Albuquerque School District

Albuquerque Public Schools is one of the largest districts in the Southwest, serving 76,756 students across 174 schools. With 169 of those schools ranked, parents have substantial data to work with when comparing options. The district's average school score lands at 6.5 out of 10 — a useful baseline as you weigh individual schools against the broader pool.

Elementary performance is where Albuquerque's strongest results concentrate. Montessori of the Rio Grande leads the district with a 9.2 out of 10, making it the top-ranked school across all 174 campuses. Monte Vista Elementary and Mountain Mahogany Community School each score 9.0, placing them well above the district average. Alvarado Elementary and Bandelier Elementary round out the top tier, both earning 8.8. All five are elementary schools, which signals that families prioritizing early education have particularly strong options to target within this district.

That concentration at the elementary level matters when you're planning ahead. A district average of 6.5 means roughly half the ranked schools fall below that mark — knowing which campuses consistently outperform peers helps narrow a search quickly. Montessori of the Rio Grande's 9.2 sits more than two and a half points above the district mean, a gap wide enough to be meaningful in any school comparison. Monte Vista and Mountain Mahogany, at 9.0, hold a similar distance from average and give families real alternatives if the top school isn't accessible by address or lottery.

For parents new to Albuquerque or reassessing their current school, the district's size works in your favor: 169 ranked schools generate enough comparison points to identify clear patterns rather than relying on reputation alone. Start with the five schools scoring 8.8 or above, check attendance boundaries and enrollment processes for each, and use the 6.5 district average as a floor — any school at or above that mark is performing at or better than typical for the area. Albuquerque's top elementary performers compete strongly on the data, and that's where to focus your search first.