Niche, a national rankings and review site that analyzes schools and neighborhoods across the country, has released its 2026 list of the top public middle schools in Maryland (top 25 available below). The Niche list of top 25 public high schools in Maryland can be found here.
The rankings are widely referenced each year by students, parents, and educators and are based on a combination of quantitative data and community feedback. The methodology factors in state test scores, student-teacher ratios, and measures of teacher quality, alongside demographic diversity and overall district performance. Parent and student reviews collected through Niche’s platform are also included, with survey responses weighted to avoid skew from small sample sizes. Each factor is standardized and assigned a weight before being combined into an overall score, which determines a school’s final ranking.
As with any ranking, however, the results should be viewed as one resource among many. School rankings are not definitive measures of quality and may not fully capture the unique strengths, culture, or opportunities available at individual schools. The top 25 middle schools can be found below:
1. Cabin John Middle School (Montgomery County)
2. Thomas W. Pyle Middle School (Montgomery County)
3. Robert Frost Middle School (Montgomery County)
4. North Bethesda Middle School (Montgomery County)
5. Herbert Hoover Middle School (Montgomery County)
6. Clarksville Middle School (Howard County)
7. Folly Quarter Middle School (Howard County)
8. Mount View Middle School (Howard County)
9. Burleigh Manor Middle School (Howard County)
10. Stephen Decatur Middle School (Worcester County)
11. Ellicott Mills Middle School (Howard County)
12. Takoma Park Middle School (Montgomery County)
13. Lime Kiln Middle School (Howard County)
14. Westland Middle School (Montgomery County)
15. John H. Poole Middle School (Montgomery County)
16. Chesapeake Science Point Public Charter School (Anne Arundel County)
17. Glenwood Middle School (Howard County)
18. Urbana Middle School (Frederick County)
19. Hallie Wells Middle School (Montgomery County)
20. Patapsco Middle School (Howard County)
21. Lakelands Park Middle School (Montgomery County)
22. Tilden Middle School (Montgomery County)
23. Dunloggin Middle School (Howard County)
24. Frederick Classical Charter School (Frederick County)
25. Julius West Middle School (Montgomery County)
The full middle school rankings can be found here.
