The Fort Mill School District ranked 92nd out of 10,449 school districts in the United States in Niche’s 2027 Best Schools and Districts rankings, keeping it in the top 1 percent nationally, according to Niche’s published rankings.
The district also held its No. 1 ranking among South Carolina’s 74 districts and its No. 1 ranking among the 10 districts Niche counts in the Charlotte area. Niche gave the district an overall grade of A+.
For families in Fort Mill, Tega Cay and the unincorporated parts of the Fort Mill Township, the rankings carry practical weight. The district’s reputation has long been tied to home values and to the enrollment growth that has pushed the district to add schools across the panhandle, from Tega Cay Elementary School near the lake to Catawba Ridge High School off Fort Mill Parkway.
How this year compares
In Niche’s 2026 rankings, released last October, Fort Mill placed 91st of 10,394 districts nationally. This year’s 92nd place is one spot lower, measured against a field that grew by 55 districts.
The district’s state and regional standing did not change. Fort Mill was first in South Carolina, first in York County and first in the Charlotte area in both years, and it again ranked first in the Charlotte area in Niche’s Best Places to Teach and Districts with the Best Teachers categories.
Elementary schools hold the top nine
Fort Mill elementary schools took the first nine places on Niche’s list of 718 public elementary schools in South Carolina. Gold Hill Elementary School in Tega Cay ranked first for the second straight year.
River Trail Elementary moved from sixth to second and Springfield Elementary climbed from eighth to third. Kings Town held at fourth. Tega Cay Elementary, third a year ago, placed fifth, and Pleasant Knoll Elementary dropped from second to sixth.
Doby’s Bridge, Riverview and Sugar Creek rounded out the top nine. Sterling School in Greenville County broke the streak at 10th, and Orchard Park Elementary followed at 11th, down from seventh last year.
Fort Mill Elementary School, ranked 10th last year, does not appear in the top 25 of the 2027 list.
Middle schools sweep again
Fort Mill middle schools again filled the top six spots among 356 public middle schools in the state. Springfield Middle School repeated at No. 1.
Banks Trail Middle made the biggest jump, rising from sixth to second. Gold Hill Middle in Tega Cay moved up one spot to third and Pleasant Knoll Middle moved up one to fourth. Forest Creek Middle fell from second to fifth, and Fort Mill Middle dropped from third to sixth.
High schools slip
All three Fort Mill high schools placed lower than last year on Niche’s list of 264 public high schools in South Carolina. Catawba Ridge High School ranked seventh, down from fifth. Fort Mill High School fell from 10th to 14th, and Nation Ford High School dropped from 12th to 21st.
Niche changed its high school formula this year, removing SAT and ACT scores from the ranking. The company said the change reflects colleges placing less weight on test scores in admissions. Several of the schools ahead of Fort Mill’s on the state list are selective magnet, early college or governor’s schools, including the South Carolina Governor’s School for Science and Mathematics in Hartsville at No. 1.
Teachers draw top marks
At the district level, Fort Mill placed first in South Carolina and first in York County in Niche’s Best Places to Teach category, along with its Charlotte area ranking. It ranked second in the state for Districts with the Best Teachers.
Nationally, Fort Mill ranked 470th of 11,060 districts for Best Places to Teach and 492nd of 11,089 for Districts with the Best Teachers. The district described both national placements as the top 4 percent.
“These rankings reflect the dedication of our teachers, staff, students and families who make Fort Mill such an exceptional place to learn and work,” Superintendent Grey Young said in a district release Thursday. “Being recognized among the best districts in the nation is an incredible honor, but we are especially proud of the recognition our educators have earned.”
Other categories
Niche ranks districts in several categories the district release did not highlight. Fort Mill placed 420th of 10,050 nationally and seventh in South Carolina for Best School Districts for Athletes, and second in York County in that category. In Niche’s Most Diverse School Districts ranking, Fort Mill placed 42nd of 74 in the state and third of four districts in York County.
Within York County, Fort Mill ranked first of four districts overall. The others are Clover School District, Rock Hill Schools and York School District One.
How the rankings work
Niche builds its rankings from U.S. Department of Education data, state test results, graduation rates, college readiness measures and reviews submitted by students, parents and educators. The number of districts in each category varies because not every district has enough data for every ranking, the district said.
On Niche’s site, Fort Mill holds a 4.37 out of 5 rating drawn from 83 reviews.
The full list of the district’s rankings is posted on the Fort Mill School District profile at niche.com.
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Thomas Hyslip lives in Tega Cay with his wife and daughter. After 27 years in the U.S. Army and Federal Law Enforcement, he retired to pursue his passion for teaching. Tom is now an Associate Professor of Instruction at the University of South Florida. In 2 short years he has won 10 awards from the South Carolina Press Association, including first place in column writing, education beat reporting and best podcast.
