How does Best Schools rank suburbs?

It ranks suburbs by the average ICSEA of their schools, using ACARA school data. Suburbs need at least two schools to be included, so a single high-scoring school does not dominate the list.

What is ICSEA, and does a high score mean better teaching?

ICSEA is the Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage. A higher score reflects a more socio-educationally advantaged school community — it is a context measure, not a direct rating of teaching quality or results.

Which states are included?

All states and territories with processed ACARA school data are included. Coverage depends on how many schools are matched to each suburb.

What should I do after opening this ranking?

Use the ranking as a screening step for SA. Save realistic suburbs to your shortlist, compare the strongest two or three, then use suburb detail pages or the calculator to test the final candidate. On each suburb page you can also see individual schools and which ones operate a published enrolment zone.

← Best Schools

Ranking · SA · 50 suburbs

Best Schools — SA

Top 50 suburbs by average school ICSEA (higher = more socio-educationally advantaged community, min 2 schools) in SA.

Leading suburb

HighgateSA

Leading value

1145

Runner-up

WalkervilleSA

Updated

31 May 2026

Ranking

Best Schools

Top 50 suburbs by average school ICSEA (higher = more socio-educationally advantaged community, min 2 schools) — SA

50 results

All NSW VIC QLD WA SA TAS ACT NT

How to read this ranking

Use best schools as a shortlist tool, then verify the finalists in detail.

BEST FOR

Finding which areas deserve a closer look first.

This ranking works best as a first-pass screen in SA, especially when you need to reduce a wide field quickly.

READ IT AS

One signal in the workflow, not the whole answer.

A rank is useful because it compresses one dimension well, but it never replaces the fuller suburb-level picture.

NEXT STEP

Move into compare or suburb detail once a few names repeat.

Use the ranking to build a shortlist, then confirm whether those finalists still hold up on the rest of the data.

Intent pathway · LIVABILITY-LED

I want safer or higher-quality local context.

Start with area-level safety or school screens, then use suburb pages for services and evidence depth.

Crime, schools, and demographics are area-level signals; verify the suburb page before treating them as local proof.

OPEN SCHOOLS RANKING Reset to intent start

AVAILABLE evidence

Direct source-backed screen

This list ranks suburbs by average school ICSEA from ACARA, a community socio-educational advantage index rather than a teaching-quality measure. Use it to shortlist, then check individual schools and zones on suburb detail.

LIVABILITY-LED

Top candidates are local-quality ideas.

Use compare to test whether the livability signal still works once rent and income are included.

Shortlist flow

Use #1 Highgate and #2 Walkerville as the first compare pair.

Rankings are strongest when they hand you a shortlist quickly. Compare the top two first, then open suburb detail if the head-to-head result still feels narrow.

Compare top 2Open #1 detail Open #2 detail

# ▲	SUBURB	STATE	AVG ICSEA	SCHOOLS
1	Highgate	SA	1145	2	1,504
2	Walkerville	SA	1144	3	2,867
3	St Peters	SA	1140	2	3,231
4	Stirling	SA	1136	2	3,067
5	Goodwood	SA	1132	2	2,823
6	Belair	SA	1129	2	4,718
7	Norwood	SA	1128	2	6,354
8	Glenelg	SA	1126	2	3,440
9	Novar Gardens	SA	1118	2	2,508
10	Unley	SA	1118	2	3,997
11	Kingswood	SA	1113	3	2,554
12	North Adelaide	SA	1112	2	6,823
13	Marryatville	SA	1109	2	648
14	Athelstone	SA	1107	3	9,601
15	Magill	SA	1104	2	9,693
16	Colonel Light Gardens	SA	1103	2	3,311
17	Kensington	SA	1102	2	1,808
18	Aldgate	SA	1098	2	3,471
19	Rostrevor	SA	1093	2	8,452
20	Campbelltown	SA	1092	2	9,263
21	Eden Hills	SA	1090	3	3,020
22	Marion	SA	1087	3	4,101
23	Parkside	SA	1087	2	5,126
24	Adelaide	SA	1086	11	18,202
25	North Brighton	SA	1086	2	2,665
26	Netherby	SA	1079	2	1,510
27	Heathfield	SA	1078	2	1,062
28	Hahndorf	SA	1075	2	2,814
29	Hectorville	SA	1075	2	4,241
30	Lockleys	SA	1072	2	5,987
31	Mawson Lakes	SA	1072	2	13,794
32	Henley Beach	SA	1071	5	6,259
33	Flagstaff Hill	SA	1070	2	10,184
34	South Plympton	SA	1070	2	4,721
35	Tea Tree Gully	SA	1068	2	3,499
36	Brooklyn Park	SA	1060	2	5,040
37	Prospect	SA	1060	5	14,584
38	Greenacres	SA	1058	2	3,356
39	Plympton	SA	1056	4	5,459
40	Warradale	SA	1056	2	5,801
41	Mount Torrens	SA	1054	2	768
42	Flinders Park	SA	1051	3	5,489
43	Mount Barker	SA	1049	7	18,330
44	Wynn Vale	SA	1049	5	7,865
45	Aberfoyle Park	SA	1048	7	11,234
46	Golden Grove	SA	1045	4	10,299
47	Paradise	SA	1045	3	7,217
48	Mile End	SA	1044	2	4,536
49	McLaren Vale	SA	1043	2	4,061
50	Sheidow Park	SA	1043	3	6,731

FAQ

Australian best schools FAQ

How does Best Schools rank suburbs?

It ranks suburbs by the average ICSEA of their schools, using ACARA school data. Suburbs need at least two schools to be included, so a single high-scoring school does not dominate the list.
What is ICSEA, and does a high score mean better teaching?

ICSEA is the Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage. A higher score reflects a more socio-educationally advantaged school community — it is a context measure, not a direct rating of teaching quality or results.
Which states are included?

All states and territories with processed ACARA school data are included. Coverage depends on how many schools are matched to each suburb.
What should I do after opening this ranking?

Use the ranking as a screening step for SA. Save realistic suburbs to your shortlist, compare the strongest two or three, then use suburb detail pages or the calculator to test the final candidate. On each suburb page you can also see individual schools and which ones operate a published enrolment zone.