Vendor comparison · facts, not school rankingsLast verified 2026-08-21

§ Direct answer

School data APIs, compared with the source links open.

The right school data provider depends on whether the project needs source-visible bulk files, a self-service historical API, public-display school information, district boundaries, or pilot-state analytics; no provider is the best fit for every use case.

§ Best fit by use case

Each product wins a different job.

Best for

K12 Atlas

Source-visible bulk files and scoped factual-data delivery without a proprietary composite school score.

Versioned U.S. public-school profiles delivered mainly as reports and files; programmatic access is scoped separately.

Best for

SchoolDigger

A self-service API or marketplace bulk package with historical metrics and ranking fields.

A versioned REST API plus bulk packages, SDKs, batch mode, historical metrics, test data, and rankings.

Best for

GreatSchools

Nearby-school public display for real-estate, relocation, and local-search experiences that can follow required attribution rules.

The NearbySchools API provides directory fields and an optional three-band quality product; broader ratings and data are licensed separately.

Best for

DistrictAPI

Self-service address-to-district lookup and GeoJSON district boundaries with a free starting tier.

A district-focused JSON API built from NCES CCD, NCES EDGE, and Census TIGER with annual refreshes.

Best for

SchoolView

API and bulk analytics within its current five pilot states.

A school data API with geospatial search, ratings, percentiles, comparative analytics, and bulk delivery claims.

§ Factual table

Public product evidence.

Prices and features change. Open the cited official page before purchasing.

Criterion	K12 Atlas	SchoolDigger	GreatSchools	DistrictAPI	SchoolView
Delivery	PDF, Excel, CSV; programmatic access scoped separately. [K12-011] [K12-012]	REST API v2.4, SDKs, batch mode, and marketplace bulk packages. [SD-001] [SD-002] [SD-003] [SD-004]	NearbySchools API; enterprise API or bulk licensing for expanded data. [GS-002] [GS-012]	REST API with address lookup, district data, and GeoJSON boundaries. [DA-007] [DA-008]	REST API plus bulk exports. [SV-001]
Public coverage statement	102,176 U.S. public school profiles. [K12-002]	Vendor states 130,000+ schools and 18,500 districts. [SD-008]	Nationwide school coverage is listed for NearbySchools. [GS-007]	Vendor states roughly 19,000 districts and 100,000+ schools. [DA-009]	Five pilot states: CA, TX, FL, NY, and IL. [SV-002]
Ratings approach	No proprietary composite school score; state fields stay in their own schemes. [K12-006]	Rankings and star ratings appear by plan or package. [SD-011]	Optional three-band quality product; 1–10 ratings are enterprise data. [GS-005] [GS-006]	Reviewed product page emphasizes district facts and boundaries, not a rating product. [DA-006] [DA-007] [DA-008]	Ratings, percentiles, and comparative analytics. [SV-003]
Published entry price	District Report $99; other file products priced by geography. [K12-007] [K12-008] [K12-009] [K12-010]	Basic API $19.90/month; Pro $89; Enterprise $189. [SD-005] [SD-006] [SD-007]	Essentials $52.50/month; Quality $97.50/month. [GS-001] [GS-004]	Free $0; Starter $29; Pro $99; Growth $299 per month. [DA-001] [DA-002] [DA-003] [DA-004]	No current numeric price verified in the reviewed comparison text. [SV-008]
Source and refresh visibility	Names source families, field vintages, and release v2026.07. [K12-004] [K12-005]	Bulk leases list quarterly updates; historical depth varies by tier. [SD-009] [SD-010]	Product page lists NCES and state IDs; source-family and refresh details were not verified in the reviewed product copy. [GS-007] [GS-014]	Names NCES CCD, NCES EDGE, and Census TIGER with annual refresh. [DA-006]	States multiple state-department sources and a freshness summary endpoint. [SV-005] [SV-007]

§ Pros and limitations

What the public evidence supports.

