Best Sydney suburbs for families with good high schools
Carlingford tops the ranking: 3 of its 3 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 4 and 32 km of the Sydney CBD. These 30 suburbs came from a field of 68 eligible Sydney suburbs.
This ranking scores every eligible Sydney suburb on the share of secondary-school students at schools that outperform their ACARA peer group, adjusted for socio-economic advantage, walkability, and safety. Public and private results are ranked separately since the buyer decisions differ.
For each Sydney suburb we compute the share of high-school enrolments at schools rated above their ACARA peer group, blended with the ABS SEIFA socio-economic index, OpenStreetMap walkability, and a composite safety score. The share is Bayesian-smoothed so a suburb with two-of-two above-peer schools can't leapfrog a suburb with eight-of-ten. A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice — families weighing multiple secondary options value optionality that a single-school suburb can't deliver.
Best Sydney suburbs for good public high schools
Public/government-sector secondary schools — includes standalone secondaries and the secondary component of K-12 government schools within the suburb boundary.
Carlingford
NSW 2118 · 28,044 residents3/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Baulkham Hills
NSW 2153 · 37,415 residents3/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
North Sydney
NSW 2060 · 8,964 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Petersham
NSW 2049 · 8,200 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
The Ponds
NSW 2769 · 16,315 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Alexandria
NSW 2015 · 9,649 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Parramatta
NSW 2150 · 30,211 residents2/4 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Randwick
NSW 2031 · 28,943 residents1/5 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Caringbah
NSW 2229 · 12,575 residents1/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Northmead
NSW 2152 · 11,261 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Chipping Norton
NSW 2170 · 9,412 residents1/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · very walkable
Hornsby
NSW 2077 · 22,462 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
St Ives
NSW 2075 · 18,384 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
Westmead
NSW 2145 · 16,555 residents0/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Kogarah
NSW 2217 · 16,416 residents1/6 above peer schools · advantaged area · very walkable
Ranked from 45 qualifying suburbs.
Best Sydney suburbs for good private high schools
Catholic and independent secondary schools — includes standalone secondaries and the secondary component of K-12 combined schools.
Westmead
NSW 2145 · 16,555 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Rose Bay
NSW 2029 · 9,911 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Chatswood
NSW 2067 · 25,553 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Pymble
NSW 2073 · 11,775 residents2/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · walkable
North Bondi
NSW 2026 · 9,290 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Marrickville
NSW 2204 · 26,570 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Lewisham
NSW 2049 · 4,060 residents1/3 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Gordon
NSW 2072 · 8,795 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Five Dock
NSW 2046 · 9,823 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Mosman
NSW 2088 · 28,329 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Randwick
NSW 2031 · 28,943 residents1/4 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Arncliffe
NSW 2205 · 12,023 residents1/2 above peer schools · advantaged area · very walkable
Epping
NSW 2121 · 29,551 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Parramatta
NSW 2150 · 30,211 residents1/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Cremorne
NSW 2090 · 11,263 residents0/2 above peer schools · very advantaged area · very walkable
Ranked from 68 qualifying suburbs.
40% share of schools above their peer group · 20% socio-economic advantage (SEIFA) · 25% walkability · 15% safety (bushfire, crime, flood risks combined). Plus a small volume bonus rewarding suburbs offering more school choice. See how we calculate for the full methodology.
Common questions about this ranking
What are the best Sydney suburbs for families with good high schools?
Carlingford tops the ranking: 3 of its 3 schools rate above their ACARA peer group. The strongest results cluster between 4 and 32 km of the Sydney CBD. These 30 suburbs came from a field of 68 eligible Sydney suburbs.
How is this ranking scored?
Each eligible Sydney suburb is scored on four factors: 40% share of schools rated above their ACARA peer group (Bayesian-smoothed so a tiny suburb with 2/2 can't outrank a suburb with 8/10), 20% ABS SEIFA socio-economic advantage, 25% OpenStreetMap-derived walkability, and 15% safety (bushfire, crime and flood risks combined). A small volume bonus rewards suburbs offering more school choice.
Why are public and private schools ranked separately?
Buyer decisions differ: parents choosing between government-sector primary schools weigh very different factors from parents choosing between Catholic and independent schools. Blending the two hides the signal a reader is actually looking for, so we publish both lists on the same page.
Which suburbs are eligible for the ranking?
To appear on the list, a suburb needs at least 2 qualifying schools inside its boundary and a resident population of at least 500. Suburbs that fall below either threshold are excluded — not penalised — so the ranking isn't dominated by tiny, high-signal outliers.
How often is this list updated?
The top 15 is recomputed automatically after each ACARA schools data refresh, so the ranking reflects the most recent published NAPLAN-adjusted peer comparisons. See the footer of this page for the last computed date.
Same list in other cities
- Best Melbourne suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Brisbane suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Perth suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Adelaide suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Hobart suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Darwin suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Canberra suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Newcastle suburbs for families with good high schools
- Best Central Coast suburbs for families with good high schools
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Related
Rankings last computed 28 September 2026. Recomputed after each ACARA schools data refresh.
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