Minnesota Schools & Education

Public school metrics and education data for all 87 counties.

NCES 2022-23 public school data and FY 2022 school-finance data

Avg Graduation Rate

86.6%

Avg Per-Pupil Spending

$8,463

Avg School Score

55/100

Total Schools

2,645

555 districts

State Overview

About Schools in Minnesota

This summary is generated from the NCES metrics shown on this page and reviewed against the source data by the Data Editor. It is not school advice.

A Wide Performance Gap Across 87 Counties

Education quality varies significantly across the state's 87 counties, with school scores ranging from 40.5 to 67.1. Graduation rates show an even wider divide, reaching 95.7% in Jackson County while dropping to a state low of 53.1% in Mahnomen County.

Strong ROI Despite Leaner Per-Pupil Budgets

Minnesota demonstrates high efficiency by maintaining a graduation rate nearly equal to the 87.0% national average while spending $4,537 less per student. This indicates that the state delivers competitive academic outcomes even without the high-level funding seen in other regions.

State Score Context

How Minnesota Counties Are Distributed

87 of 87 counties have enough NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data to receive a county school score. Use this distribution to understand whether the state has a concentrated cluster of high, midrange, or lower measured signals.

Scored county coverage

Counties with complete enough data for the composite score

100%

Higher measured signal

Score range 70-100

Midrange measured signal

Score range 40-69

Lower measured signal

Score range 0-39

Scores are comparative signals from available federal data, not ratings of individual schools.

Best school counties

Best Counties for Public School Research in Minnesota

For a first-pass answer to parent searches about where the best schools are in Minnesota, start with county-level evidence, then open individual school and district records. SchoolsByCounty ranks counties by public education signals, not by private opinions or paid school ratings.

Short answer for Minnesota

Cook County is the strongest county-level starting point in Minnesota by the current SchoolsByCounty score, with a measured school signal of 91/100. This is a county comparison signal, not a promise that every school in the county is the best fit for every family.

Ranking methodology

87 of 87 counties have enough federal education data for a county school score. The ranking favors counties with stronger available graduation-rate and school-finance signals, then asks parents to verify individual school fit locally. The table below should help parents choose what to compare next; it should not replace attendance-boundary checks, program eligibility, commute, services, or direct district confirmation.

State average per-pupil spending in this dataset: $8,463.

Top measured county school signals

Ranked by the county school score where enough federal data is available.

1Cook CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $12,08991/100 2Cottonwood CountyGraduation 95.3% · Spending $8,89884/100 3Norman CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $8,95282/100 4Lac qui Parle CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $8,88682/100 5Jackson CountyGraduation 95.7% · Spending $8,10678/100 6Lake of the Woods CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $8,21077/100 7Murray CountyGraduation 93.3% · Spending $8,73077/100

Graduation-focused starting point

Jackson County

95.7%

Jackson County has the strongest reported county graduation-rate signal in Minnesota. Use this as a broad county context, then review individual high-school records.

Funding context to inspect

Cook County

$12,089

Cook County reports the highest per-pupil spending among counties with available data. Higher spending is context, not a guarantee of student fit.

Counties to research carefully

Otter Tail County

34/100

Otter Tail County has one of the lowest measured county school signals in Minnesota. Review missing data, district context, and individual school records before drawing conclusions.

District research

Compare Minnesota public school districts before narrowing by address

Minnesota has 555 public school district records and 2,645 school records in the NCES file. Use the district hub to sort large district systems by enrollment, school count, county context, and generated district-guide coverage.

