Mississippi Schools & Education

Public school metrics and education data for all 82 counties.

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

Avg Graduation Rate

87.1%

Avg Per-Pupil Spending

$5,954

Avg School Score

27/100

Total Schools

1,038

152 districts

State Overview

About Schools in Mississippi

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.

Mississippi Matches National Graduation Rates on Lean Budgets

Mississippi achieves an 87.1% average graduation rate, slightly exceeding the national average of 87.0%. Despite this parity in outcomes, the state spends only $5,954 per pupil, which is less than half of the $13,000 national benchmark.

Education Quality Varies Across 81 Mississippi Counties

Performance ranges significantly from a high graduation rate of 97.0% in Holmes County to a low of 75.0% in Leflore County. With school scores spanning from 42.1 to 56.6, the state exhibits a notable 14.5-point gap between its top and bottom performing districts.

State Score Context

How Mississippi Counties Are Distributed

81 of 82 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

99%

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 Mississippi

For a first-pass answer to parent searches about where the best schools are in Mississippi, 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 Mississippi

Quitman County is the strongest county-level starting point in Mississippi by the current SchoolsByCounty score, with a measured school signal of 64/100. This is a county comparison signal, not a promise that every school in the county is the best fit for every family.

Ranking methodology

81 of 82 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: $5,954.

Top measured county school signals

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

1Quitman CountyGraduation 97.0% · Spending $6,72864/100 2Sharkey CountyGraduation 95.0% · Spending $6,87961/100 3Montgomery CountyGraduation 97.0% · Spending $6,15157/100 4Choctaw CountyGraduation 87.0% · Spending $8,21651/100 5Holmes CountyGraduation 97.0% · Spending $5,21350/100 6Rankin CountyGraduation 93.5% · Spending $5,93846/100 7Tallahatchie CountyGraduation 93.2% · Spending $5,72543/100

Graduation-focused starting point

Quitman County

97.0%

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

Funding context to inspect

Choctaw County

$8,216

Choctaw 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

Leflore County

4/100

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

District research

Compare Mississippi public school districts before narrowing by address

Mississippi has 152 public school district records and 1,038 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 Mississippi Counties

