Children with backpacks, seen from behind, wait with two parents on a sidewalk as a yellow Loudoun County Public Schools bus pulls up in a brick townhouse neighborhood at sunrise

School Boundary FinderFairfax and Loudoun schools, elementary to high, 2026-27

Type an address or a school, elementary to high. See the official attendance boundary, the subdivisions and ZIP codes inside it, and where to confirm before you buy.

The bus follows the line, not the ZIP· Loudoun County, concept

Boundaries: Fairfax County GIS and Loudoun County Public Schools, 2026-27. Pictures: artist’s renderings of real places.

The finder

Type an address, or a school.

High school

A home address

Prince William County: not mapped here yet. Use the division’s own PWCS Find Your School.

Arlington County: not mapped here yet. Use the division’s own APS Boundary Locator.

Every high school with a boundary on this page (41)

Fairfax County Public Schools (24)

Annandale
Centreville
Chantilly
Edison
Fairfax
Falls Church
Hayfield
Herndon
Justice
Lake Braddock
Langley
Lewis
Madison
Marshall
McLean
Mount Vernon
Oakton
Robinson
South County
South Lakes
West Potomac
West Springfield
Westfield
Woodson

No neighborhood boundary: Thomas Jefferson: Regional magnet school for science and technology; admission by application, no attendance boundary. Mountain View: Alternative high school; enrollment by program, not by address. Bryant: Alternative high school; enrollment by program, not by address.

Loudoun County Public Schools (17)

Briar Woods
Broad Run
Dominion
Freedom
Heritage
Independence
John Champe
Lightridge
Loudoun County
Loudoun Valley
Park View
Potomac Falls
Riverside
Rock Ridge
Stone Bridge
Tuscarora
Woodgrove

No neighborhood boundary: Academies of Loudoun: Countywide STEM and career programs by application, no attendance boundary.

An address shows its elementary, middle and high school. A school shows its whole line: pick the level, then type the name. The map draws the division’s own 2026-27 line. Under it, the subdivisions and ZIP codes inside, the date the division last edited the file, and a button to confirm the exact address with the division.

Updated October 22, 2026Boundary files: Fairfax County GIS, edited August 27, 2026; LCPS, edited August 14, 2026About a 3-minute read, under the tool

Quick answer

Type a home address and the page names its elementary, middle and high school, or pick one of 281 schools (197 elementary, 43 middle, 41 high, in Fairfax and Loudoun counties) and the map draws its 2026-27 attendance boundary from the school division’s own file, with the division’s edit date on it.^1,2 Under the map: every subdivision inside the line and the ZIP codes it covers, plus a link to the division’s own lookup to confirm any address. No ratings and no scores: the school is your choice; this page shows where its line runs.

Compiled byAhmed MakkiyahREALTOR®, Douglas Realty of Virginia · English and ArabicMobile 734.383.6945 · Direct 703.957.0060

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The finder in six numbers

Fairfax County GIS and Loudoun County Public Schools, 2026-27 boundary files; checked October 22, 2026

281schools with an attendance boundary on this page, Fairfax and Loudoun^1,2,9

197 · 43 · 41elementary, middle and high schools, each with its own line^1,2,9

2026-27the school year every line on this page is drawn for^1,2

August 27when Fairfax County last edited its school boundary files¹

August 14when Loudoun County Public Schools last edited its school zone files²

0vendor maps used; the big listing sites rent theirs and show no date⁵

Prince William and Arlington are not mapped here yet: use their own lookups, linked under the finder. Each result links the division’s own lookup: a boundary is not a promise of enrollment, and the exact address decides.

How a boundary works

The ZIP code gets the mail. The boundary gets the bus.

Listing sites sort homes by ZIP code, and a ZIP code is not a school boundary. The school board draws the line; the bus follows it. Here is the whole idea in one picture, then the proof in numbers.