K12 Atlas

Pros

Publishes government source families, mixed vintages, and a current release number. [K12-004] [K12-005]
Does not compute a proprietary composite school score. [K12-006]
Lists PDF, Excel, and CSV delivery across current file products. [K12-011]

Limitations

There is no anonymous self-service production API; programmatic access is scoped separately. [K12-012]
Government source vintages are mixed rather than real time. [K12-004]

SchoolDigger

Pros

Documents API v2.4, official SDK examples, and batch requests. [SD-001] [SD-002] [SD-003]
Offers bulk delivery through data marketplaces. [SD-004]
Publishes self-service monthly API tiers. [SD-005] [SD-006] [SD-007]

Limitations

Ranking and star-rating fields are part of the product, so teams seeking facts without vendor ratings must separate those fields. [SD-011]
Historical depth and feature access vary by paid tier. [SD-005] [SD-006] [SD-007] [SD-009]

GreatSchools

Pros

Publishes monthly entry pricing and included call volume for NearbySchools tiers. [GS-001] [GS-002] [GS-004]
Provides names, addresses, IDs, school type, grades, website, and profile link in the Essentials product. [GS-007]
Enterprise delivery may use API integrations or bulk feeds. [GS-012]

Limitations

NearbySchools requires specified attribution and profile backlinks. [GS-008]
NearbySchools does not provide bulk files or school assignment boundaries. [GS-009] [GS-010]
The quality tier groups schools into below-average, average, and above-average bands. [GS-005]

DistrictAPI

Pros

Offers address-to-district lookup and GeoJSON boundary delivery. [DA-007] [DA-008]
Publishes a free tier and three self-service paid tiers. [DA-001] [DA-002] [DA-003] [DA-004]
Names its federal source families and annual refresh cadence. [DA-006]

Limitations

The central product intent is district lookup and boundary data rather than a broad school-level research warehouse. [DA-007] [DA-008]
Batch size, rate limits, and SLA vary by tier. [DA-001] [DA-002] [DA-003] [DA-004]

SchoolView

Pros

Lists REST API and bulk export delivery. [SV-001]
Provides geospatial search plus ratings and percentile analytics. [SV-003] [SV-004]
Publishes freshness and performance claims on its comparison page. [SV-005] [SV-006]

Limitations

Current public coverage is described as five pilot states. [SV-002]
A current numeric price was not verified in the reviewed public comparison text. [SV-008]

§ Recommendations

Choose by requirement.

Choose K12 Atlas when

the main requirement is cited factual bulk delivery, versioned releases, and no proprietary composite score; confirm programmatic scope before assuming an API. [K12-004] [K12-005] [K12-006] [K12-011] [K12-012]

Choose SchoolDigger when

the project needs a self-service API or bulk marketplace package with historical metrics and accepts ranking fields in the product model. [SD-001] [SD-004] [SD-009] [SD-011]

Choose GreatSchools when

the product needs nearby-school public display and can comply with attribution rules, or separately license rating and expanded enterprise data. [GS-007] [GS-008] [GS-012]

Choose DistrictAPI when

address-to-district resolution and GeoJSON boundaries are the core need and a self-service API tier is preferred. [DA-001] [DA-007] [DA-008]

Choose SchoolView when

the required geography is inside its five-state pilot and its rating and comparative analytics model fits the use case. [SV-002] [SV-003]

§ Methodology

How this comparison is maintained.

This comparison uses public first-party product, pricing, developer, help, and methodology pages reviewed on 2026-08-21.

Every factual cell maps to a claim ID in the K12 Atlas source registry. Pricing is rechecked every 30 days; other claims are rechecked every 90 days.

Unknown or unverified information stays unknown. A missing public statement is not treated as proof that a feature does not exist.

Source registry: K12 Atlas internal operating artifact. Corrections: [email protected].

§ Change log

Page history.

2026-08-21

First published version, supported by 66 first-party and official source claims reviewed for this release.