Several area high schools measured up among the state’s best in the latest set of annual rankings published by U.S. News & World Report.
Oak Park and River Forest High School, Lyons Township High School, Riverside-Brookfield Township High School and Proviso Mathematics and Science Academy ranked in the top 100 of Illinois high schools, according to the magazine.
The rankings are calculated using six metrics based on data like the percentage of students in at least one AP class, the percentage of students who pass at least one AP exam, the school’s rate of mathematics proficiency, the school’s rate of English proficiency, the school’s rate of science proficiency and the school’s graduation rate. The publication also weighs the performance of underserved students in its rankings.
“A great high school educates all of its students from different social and economic backgrounds, exposing them to challenging coursework on the path to graduation.” the publication said of its ranking formula. “The highest ranked U.S. public schools in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025-2026 Best High Schools rankings are those whose students demonstrated outstanding outcomes above expectations in math, reading and science state assessments, earned qualifying scores on an array of college-level exams, and graduated in high proportions.”
The top-ranked school in the state this year was Walter Payton College Prep High School in Chicago with an overall score of 99.82 out 100. Six of the Chicago Public School’s other selective enrollment schools ranked in the top 20 in the state and top 500 nationally, according to the magazine.
Locally the results were:
OPRF High School was ranked 34th in the state and 793rd in the United States, with an overall score of 95.57 out of 100.
Lyons Township High School was ranked 39th in the state and 884th nationally, with an overall score of 95.06.
Riverside-Brookfield Township High School ranked 42nd in Illinois and 983rd in the country with its overall score of 94.51.
Proviso Mathematics and Science Academy ranked 84th in the state and 2,299th nationally with a score of 87.16.
The publication ranked more than 700 schools in Illinois, and more than 18,000 nationally.
High Schools from Metro Chicago dominate the rankings, as only six schools from outside the region were ranked higher than Proviso Mathematics and Science Academy using the magazine’s formula.
The top five suburban Cook County public schools were New Trier High School in Winnetka, John Hersey High School in Arlington Heights, Glenbrook North and South High Schools in Northbrook and Glenview and Maine South High School in Park Ridge.