A diagram, not a real map. A ZIP code is a postal route; an attendance boundary is a line the school board votes on. One ZIP can hold four or more high schools (chart below), and a line can cut through a subdivision, so the finder lists what is inside each line and the division’s own lookup settles an exact address.

The ZIP codes shared by the most high schools

A ZIP code is not a boundary. 20175 is split among 6 high schools.

Share of each ZIP code’s land inside each high school boundary, largest first. Every segment is named.

20175Leesburg, Loudoun County6 high schools

20148Ashburn, Loudoun County5 high schools

22182Vienna, Fairfax County4 high schools

20152Chantilly, Loudoun County4 high schools

20171Herndon, Fairfax County4 high schools

20176Leesburg, Loudoun County4 high schools

22153Springfield, Fairfax County4 high schools

20147Ashburn, Loudoun County4 high schools

22031Fairfax, Fairfax County4 high schools

22033Fairfax, Fairfax County3 high schools

Fairfax County GIS high school attendance areas (edited August 27, 2026) and LCPS high school zones (edited August 14, 2026) laid over each county’s ZIP code file; checked October 22, 2026. Shares under 1% are rounded to 1. The two ZIPs that straddle the county line, 20120 and 20166, are left out of this chart; the finder still lists them.

Where the lines come from

The division’s own file, dated, and nothing in between.

The big listing sites rent their school boundaries from data vendors, update them every few months and show no date on the map.⁵ This page reads the two school divisions’ own files and tells you when each was last edited.

Fairfax County

Lines: the High School, Middle School and Elementary School Attendance Areas, Fairfax County GIS open data, drawn for the 2026-27 school year and last edited by the county on August 27, 2026.^1,9 Subdivisions and ZIP codes: Fairfax County GIS.³

To confirm an address: the FCPS Boundary Locator, or the Boundary Explorer for the 2026-27 and later changes.

Loudoun County

Lines: the LCPS high school, middle school and elementary school attendance zones for 2026-27, kept by the LCPS Division of Planning and GIS Services and last edited on August 14, 2026.^2,9 Subdivisions and ZIP codes: Loudoun County GIS.⁴

To confirm an address: the LCPS Attendance Boundary E-Listing (LABEL), or call the LCPS Division of Planning and GIS Services at 571-252-1050.

How the lists are made: each subdivision’s recorded plat is laid over the boundary; it is listed when at least a tenth of it, and at least 2.5 acres, lie inside, largest first. A ZIP is listed when it holds 3% or more of the boundary or the boundary holds 15% or more of the ZIP. The map line is simplified by a few metres to load fast, so an address right on a line can fall either way: that is what the division’s lookup is for. Schools without a neighborhood boundary (magnet, application and alternative programs) are named under the list, not mapped.

What is changing

Boundaries move. Here is what the two boards have decided and what is next.

We check both division files every week. When a line moves, the result for that school changes and its date with it. Dates below are the boards’ own.

Fairfax County Public Schools

New boundaries took effect for 2026-27 on August 24, 2026 (about 1,700 students, 46 schools). On July 16, 2026 the School Board adopted boundaries for the new Skyview High School and the western pyramids, effective 2027-28; those lines are not in this file yet. Four more boundary studies are due to the Board by January 2027.

FCPS school boundary adjustments

Loudoun County Public Schools

Dulles South middle and high school zone changes (adopted June 10, 2025) took effect for 2026-27. An Eastern Loudoun elementary school zone process is running in fall 2026. A high school zone process for the new Thornton Summit High School (HS-14) is planned for spring 2027, for 2028-29.

LCPS attendance zone maps

What every parent needs to know

The things families ask each other. From the divisions’ own pages, side by side.

Registration, the kindergarten cutoff, this year’s calendar, bell times, buses, advanced programs, the application schools, what happens when you move or a line moves, and after-school care. Every card quotes fcps.edu, lcps.org, the county or the Code of Virginia and links to it; all checked October 22, 2026. No school is rated here.