View District Rankings

All Minnesota Counties

County-level school score, graduation rate, and per-pupil spending for Minnesota.
County	School Score	Graduation Rate	Per-Pupil Spending
Cook County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $12,089	91/100	95.0%	$12,089
Cottonwood County Graduation 95.3% Per pupil $8,898	84/100	95.3%	$8,898
Norman County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $8,952	82/100	95.0%	$8,952
Lac qui Parle County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $8,886	82/100	95.0%	$8,886
Jackson County Graduation 95.7% Per pupil $8,106	78/100	95.7%	$8,106
Lake of the Woods County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $8,210	77/100	95.0%	$8,210
Murray County Graduation 93.3% Per pupil $8,730	77/100	93.3%	$8,730
Big Stone County Graduation 93.3% Per pupil $8,605	76/100	93.3%	$8,605
Pope County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $9,258	74/100	92.0%	$9,258
Lake County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $8,984	72/100	92.0%	$8,984
Yellow Medicine County Graduation 93.6% Per pupil $7,943	71/100	93.6%	$7,943
Fillmore County Graduation 93.8% Per pupil $7,850	70/100	93.8%	$7,850
Rock County Graduation 91.7% Per pupil $8,813	69/100	91.7%	$8,813
Wabasha County Graduation 93.9% Per pupil $7,637	68/100	93.9%	$7,637
Renville County Graduation 93.9% Per pupil $7,622	68/100	93.9%	$7,622
Red Lake County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $9,620	67/100	90.0%	$9,620
Redwood County Graduation 92.9% Per pupil $7,831	67/100	92.9%	$7,831
Meeker County Graduation 93.2% Per pupil $7,704	67/100	93.2%	$7,704
Carver County Graduation 92.5% Per pupil $7,900	67/100	92.5%	$7,900
Sherburne County Graduation 93.7% Per pupil $7,570	67/100	93.7%	$7,570
Swift County Graduation 93.1% Per pupil $7,524	65/100	93.1%	$7,524
Grant County Graduation 90.9% Per pupil $8,528	64/100	90.9%	$8,528
Washington County Graduation 91.3% Per pupil $8,228	64/100	91.3%	$8,228
Aitkin County Graduation 89.4% Per pupil $9,282	64/100	89.4%	$9,282
Nicollet County Graduation 91.1% Per pupil $8,226	64/100	91.1%	$8,226
Traverse County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $8,783	63/100	90.0%	$8,783
Wright County Graduation 91.3% Per pupil $8,132	63/100	91.3%	$8,132
Lyon County Graduation 90.4% Per pupil $8,451	63/100	90.4%	$8,451
Kittson County Graduation 87.4% Per pupil $10,301	63/100	87.4%	$10,301
Marshall County Graduation 88.2% Per pupil $9,257	61/100	88.2%	$9,257
Wilkin County Graduation 91.8% Per pupil $7,740	60/100	91.8%	$7,740
Roseau County Graduation 89.6% Per pupil $8,474	60/100	89.6%	$8,474
Douglas County Graduation 89.0% Per pupil $8,437	58/100	89.0%	$8,437
Koochiching County Graduation 86.8% Per pupil $9,608	58/100	86.8%	$9,608
Carlton County Graduation 89.6% Per pupil $8,205	57/100	89.6%	$8,205
Clay County Graduation 89.1% Per pupil $8,284	57/100	89.1%	$8,284
Itasca County Graduation 86.8% Per pupil $9,441	57/100	86.8%	$9,441
Goodhue County Graduation 90.0% Per pupil $7,791	55/100	90.0%	$7,791
Mille Lacs County Graduation 88.6% Per pupil $8,173	55/100	88.6%	$8,173
Dodge County Graduation 92.5% Per pupil $6,882	54/100	92.5%	$6,882
Dakota County Graduation 86.1% Per pupil $8,984	53/100	86.1%	$8,984
Stevens County Graduation 89.5% Per pupil $7,746	53/100	89.5%	$7,746
Benton County Graduation 88.4% Per pupil $7,908	52/100	88.4%	$7,908
Blue Earth County Graduation 86.6% Per pupil $8,479	51/100	86.6%	$8,479
Freeborn County Graduation 82.4% Per pupil $9,960	51/100	82.4%	$9,960
Martin County Graduation 86.7% Per pupil $8,426	51/100	86.7%	$8,426
Pipestone County Graduation 87.6% Per pupil $8,000	50/100	87.6%	$8,000
Becker County Graduation 86.3% Per pupil $8,383	50/100	86.3%	$8,383
St. Louis County Graduation 84.0% Per pupil $9,110	50/100	84.0%	$9,110
Anoka County Graduation 85.0% Per pupil $8,673	49/100	85.0%	$8,673
Polk County Graduation 86.5% Per pupil $8,274	49/100	86.5%	$8,274
Rice County Graduation 81.1% Per pupil $9,922	49/100	81.1%	$9,922
Le Sueur County Graduation 90.8% Per pupil $7,136	49/100	90.8%	$7,136
Steele County Graduation 86.2% Per pupil $8,240	49/100	86.2%	$8,240
Faribault County Graduation 88.7% Per pupil $7,562	48/100	88.7%	$7,562
Hennepin County Graduation 80.4% Per pupil $9,764	48/100	80.4%	$9,764
Scott County Graduation 88.4% Per pupil $7,594	48/100	88.4%	$7,594
Mower County Graduation 82.6% Per pupil $9,025	47/100	82.6%	$9,025
Brown County Graduation 85.5% Per pupil $8,198	47/100	85.5%	$8,198
Morrison County Graduation 88.9% Per pupil $7,391	46/100	88.9%	$7,391
Ramsey County Graduation 78.7% Per pupil $9,632	46/100	78.7%	$9,632
Lincoln County Graduation 86.1% Per pupil $7,986	46/100	86.1%	$7,986
Olmsted County Graduation 85.0% Per pupil $8,207	46/100	85.0%	$8,207
Crow Wing County Graduation 84.0% Per pupil $8,428	46/100	84.0%	$8,428
Todd County Graduation 83.8% Per pupil $8,490	46/100	83.8%	$8,490
Clearwater County Graduation 85.9% Per pupil $7,952	45/100	85.9%	$7,952
Kanabec County Graduation 86.3% Per pupil $7,852	45/100	86.3%	$7,852
Beltrami County Graduation 70.0% Per pupil $10,167	45/100	70.0%	$10,167
Chippewa County Graduation 83.0% Per pupil $8,485	45/100	83.0%	$8,485
Pine County Graduation 80.0% Per pupil $8,847	44/100	80.0%	$8,847
Mahnomen County Graduation 53.1% Per pupil $9,978	43/100	53.1%	$9,978
Cass County Graduation 73.4% Per pupil $9,603	43/100	73.4%	$9,603
Sibley County Graduation 81.6% Per pupil $8,579	43/100	81.6%	$8,579
Winona County Graduation 81.9% Per pupil $8,458	42/100	81.9%	$8,458
Waseca County Graduation 81.8% Per pupil $8,347	41/100	81.8%	$8,347
Kandiyohi County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $8,863	41/100	75.0%	$8,863
Stearns County Graduation 79.6% Per pupil $8,181	38/100	79.6%	$8,181
Houston County Graduation 70.4% Per pupil $8,726	38/100	70.4%	$8,726
Wadena County Graduation 78.6% Per pupil $8,234	38/100	78.6%	$8,234
Pennington County Graduation 85.9% Per pupil $7,350	38/100	85.9%	$7,350
Nobles County Graduation 77.4% Per pupil $8,204	37/100	77.4%	$8,204
McLeod County Graduation 81.8% Per pupil $7,893	37/100	81.8%	$7,893
Isanti County Graduation 86.1% Per pupil $7,215	37/100	86.1%	$7,215
Chisago County Graduation 85.3% Per pupil $7,245	35/100	85.3%	$7,245
Hubbard County Graduation 75.1% Per pupil $8,057	35/100	75.1%	$8,057
Watonwan County Graduation 77.1% Per pupil $7,930	35/100	77.1%	$7,930
Otter Tail County Graduation 81.5% Per pupil $7,627	34/100	81.5%	$7,627

