GA's School Safety, Quality Ranked On 2026 National Survey

A recent study shows Georgia, named on a list ranking the states with the best and worst school systems, is not the star student among a sea of scholars.

While the Peach State did not ace WalletHub's study of this year's best and worst school systems, which were released on Monday, experts did not rank Georgia at the bottom of the list.

Instead, they scored Georgia with a 47.82 out of 100 overall tally, a slight improvement from past years. This made the southern state 34th on the list of best and worst school districts in 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Analysts examined 32 key metrics when making their choices among the supreme K-12 school districts.

Quality and safety were factored into determining the states with the premier school systems, or lack thereof, to which Georgia ranked 35th and 42nd respectively.

“Getting enough funding is essential for a productive school system, but simply having more money doesn’t guarantee success," WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said in the report. "How funds are applied also plays a big role in how good a school system is, as does the quality of educators, other professionals and the curriculum. In addition, schools need to focus not just on test scores but also on making sure that students feel safe, comfortable and cared for.”

The worst school systems are in New Mexico, which was hit with a declining 29.96 score on the survey.

Related: Back-To-School Basics: Free Supplies, Local Deals In GA

Here is where the top 10 states rank among best school systems:

1. Massachusetts
2. Connecticut
3. New Jersey
4. New Hampshire
5. Wisconsin
6. Virginia
7. Vermont
8. New York
9. Rhode Island
10. North Dakota

>> See WalletHub's full list here.