Registering a child

Fairfax County Public Schools

Start with FCPS Online Registration, then an in-person appointment at your school or a Student Registration Welcome Center; the student and a parent attend. Bring proof of residency (deed or lease), the original birth certificate, your photo ID, immunization records and, for a new elementary student, a physical exam from the last 12 months.

fcps.edu

Loudoun County Public Schools

Pre-register online at register.lcps.org, which creates your ParentVUE account; the school then calls you to set a registration appointment. Bring the birth certificate, immunization records, proof of residence (signed lease, deed or settlement papers) and your photo ID.

lcps.org

Kindergarten age

Virginia law: a child who turns five on or before September 30 of the school year may start kindergarten (Code of Virginia § 22.1-199).

In Northern Virginia, school choice is mostly choice inside the public system. Your address sets your base school; after that you can ask for a transfer, apply to a program, enter a lottery, or step outside to a private school or home instruction. Each door has its own window, and most open months before a move. All from the divisions’ own pages, checked October 22, 2026.

The default

Your base school

Your address sets one elementary, one middle and one high school. That is the school you register at, and the one this finder maps.

Bus: yes, beyond the walk zone

Ask

A transfer to another school

Fairfax: a student transfer for listed reasons only (sibling, child care hardship K-6, a move, medical, senior year and a few more), one year at a time. Loudoun: Special Permission, only where the school has room, and never at a school projected at 85% of capacity.

Bus: none, parents drive

Apply

A program you qualify or apply for

Full-time Advanced Academic Programs centers (Fairfax), FUSION and SPECTRUM gifted services (Loudoun), TJ, the Academies of Loudoun, IB at eight Fairfax high schools, Prince William specialty programs.

Bus: FCPS buses to its AAP centers

Lottery

A seat drawn by lottery

Language immersion in Fairfax (kindergarten and grade 1, county residents), Arlington option schools, and Virginia’s public charter schools: two of the state’s seven are in Loudoun County.

Bus: depends on the program

Step outside

Private school or home

A private school sets its own admission, calendar and tuition (next section). Home instruction in Virginia starts with a notice to the division by August 15 each year.

Bus: not a public bus

Buying in Fairfax? FCPS lets you ask for a transfer to the school of your new home up to 180 days before you move in, with a signed contract or lease that shows the closing or move-in date. FCPS family relocation transfer

A laptop showing a colored school boundary map on a wooden table in front of a bay window at dusk, beside a lamp, a cup, two notebooks and a calendar with dates circled — Most choice windows open months before a move, so the calendar matters as much as the map. Concept picture.

The school-choice year

Every window, August 2026 to August 2027.

Each bar is an application or request window from the division’s own page; a dot is a single date. The red line is today, October 22, 2026. Tap a name for its page.

Aug ’26SepOctNovDecJan ’27FebMarAprMayJunJulAug ’27

Full-time AAP referralFCPS, grades 2 to 7

to Dec 15

TJ freshman applicationFCPS, regional, 8th graders

closes Fri Oct 30, 4 p.m.

Specialty programsPrince William County

Nov 2 to Feb 1

Option school lotteryArlington, PreK-12

Nov 9 to Jan 22

Private school decisionsDC-area independent schools

Fri Feb 26, after 4 p.m.

Special PermissionLoudoun, out-of-zone requests

Feb 1 to Apr 30

Student transfer, new requestsFairfax, for 2027-28

Mar 1 to Jun 1

Home instruction noticeVirginia, every year

by Aug 15

Sources: fcps.edu, lcps.org, pwcs.edu, apsva.us, aisgw.org and the Code of Virginia § 22.1-254.1, checked October 22, 2026. Fairfax posts the same transfer window every year without a year on the page. The Academies of Loudoun and Fairfax immersion lottery had not posted 2027-28 dates on their official pages when we checked, so they are not drawn.

