schools
- Monroe 24 schools
- Gastonia 24 schools
- Goldsboro 24 schools
- Greenville 23 schools
- Statesville 22 schools
- Sanford 22 schools
Neighbouring states
- Georgia 2,329 schools
- South Carolina 1,277 schools
- Tennessee 1,913 schools
- Virginia 2,126 schools
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 and F-33 finance 2020, via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. Last reviewed October 2026. Finance figures are 2020 finance data in nominal dollars, not adjusted for inflation. Blank values are not available, not applicable or suppressed in the source. See the methodology.