— = data not available for this county.

Compare county school profiles in Minnesota

Use the comparison tool to review school scores, graduation rates, and spending side by side.

Compare Counties

Frequently Asked Questions About Minnesota Schools

Which Minnesota counties have the highest graduation rates?

Jackson County (95.7%), Cottonwood County (95.3%), and Cook County (95.0%) currently lead Minnesota among counties with available NCES four-year adjusted cohort graduation-rate data. This answer is generated from the same dataset used in the county table and can change when federal data refreshes.

What is per-pupil spending like in Minnesota?

Across Minnesota counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $8,463. The highest current county values are Cook County ($12,089), Kittson County ($10,301), and Beltrami County ($10,167). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

What are the best school counties in Minnesota?

Cook County, Cottonwood County, Norman County have the strongest measured county-level school signals in Minnesota, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data. These are county context rankings, not individual school ratings.

Which Minnesota county has the strongest measured school score?

Cook County has the highest school score in Minnesota with a score of 91/100, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data.

What is the average graduation rate in Minnesota?

The average high school graduation rate across Minnesota counties is 86.6%, based on NCES data.

Which county in Minnesota has the lowest school score?

Otter Tail County has the lowest school score in Minnesota with a score of 34/100. School scores reflect available graduation-rate and per-pupil spending signals.

Data Sources

Education data sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Common Core of Data and School District Finance Survey. School scores are derived composite metrics based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance signals.

Data is informational only. Coverage varies by county and reporting year. Not for use as the sole basis for educational decisions.

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