The words parents hear

30 school terms, in plain English.

The tag says who uses the word: FCPS (Fairfax), LCPS (Loudoun), PWCS (Prince William), APS (Arlington), Virginia, or all of them. Each links to its source.

30 terms

Base schoolFCPS: The school assigned to your address. New families register there first, even if they plan to ask for a transfer. fcps.edu
Home school, zoned schoolLCPS: Loudoun’s words for the same thing: the school your address is zoned for. You register there before any Special Permission request. webinter.lcps.org
Attendance boundaryAll: The line the school board draws around the homes a school serves. It follows streets and parcels, not ZIP codes. fcps.edu
PyramidFCPS: A Fairfax high school plus the middle and elementary schools that feed it. FCPS lists every school by its pyramid. fcps.edu
Boundary studyAll: A school board review that may move attendance lines, usually because a school is too full or a new one opens. Fairfax and Loudoun both have one running for 2027-28 and later. fcps.edu
Phasing, or grandfatheringFCPS: Rules that let some current students stay at their school after a line moves. In Fairfax: elementary students in their last two years and all current middle and high schoolers. content.govdelivery.com
Student transfer (pupil placement)FCPS: A request to attend a school other than the base school, for listed reasons only. Good for one year; a $100 processing fee; parents provide the ride. fcps.edu
Special PermissionLCPS: Loudoun’s out-of-zone request. Only where the school has room; parents drive; a high school athlete sits out league play for 365 days. The board is reviewing a stricter replacement. lcps.org
AAPFCPS: Advanced Academic Programs: a range of services from part-time, school-based help (Levels I to III) to full-time classes (Level IV). fcps.edu
Level IV center, or Full-Time AAP centerFCPS: A school whose full-time AAP classes draw eligible students from several neighborhood schools. FCPS runs the bus. Newer pages say “Full-Time AAP”. powelles.fcps.edu
Local Level IVFCPS: Full-time AAP taught at the student’s own base school, for families who would rather not change schools. powelles.fcps.edu
FUSION and SPECTRUMLCPS: Loudoun’s gifted services: FUSION for identified 4th and 5th graders, SPECTRUM for grades 6 to 8. Every 3rd grader is screened. lcps.org
IEPAll: Individualized Education Program: the written special education plan a student must have once found eligible under the federal special education law (IDEA). ed.gov
504 planAll: A plan of aids and services under Section 504, the federal civil rights law for students with disabilities, so the student can learn alongside classmates. The school evaluates first. ed.gov
English learner (EL, ESOL)All: A student who is learning English. A home language other than English means an English proficiency test at registration, then support classes if needed. lcps.org
APAll: Advanced Placement: College Board courses that give high schoolers college-level work and a May exam that can earn college credit or placement. ap.collegeboard.org
IBFCPS: The International Baccalaureate Diploma: a two-year program for juniors and seniors with exams, a 4,000-word extended essay and a Theory of Knowledge course. Eight Fairfax high schools offer it. fcps.edu
Open accessFCPS: Any Fairfax high schooler may sign up for Honors, AP and IB courses. No screening. fcps.edu
Dual enrollmentAll: College courses taken in high school, for high school and college credit at once. savingforcollege.com
TJRegional: Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology: a regional public school run by FCPS that 8th graders apply to. No attendance boundary. fcps.edu
The Academies (ACL)LCPS: The Academies of Loudoun: the Academy of Science, the Academy of Engineering and Technology and the Monroe Advanced Technical Academy, on one campus. Loudoun residents apply. lcps.org
Governor’s SchoolVirginia: Regional programs sponsored by the state and local divisions for advanced students, beyond what a home school offers. Virginia has 20 academic-year Governor’s Schools. doe.virginia.gov
Specialty programPWCS: A Prince William program you apply to, at your own high school or another one. Up to three choices, ranked; results by lottery; express buses. pwcs.edu
Option schoolAPS: An Arlington school or program open by application instead of address. Seats go by lottery when there are more applicants than seats. apsva.us
MagnetAll: A public school or program built around a theme, filled by application or lottery instead of by address. go.boarddocs.com
Immersion (DLI)FCPS: Half of each school day taught in a second language. Fairfax offers French, German, Japanese, Korean and Spanish, by lottery for kindergarten and grade 1. fcps.edu
LotteryAll: A random draw used when applications are more than the seats. apsva.us
Charter schoolVirginia: A free public school run under a contract approved by the local school board. Virginia has seven; two are in Loudoun County. doe.virginia.gov
Home instructionVirginia: Teaching your child at home under Virginia law. Send the division a notice by August 15 each year and show one of four qualifications. law.lis.virginia.gov
SOLVirginia: The Standards of Learning: what Virginia public school students are taught and tested on in each grade. law.lis.virginia.gov

