Best School Districts Near Princeton, NJ, Ranked by SAT

For many families, the school district decides the home search before anything else does. Here is how the public high schools around Princeton compare on the SAT, using 2024-25 New Jersey public high school average SAT totals. The SAT is one academic measure, not the whole story, but it is a clear and comparable one.

Four of New Jersey’s top five are here

The headline is striking: four of the five highest scoring public high schools in New Jersey sit in the Greater Princeton area. Only Millburn, in North Jersey, scores higher. West Windsor-Plainsboro South, West Windsor-Plainsboro North, Montgomery, and Princeton take the next four spots in the state. Several other strong districts in the corridor place comfortably inside the state’s top 40.

Greater Princeton high schools by SAT (2024-25)

Average SAT total and section scores, 2024-25 New Jersey public high schools. NJ Rank is the school’s position among New Jersey public high schools by total SAT. Highlighted rows are the four Greater Princeton schools in the statewide top five; Millburn is shown as the statewide number one for reference.

What the scores tell you, and what they do not

A total above 1200 places a school near the top 40 of every public high school in New Jersey, so the entire group above is strong by state standards. The West Windsor-Plainsboro, Montgomery, and Princeton cluster is genuinely among the best in New Jersey on this measure. That said, the SAT captures academics only. Different rankings weigh academics, sports, household income, and diversity differently, which is why the same school can look average on one site and elite on another. Decide which factors matter most to your family, then read any single ranking, including this one, as one input rather than the verdict.

School quality shows up in home prices

Strong districts get capitalized into home values. Buyers pay a premium to be inside the West Windsor-Plainsboro, Princeton, and Montgomery attendance areas, and that premium tends to hold up well over time. If schools are driving your search, it is worth mapping price differences district by district before you fall for a specific house, because the same budget buys very different homes across these towns.

Check the boundary, not the mailing address

School assignment follows municipal and district lines, not the town on your mailing address. A home with a “Princeton” postal address can sit in a different municipality and feed entirely different schools. Before you make an offer based on a district, confirm the exact attendance area for that specific address. See our note on why a Princeton address is not always Princeton.

Data: average SAT totals for New Jersey public high schools, 2024-25, compiled by The Wu Team. Scores reflect academic results only and change year to year. Confirm current attendance boundaries and program details with the district before relying on them for a purchase.