Andover vs Lawrence Schools
How the two districts, about 4 miles apart, compare on test scores, high school results, classrooms, spending and housing.
The short answer
- Overall: Andover ranks higher, #28 to Lawrence's #296 of 328 Massachusetts districts.
- MCAS 2026: Andover students score higher: ELA 62% vs 17%, Math 69% vs 17% met expectations. Statewide: 41% and 41%.
- SAT: Andover averages 382 points higher (1220 vs 838).
- Spending: Similar: $24,441 per student in Andover and $23,487 in Lawrence.
- Homes: Homes cost more in Andover: single-family homes average $1.07M vs $479K. The average tax bill is $13,176 in Andover and $4,140 in Lawrence.
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 | Andover | Lawrence | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 62% | 17% | 41% |
| 2025 | 66% | 18% | 43% |
| 2024 | 66% | 16% | 42% |
| 2023 | 67% | 19% | 44% |
| 2022 | 66% | 18% | 44% |
| 2021 | 67% | 19% | 49% |
| Year | Andover | Lawrence | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 69% | 17% | 41% |
| 2025 | 69% | 18% | 41% |
| 2024 | 68% | 18% | 42% |
| 2023 | 66% | 17% | 42% |
| 2022 | 65% | 17% | 40% |
| 2021 | 60% | 10% | 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
| Andover | Lawrence | |
|---|---|---|
| Students in classes | 5,490 | 13,729 |
| English learners | 3.2% | 46.8% |
| Students with disabilities | 17.4% | 20.6% |
| White | 62.4% | 2.3% |
| Asian | 18.6% | 0.9% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 10.4% | 94.7% |
| Black/African American | 3.2% | 1.7% |
| Multi-race | 5.3% | 0.3% |
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.