Private schools

Private school in Northern Virginia: the kinds, the calendar and the cost.

The public school comes with the address; a private school is a separate application, a separate calendar and a tuition bill. Here is what families can expect, from the schools’ own 2026-27 pages. Costs and dates only; no school is ranked or recommended.

Independent

A non-profit school run by its own board of trustees, not a school board, and paid for by tuition, gifts and endowment. Sets its own curriculum, calendar and admission. nais.org

Religious-affiliated

Schools tied to a faith community, from parish elementary schools to high schools. Often the lowest private tuition in the area; a parish school may charge members less. nativityschool.org

Montessori

Classes grouped by age band (Primary for ages 3 to 6, then Lower and Upper Elementary) with half-day and full-day choices for the youngest. msnv.org

Boarding and one-to-one

A few schools board students (and charge more for it); others teach one student per class and price by the course, not the year. fusionacademy.com

What to expect to pay

Posted 2026-27 tuition, one child, one year.

Each bar runs from the lowest to the highest figure we found on the schools’ own tuition pages, for Northern Virginia schools. Ranges, not a list: the schools are in the sources below.

$0$10K$20K$30K$40K$50K$60K$70K

Public schoolFairfax, Loudoun and every NoVA division

$0 tuition

Montessori, ages 3 to 12half-day primary to elementary, 2 schools

$14,140$22,750

Religious-affiliated, K-8parish schools, 2 schools

$8,800$12,700

Religious-affiliated, high school1 school

$22,900$25,400

Independent, preschool and JKage 3 to junior kindergarten, 6 schools

$25,190$39,673

Independent, elementary (K-5)8 schools

$30,030$49,250

Independent, middle (6-8)8 schools

$30,030$53,750

Independent, high school (9-12)4 schools

$40,950$60,000

Sources, each school’s 2026-27 tuition page, checked October 22, 2026: independent schools flinthill.org, potomacschool.org, madeira.org, langleyschool.org, congressionalschool.org, nysmith.com, burgundyfarm.org, browneacademy.org, basisindependent.com; Montessori msnv.org, sunsethillsmontessori.com; religious-affiliated nativityschool.org, achssas.org, bishopoconnell.org. One religious-affiliated high school and two parish schools only; the higher-priced religious-affiliated independent schools had not posted 2026-27 tuition. Parish school rates depend on parish membership. Boarding costs more: one Loudoun school posts $78,200 for 2026-27 boarding against $55,700 for day (foxcroft.org).

What tuition may not cover, from the same pages: a deposit at signing (one school asks 20%, another $1,500); a facility or capital fee of $1,000 to $1,200 per family; tuition insurance at 1.3% to 2.6% of tuition; extended day ($5,775 a year at one school); uniforms, books, lunch and transportation at some. Some include technology, books, field trips and sports. Sibling discounts run from $2,750 off to 20% off the second child. Buses: Virginia lets a school board carry private school students but does not require it (law.lis.virginia.gov), so plan your own ride or the school’s.