County-level school score, graduation rate, and per-pupil spending for Mississippi.
County	School Score	Graduation Rate	Per-Pupil Spending
Quitman County Graduation 97.0% Per pupil $6,728	64/100	97.0%	$6,728
Sharkey County Graduation 95.0% Per pupil $6,879	61/100	95.0%	$6,879
Montgomery County Graduation 97.0% Per pupil $6,151	57/100	97.0%	$6,151
Choctaw County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $8,216	51/100	87.0%	$8,216
Holmes County Graduation 97.0% Per pupil $5,213	50/100	97.0%	$5,213
Rankin County Graduation 93.5% Per pupil $5,938	46/100	93.5%	$5,938
Tallahatchie County Graduation 93.2% Per pupil $5,725	43/100	93.2%	$5,725
Jasper County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $6,153	42/100	92.0%	$6,153
Lamar County Graduation 93.0% Per pupil $5,706	42/100	93.0%	$5,706
Jefferson County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $6,122	42/100	92.0%	$6,122
George County Graduation 93.0% Per pupil $5,664	42/100	93.0%	$5,664
Calhoun County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $6,003	41/100	92.0%	$6,003
Webster County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $6,000	41/100	92.0%	$6,000
Perry County Graduation 87.6% Per pupil $7,186	40/100	87.6%	$7,186
Carroll County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $5,848	39/100	92.0%	$5,848
Winston County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $5,810	39/100	92.0%	$5,810
Lafayette County Graduation 91.8% Per pupil $5,995	39/100	91.8%	$5,995
Adams County Graduation 88.0% Per pupil $6,912	38/100	88.0%	$6,912
Lawrence County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $5,687	38/100	92.0%	$5,687
Alcorn County Graduation 91.4% Per pupil $5,982	37/100	91.4%	$5,982
Kemper County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $7,706	36/100	82.0%	$7,706
DeSoto County Graduation 92.0% Per pupil $5,017	34/100	92.0%	$5,017
Jackson County Graduation 88.3% Per pupil $6,577	34/100	88.3%	$6,577
Madison County Graduation 89.3% Per pupil $6,179	32/100	89.3%	$6,179
Tippah County Graduation 90.3% Per pupil $5,756	32/100	90.3%	$5,756
Hancock County Graduation 89.9% Per pupil $5,998	31/100	89.9%	$5,998
Pearl River County Graduation 90.6% Per pupil $5,627	31/100	90.6%	$5,627
Harrison County Graduation 89.8% Per pupil $5,945	31/100	89.8%	$5,945
Monroe County Graduation 89.9% Per pupil $5,927	31/100	89.9%	$5,927
Marion County Graduation 89.4% Per pupil $5,964	30/100	89.4%	$5,964
Tishomingo County Graduation 89.0% Per pupil $6,041	30/100	89.0%	$6,041
Claiborne County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $6,346	28/100	87.0%	$6,346
Tunica County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $6,344	28/100	87.0%	$6,344
Clarke County Graduation 89.2% Per pupil $5,787	28/100	89.2%	$5,787
Forrest County Graduation 87.7% Per pupil $6,169	28/100	87.7%	$6,169
Lee County Graduation 87.9% Per pupil $6,044	27/100	87.9%	$6,044
Franklin County Graduation 77.0% Per pupil $7,289	27/100	77.0%	$7,289
Amite County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $6,987	26/100	82.0%	$6,987
Jefferson Davis County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $6,200	26/100	87.0%	$6,200
Warren County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $6,134	25/100	87.0%	$6,134
Chickasaw County Graduation 88.6% Per pupil $5,698	25/100	88.6%	$5,698
Lowndes County Graduation 87.9% Per pupil $5,860	25/100	87.9%	$5,860
Attala County Graduation 85.3% Per pupil $6,389	24/100	85.3%	$6,389
Jones County Graduation 88.4% Per pupil $5,656	24/100	88.4%	$5,656
Smith County Graduation 89.0% Per pupil $5,359	24/100	89.0%	$5,359
Lincoln County Graduation 88.4% Per pupil $5,490	23/100	88.4%	$5,490
Greene County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,923	23/100	87.0%	$5,923
Wayne County Graduation 86.0% Per pupil $6,174	23/100	86.0%	$6,174
Lauderdale County Graduation 86.1% Per pupil $6,082	22/100	86.1%	$6,082
Newton County Graduation 86.4% Per pupil $6,029	22/100	86.4%	$6,029
Pontotoc County Graduation 87.4% Per pupil $5,666	22/100	87.4%	$5,666
Itawamba County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,806	22/100	87.0%	$5,806
Covington County Graduation 84.0% Per pupil $6,284	21/100	84.0%	$6,284
Prentiss County Graduation 85.3% Per pupil $6,064	21/100	85.3%	$6,064
Stone County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,622	20/100	87.0%	$5,622
Marshall County Graduation 87.2% Per pupil $5,403	20/100	87.2%	$5,403
Clay County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,538	20/100	87.0%	$5,538
Leake County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $5,259	18/100	87.0%	$5,259
Benton County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $6,262	17/100	82.0%	$6,262
Noxubee County Graduation 87.0% Per pupil $4,885	17/100	87.0%	$4,885
Oktibbeha County Graduation 83.0% Per pupil $6,079	17/100	83.0%	$6,079
Simpson County Graduation 85.0% Per pupil $5,707	16/100	85.0%	$5,707
Walthall County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $6,196	16/100	82.0%	$6,196
Pike County Graduation 84.6% Per pupil $5,732	16/100	84.6%	$5,732
Union County Graduation 84.1% Per pupil $5,759	15/100	84.1%	$5,759
Bolivar County Graduation 82.3% Per pupil $5,974	15/100	82.3%	$5,974
Coahoma County Graduation 85.1% Per pupil $5,349	14/100	85.1%	$5,349
Yalobusha County Graduation 82.6% Per pupil $5,924	14/100	82.6%	$5,924
Panola County Graduation 84.3% Per pupil $5,542	14/100	84.3%	$5,542
Hinds County Graduation 82.3% Per pupil $5,888	14/100	82.3%	$5,888
Copiah County Graduation 85.2% Per pupil $5,030	13/100	85.2%	$5,030
Washington County Graduation 82.9% Per pupil $5,784	13/100	82.9%	$5,784
Yazoo County Graduation 84.6% Per pupil $5,303	13/100	84.6%	$5,303
Tate County Graduation 84.0% Per pupil $5,473	13/100	84.0%	$5,473
Wilkinson County Graduation 77.0% Per pupil $6,014	11/100	77.0%	$6,014
Humphreys County Graduation 82.0% Per pupil $5,625	11/100	82.0%	$5,625
Scott County Graduation 81.3% Per pupil $5,622	10/100	81.3%	$5,622
Neshoba County Graduation 79.6% Per pupil $5,649	9/100	79.6%	$5,649
Sunflower County Graduation 80.0% Per pupil $5,381	7/100	80.0%	$5,381
Grenada County Graduation 76.0% Per pupil $5,481	6/100	76.0%	$5,481
Leflore County Graduation 75.0% Per pupil $5,375	4/100	75.0%	$5,375
Issaquena County Graduation — Per pupil —	—	—	—

— = data not available for this county.

Compare county school profiles in Mississippi

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

Compare Counties

Frequently Asked Questions About Mississippi Schools

Which Mississippi counties have the highest graduation rates?

Holmes County (97.0%), Montgomery County (97.0%), and Quitman County (97.0%) currently lead Mississippi 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 Mississippi?

Across Mississippi counties with available NCES district-finance data, average per-pupil spending is $5,954. The highest current county values are Choctaw County ($8,216), Kemper County ($7,706), and Franklin County ($7,289). Compare counties in the table before treating the statewide average as representative of a local district.

What are the best school counties in Mississippi?

Quitman County, Sharkey County, Montgomery County have the strongest measured county-level school signals in Mississippi, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data. These are county context rankings, not individual school ratings.

Which Mississippi county has the strongest measured school score?

Quitman County has the highest school score in Mississippi with a score of 64/100, based on available NCES graduation-rate and school-finance data.

What is the average graduation rate in Mississippi?

The average high school graduation rate across Mississippi counties is 87.1%, based on NCES data.

Which county in Mississippi has the lowest school score?

Leflore County has the lowest school score in Mississippi with a score of 4/100. 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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