Grafton vs Shrewsbury Schools
How the two districts, about 5 miles apart, compare on test scores, high school results, classrooms, spending and housing.
The short answer
- Overall: Shrewsbury ranks higher, #25 to Grafton's #85 of 328 Massachusetts districts.
- MCAS 2026: Shrewsbury students score higher: ELA 59% vs 52%, Math 66% vs 55% met expectations. Statewide: 41% and 41%.
- SAT: Shrewsbury averages 94 points higher (1247 vs 1153).
- Spending: Shrewsbury spends $1,829 more per student ($19,040 vs $17,211).
- Homes: Homes cost more in Shrewsbury: single-family homes average $761K vs $664K. The average tax bill is $9,086 in Grafton and $8,753 in Shrewsbury.
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 | Grafton | Shrewsbury | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 52% | 59% | 41% |
| 2025 | 54% | 60% | 43% |
| 2024 | 55% | 59% | 42% |
| 2023 | 57% | 62% | 45% |
| 2022 | 54% | 64% | 43% |
| 2021 | 60% | 68% | 49% |
| Year | Grafton | Shrewsbury | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 55% | 66% | 41% |
| 2025 | 54% | 68% | 41% |
| 2024 | 57% | 66% | 42% |
| 2023 | 55% | 67% | 42% |
| 2022 | 52% | 64% | 40% |
| 2021 | 50% | 62% | 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
| Grafton | Shrewsbury | |
|---|---|---|
| Students in classes | 3,161 | 6,008 |
| English learners | 3.4% | 6.7% |
| Students with disabilities | 19.3% | 14.9% |
| White | 67.2% | 42.9% |
| Asian | 16.1% | 34% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 9.6% | 11.5% |
| Black/African American | 3.2% | 5.1% |
| Multi-race | 3.2% | 5.9% |
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.