Amesbury vs Newburyport Schools
How the two districts, about 4 miles apart, compare on test scores, high school results, classrooms, spending and housing.
The short answer
- Overall: Newburyport ranks higher, #89 to Amesbury's #106 of 328 Massachusetts districts.
- MCAS 2026: Newburyport students score higher: ELA 54% vs 39%, Math 52% vs 35% met expectations. Statewide: 41% and 42%.
- SAT: Newburyport averages 61 points higher (1165 vs 1104).
- Spending: Similar: $23,135 per student in Amesbury and $23,233 in Newburyport.
- Homes: Homes cost more in Newburyport: single-family homes average $1.11M vs $656K. The average tax bill is $9,868 in Amesbury and $10,249 in Newburyport.
MCAS results, 2026
Share of students meeting or exceeding expectations, all tested grades combined. Both districts test grades 3–10; "State" is the statewide figure for the same grades.
| Year | Amesbury | Newburyport | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 39% | 54% | 41% |
| 2025 | 41% | 58% | 43% |
| 2024 | 38% | 54% | 42% |
| 2023 | 43% | 59% | 44% |
| 2022 | 42% | 54% | 43% |
| 2021 | 51% | 64% | 48% |
| Year | Amesbury | Newburyport | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 35% | 52% | 42% |
| 2025 | 33% | 49% | 41% |
| 2024 | 39% | 51% | 42% |
| 2023 | 45% | 51% | 42% |
| 2022 | 44% | 45% | 40% |
| 2021 | 34% | 49% | 36% |
No test in 2020. Statewide 10th-grade results dropped after 2024, when passing the MCAS stopped being a graduation requirement.
High school results
Averages of each district's ranked high schools. "MA avg" is the average of all districts with high school data.
Classrooms, teachers & spending
Spending is total per-pupil expenditure from all sources in FY2024. Class size is the average across all classes in the district.
Students
| Amesbury | Newburyport | |
|---|---|---|
| Students in classes | 1,832 | 2,117 |
| English learners | 5.2% | 3.2% |
| Students with disabilities | 21.5% | 19.7% |
| White | 78.2% | 89.7% |
| Asian | 1.8% | 1.2% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 13.8% | 6% |
| Black/African American | 2.3% | 0.6% |
| Multi-race | 3.5% | 2.5% |
Homes & taxes
What could you afford in either town?
FY2026 averages for single-family homes from the Massachusetts Department of Revenue; for a district with several towns, the comparison uses the average of its towns. Assessed values usually run below recent sale prices.