The admission calendar, 2027 entry

Fall 2026Visit and apply

Tours and open houses come first. Each school posts its own deadline and whether it asks for a test such as the ISEE or SSAT; apply for aid at the same time.

WinterVisits, tests, aid forms

Schools use an aid service named on their aid page (Clarity, Blackbaud or FACTS were the ones we saw). Ask what the family share is based on.

Fri Feb 26, 2027Decisions

The AISGW guideline for DC-area independent schools: decisions on the last Friday in February, never before 4 p.m.

Fri Mar 12, 2027Reply

Contracts are due no earlier than the second Friday in March, or two weeks after the decision.

Mon May 3, 2027Contract binds

Tuition is binding at 4 p.m. on May 1; when May 1 is a weekend, the next Monday. In 2027 May 1 is a Saturday.

Dates from the Association of Independent Schools of Greater Washington statement to applicants, checked October 22, 2026. Member schools are asked, not required, to follow it; parish and diocesan schools keep their own dates.

Ways families pay

Need-based aid

26.2%

of students received need-based aid at the median NAIS member school in 2024-25, and the median grant was $21,722 (NAIS Facts at a Glance, all member schools). Each school sets its own aid budget.

resources.finalsite.net

529 plans, K-12

$20,000

a year of K-12 tuition can come from a 529 plan starting January 1, 2026, up from $10,000 (federal law of July 2025). Virginia’s Invest529 lets you deduct up to $4,000 per account per year from state income, with unlimited carry forward (invest529.com); ask a tax advisor how Virginia treats K-12 withdrawals.

fidelity.com

Virginia tax-credit scholarships

300%

of the federal poverty guidelines is the income limit (400% for a student with an IEP) for Education Improvement Scholarships. Families apply through approved scholarship foundations, not the state; the award is capped at the state share of per-pupil funding where you live.

doe.virginia.gov

Federal scholarship credit, 2027

Open

question for Virginia: a new federal credit of up to $1,700 for gifts to scholarship groups starts in 2027 only in states that opt in. As of October 14, 2026, Virginia’s status was unresolved.

wmra.org

The ratings on the listing sites

What a 7 out of 10 means, where it comes from, and why this page shows none.

Zillow, Redfin, Realtor.com and Trulia show the GreatSchools number; Homes.com shows Niche’s letter beside it. Both companies call their rating a starting point. Here is what goes into each, how old the data can be, and the state’s own report card, so you can read the sources yourself. Checked October 22, 2026.

What Zillow, Redfin and Realtor.com show

GreatSchools: a 1 to 10 against other schools in the state.

Three themed ratings feed the number: student progress, test scores and college readiness. A school needs enough public data in one of them to get a rating. The weights are set from research on long-term outcomes; GreatSchools does not publish the exact numbers.

Student progressTest scoresCollege readiness

September 2020: discipline and attendance gaps became a flag on the profile, not part of the rating.
July 2025: the equity rating was removed from the overall number; student group data stays on the profile.
Today: each theme refreshes when a state releases data; the profile’s “Sources” line shows the year used. Partners such as Zillow get a monthly feed, so a listing site can run behind.

GreatSchools’ own words: the rating is “a helpful starting point.” Parent reviews do not change the number.

Sources: greatschools.org, ratings · July 31, 2025 update · Zillow help

What Homes.com shows beside it

Niche: a report card from A+ to D-, once a year.

Niche grades mix federal and state figures with its own parent and student surveys and reviews, which it calls a significant factor. For public high schools the published weights are:

Elementary grades also carry the district’s overall grade (15%). Test proficiency now comes from state sources. Grades refresh once a year, in the fall, so a grade can be a year behind the state’s own release.

Sources: niche.com methodology · K-12 methodology · homes.com school search

What Virginia publishes itself

The state’s own label, and the full profile behind it.

