Raleigh

Best Raleigh suburbs for schools

Ranked almost entirely on the Schools category — within-state proficiency, student–teacher ratio, graduation rate and schools nearby — with the two poll questions about children and teenagers at 20% once a place has enough responses.

Updated Sep 2026·14 suburbs considered, 10 listed
1
The Raleigh skyline as viewed from Dorothea Dix Park.
Raleigh$416k median · 23.0 min commute
Schools BCost of living BResidents inactive
74
Schools score
overall 68 B−
2
Garner, NC Water Tower and Historic distric. Oct 2013
Garner$355k median · 26.2 min commute
Schools BCost of living BResidents inactive
73
Schools score
overall 61 C
3
Historic downtown Knightdale
Knightdale$380k median · 24.0 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living BResidents inactive
72
Schools score
overall 65 C+
4
A photo of downtown Wendell, North Carolina, taken from the corner of West Campen St. and North Main St. on March 24, 2023.
Wendell$331k median · 29.0 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living BResidents inactive
71
Schools score
overall 59 C
5
Cary, NC Town Hall
Cary$580k median · 22.5 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living B−Residents inactive
70
Schools score
overall 74 B
6
Row of buildings down White Street in Downtown Wake Forest, North Carolina, USA.
Wake Forest$475k median · 30.9 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living B−Residents inactive
70
Schools score
overall 66 C+
7
Fuquay-Varina Town Hall located at 401 Judd Parkway, Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina.
Fuquay-Varina$452k median · 33.1 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living B+Residents inactive
70
Schools score
overall 64 C+
8
The Christmas parade travels through downtown Holly Springs, NC
Holly Springs$536k median · 28.8 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living CResidents inactive
69
Schools score
overall 66 C+
9
Photo of downtown Apex in 2025
Apex$576k median · 25.2 min commute
Schools B−Cost of living C+Residents inactive
69
Schools score
overall 70 B−
10
Morrisville, North Carolina.
Morrisville$519k median · 21.8 min commute
Schools C+Cost of living B−Residents inactive
67
Schools score
overall 71 B−
This list's weighting
Schools 80%Resident poll (Q5, Q6) 20%

Poll components only count for places with eight or more resident responses; for the others the remaining weights re-normalise to 100%.

Other Raleigh lists
Best Raleigh suburbs for familiesMost affordable Raleigh suburbsShortest commutes to Downtown RaleighMost walkable Raleigh suburbsBest Raleigh suburbs for young professionalsHow we score Raleigh suburbs →

Photos from Wikimedia Commons: Raleigh (Abhiram Juvvadi · CC BY-SA 4.0); Garner (Mikeiamunion21 · CC BY-SA 3.0); Knightdale (Indy beetle · CC0); Wendell (Johnson524 · CC0); Cary (Zajohnso · CC BY-SA 3.0); Wake Forest (Rysnap1024 · CC BY-SA 4.0); Fuquay-Varina (Fvman · Public domain); Holly Springs (me · Public domain); Apex (Pithon314 · CC0); Morrisville (Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0).