Boarding Schools with the Highest Average SAT Scores (2026-27 Rankings)

National Average SAT Score (Trends)

Total Growth: +0.3% (+4 since 2018)

Year	National avg	YoY Change (#)	YoY Change (%)
2025	1268	▼ -2	▼ -0.2%
2024	1270	▼ -3	▼ -0.2%
2023	1273	— 0	— 0.0%
2022	1273	▲ +5	▲ +0.4%
2021	1268	▲ +1	▲ +0.1%
2020	1267	▲ +3	▲ +0.2%
2019	1264	— 0	— 0.0%
2018	1264	—	—

Schools counted: listing status from database copies near the year end in 2019 and 2022–2025; estimated listing status in 2018, 2020 and 2021. The downloads give the source date of each year.

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Show school map — National (Average SAT Score (Out of 1600) range: 1010–1575, avg 1277)

Average SAT Score
(Out of 1600) Range: 1010 1575 Avg. Average SAT Score
(Out of 1600): 1277

Frequently Asked Questions

Which boarding schools have the highest average SAT scores?

The boarding schools with the highest average SAT scores are Choate Rosemary Hall, Cranbrook Schools and Deerfield Academy.

How many boarding schools are ranked for the highest average SAT scores?

140 boarding schools are ranked for the highest average SAT scores.

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Did You Know?

For several key reasons (listed below), these comparisons are intended only as informal reference points for evaluating the SAT taking ability of a school's student body.

A school's average SAT score is based on a relatively small sample of students from year to year (typically less than 100 students for a graduating class).

Average SAT scores, then, can naturally fluctuate year to year while the quality of the overall program and strength of the student body remains consistent.

Schools in the list below are often separated by small statistical differences, which for all intents and purposes, are not meaningful in determining the overall strength of the student body between two schools.

As a final note: average SAT scores should never be used by a family as an expectation of what score they can expect their child to receive if they go to a particular institution.

The SAT correlates very closely with the SSAT: Students who have high SSAT scores invariably have high SAT scores and vise versa - SAT scores generally reflect the testing ability of the student prior to being admitted at a school.