Newburyport vs Pentucket Schools
How the two districts, about 6 miles apart, compare on test scores, high school results, classrooms, spending and housing.
The short answer
- Overall: Newburyport ranks higher, #89 to Pentucket's #114 of 328 Massachusetts districts.
- MCAS 2026: Newburyport students score higher: ELA 54% vs 47%, Math 52% vs 46% met expectations. Statewide: 41% and 41%.
- SAT: Close: Newburyport averages 1165 and Pentucket 1155.
- Spending: Newburyport spends $2,510 more per student ($23,233 vs $20,724).
- Homes: Homes cost more in Newburyport: single-family homes average $1.11M vs $773K. The average tax bill is $10,249 in Newburyport and $9,157 in Pentucket.
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 | Newburyport | Pentucket | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 54% | 47% | 41% |
| 2025 | 58% | 51% | 43% |
| 2024 | 54% | 46% | 42% |
| 2023 | 59% | 53% | 45% |
| 2022 | 54% | 51% | 44% |
| 2021 | 64% | 53% | 49% |
| Year | Newburyport | Pentucket | State |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 52% | 46% | 41% |
| 2025 | 49% | 51% | 41% |
| 2024 | 51% | 51% | 42% |
| 2023 | 51% | 52% | 42% |
| 2022 | 45% | 48% | 41% |
| 2021 | 49% | 42% | 37% |
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
| Newburyport | Pentucket | |
|---|---|---|
| Students in classes | 2,117 | 2,243 |
| English learners | 3.2% | 1.2% |
| Students with disabilities | 19.7% | 23.7% |
| White | 89.7% | 87.3% |
| Asian | 1.2% | 0.9% |
| Hispanic/Latino | 6% | 8.5% |
| Black/African American | 0.6% | 0.3% |
| Multi-race | 2.5% | 2.8% |
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.