More than a dozen Austin-area elementary and middle schools have excelled on U.S. News and World Report’s just-released list of the best K-8 schools in Texas for 2026. One is an over-the-top achiever: Cactus Ranch Elementary in Round Rock ISD ranked as one of the 10 best elementary schools in the state.
In ranking the 2026 Best Elementary and Middle Schools, U.S. News compared more than 81,000 public schools on the state and district level using publicly available data from the U.S. Department of Education. Schools were analyzed based on their students’ proficiencies in mathematics and reading, plus their performances on state assessments for both subjects.
Tiebreakers were decided based on which school had higher overall proficiencies, and a second tiebreaker was determined for whichever school had a lower student-teacher ratio…