The overview
The best high schools in Santa Barbara
There is no single "best" high school in Santa Barbara — the right school depends on whether you want a large public campus, a selective academy, or a small private or college-prep setting. What we can do is show where each kind of school stands out, using the data that actually exists for it.
Among the public schools, only the three comprehensive campuses — Santa Barbara High School, San Marcos High School, and Dos Pueblos High School — have published state data (CAASPP and graduation rates), so they are the only schools that can be ranked head-to-head on academics. For selective programs, Santa Barbara High runs the multiple-academy model and Dos Pueblos is known for its Engineering Academy (DPEA).
On the private and college-prep side, Cate School (a boarding school in Carpinteria) and Laguna Blanca School are the area’s established independent college-prep options, while Bishop García Diego is the local Catholic college-prep school. Private schools don’t take state tests, so a like-for-like academic comparison with the public schools isn’t possible — see our metric-by-metric rankings in the guides and build your own side-by-side comparison.
In this guide10
Public · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1875
Santa Barbara High School
Santa Barbara Unified School District
Founded in 1875, Santa Barbara High School ('SBHS') is the oldest public high school in the Santa Barbara Unified School District. The downtown campus is known for its century-old performing-arts theater and its three career academies (Computer Science, Multimedia Arts and Design, and Visual Arts and Design). It is one of Santa Barbara's three comprehensive public high schools and a longtime athletic rival of San Marcos and Dos Pueblos.
Public · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1958
San Marcos High School
Santa Barbara Unified School District
Opened in 1958, San Marcos High School serves the western Santa Barbara/Goleta-edge community along Hollister Avenue. It is known for its academic and career academies, including the Health Careers Academy, the Accelerated Academic Program for Leadership and Enrichment (AAPLE), and an Entrepreneurship Academy. The Royals compete in the CIF Southern Section Channel League alongside the district's other two comprehensive highs.
Public · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1966
Dos Pueblos High School
Santa Barbara Unified School District
Established in 1966, Dos Pueblos High School is part of the Santa Barbara Unified School District but sits just west of the city in Goleta. It is best known for the Dos Pueblos Engineering Academy, a competitive four-year program founded by MacArthur Fellow Amir Abo-Shaeer, and for offering the International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme. Its Mock Trial team has won state (2016) and world (2015) championships.
Continuation · Grades 9-12
La Cuesta Continuation High School
Santa Barbara Unified School District
La Cuesta Continuation High School is the Santa Barbara Unified School District's continuation high school, serving students (generally ages 16-18) who need an alternative pathway to a high-school diploma. It operates under the district's Alternative Education umbrella alongside Alta Vista. Enrollment is small and fluctuates as students transfer in and out.
Public · Grades 9-12
Alta Vista Alternative High School
Santa Barbara Unified School District
Alta Vista Alternative High School is Santa Barbara Unified's alternative high school, providing a smaller, more individualized setting than the comprehensive campuses while still offering a standard 9-12 diploma path. It is administered together with La Cuesta under the district's Alternative Education program.
Private · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1959
Bishop García Diego High School
Roman Catholic (Archdiocese of Los Angeles)
Bishop García Diego High School is Santa Barbara's Catholic, college-preparatory day school for grades 9-12, established under its current name in 1959. Its roots trace back through earlier Santa Barbara Catholic schools (Dolores School in 1914, later Notre Dame High School). It is accredited by WASC and the California Association of Independent Schools and competes athletically in the CIF Southern Section's Tri-County Athletic Association.
Private · Grades EK-12 (Upper School grades 9-12) · Est. 1933
Laguna Blanca School
Santa Barbara
Founded in 1933, Laguna Blanca School is an independent, co-educational, college-preparatory day school spanning early kindergarten through grade 12 across two campuses (a Lower School in Montecito and the main Hope Ranch-area campus on Paloma Drive). Its Upper School (grades 9-12) is a small, selective college-prep program, and its Owls field roughly 30 middle- and upper-school athletic teams in the CIF Southern Section.
Private · Grades PreK-12 (Upper School grades 9-12) · Est. 1959
Providence School (Providence, A Santa Barbara Christian School)
Non-denominational Christian
Providence (also styled 'Providence, A Santa Barbara Christian School') is a non-denominational Christian independent school serving grades PreK-12, formed in 2013 by the merger of Providence Hall and Santa Barbara Christian School. Its Upper School (grades 9-12) is college-preparatory, with small average class sizes (~16). It offers interscholastic athletics including basketball, cross country, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.
Private · Grades 7-12 (high-school grades 9-12) · Est. 1981
Anacapa School
Santa Barbara
Anacapa School is a small, independent, secular junior-high and high school (grades 7-12) founded in 1981 in downtown Santa Barbara, housed in a historic building that previously served as a WWII hospital, the Anna S.C. Blake School, and Santa Barbara Junior College. Known for very small class sizes, an outdoor-education program, and strong college placement, Anacapa caps enrollment at roughly 72 students.
Private · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1910
Cate School
Carpinteria
Cate School, founded in 1910, is a highly selective coeducational boarding (and some day) school on a mesa in Carpinteria, about eleven miles southeast of Santa Barbara. Roughly 78% of its ~307 students board. With a ~17% acceptance rate, it is one of the most prestigious independent secondary schools on California's Central Coast and offers significant financial aid.
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