Virginia’s School Performance and Support Framework, adopted by the Board of Education in September 2024, gives every public school one of four labels: Distinguished, Meets Expectations, Approaching Expectations, Needs Intensive Support. The 2025-26 results came out October 7, 2026.

The label is not the same as accreditation, which checks health, safety, staffing and planning; 99% of schools are fully accredited for 2026-27.
A school flagged for federal support is placed one label lower than its score alone would give. The state’s own watchdog, JLARC, said in December 2025 that the labels do not communicate performance clearly.
School Quality Profiles show the parts: tests, absenteeism, discipline, staffing and finance, one-year snapshots and three-year trends.

Sources: VDOE, fall 2026 results · schoolquality.virginia.gov · JLARC report 613

Check it yourself, five steps

Confirm the assigned school with the division, not a listing site: the finder above links the FCPS Boundary Locator and the LCPS LABEL lookup.
Read the state label and what is behind it on School Quality Profiles.
On a GreatSchools or Niche page, find the data year before you weigh the number; on GreatSchools it is under “Sources.”
Check the programs that a rating never shows: FCPS AAP centers, immersion programs, the Academies of Loudoun, bell times and the bus ride.
Visit. Ask the front office for a tour; Zillow itself tells parents to go in person.

Why no rating here: a number built on last year’s tests says little about a child’s fit, and ratings move when the formula moves, as GreatSchools’ did in 2020 and 2025. A December 2019 Chalkbeat investigation found the ratings tracked what a school’s students start with as much as what the school adds, and a 2019 study of the ratings’ rollout across 19 states, Virginia included, found gaps in home values between neighborhoods widened after the ratings appeared (Hasan and Kumar, SSRN). This page shows the lines, the facts and the official sources, and leaves the judgment to you.

The million-dollar question

Do school ratings move home prices, or is that a myth?

Buyers pay more inside sought-after school lines; the question is how much of that is the school. We read the peer-reviewed studies that compare similar homes across the same line, and the industry reports that do not. Here are their numbers.

The answer

Real, but smaller than it looks.About 1% to 4% of the price for each standard deviation of test scores, once the house and the street are held equal. The 35% to 49% gaps in headlines are mostly bigger houses on dearer streets.

The effect is strongest for high schools and for big differences between two schools; small differences often price at zero. It shows up when a boundary change is announced, and it fades when a rating turns out to be noisy or when school choice loosens the link between address and school.

On a $1,000,000 home

$10,000 to $40,000

per standard deviation of test scores, by the 1% to 4% range above. Our arithmetic, not a study: no peer-reviewed study has measured this in Fairfax County, Loudoun County or the Washington region, and the industry reports do not break this metro out.

Want the number for one line? Send the school and I pull the closed sales on both sides of it.

What the studies found

Same kind of home, other side of the line: a few percent. Raw medians: a third to a half.

Price premium per one standard deviation of school test scores (roughly the gap between an average school and one in the top sixth), peer-reviewed and central-bank studies in blue. The two industry figures in orange compare raw median prices with nothing held constant, so they also carry the bigger houses and the dearer streets.

Peer-reviewed, similar homes compared

Bayer, Ferreira and McMillan 2007Journal of Political Economy, a large U.S. metro, across the line

1.8%

Brown and Katwal, Boston FedMassachusetts, school value-added

Black 1999Quarterly Journal of Economics, Massachusetts, across the line

2.1%

Gibbons, Machin and Silva 2013Journal of Urban Economics, England, across the line

Collins and Kaplan 2017AER Papers and Proceedings, Memphis, redrawn lines

2 to 4%

Nguyen-Hoang and Yinger 2011Journal of Housing Economics, review of the field: under 4%

under 4%

Dhar and Ross 2012Journal of Urban Economics, Connecticut, district lines over time

4.1 to 6.5%

Industry reports, raw medians, correlation only

Redfin, September 202681 metros, zones rated 8 to 10 vs the typical home, nothing held constant

35%

Realtor.com, 2016districts rated 9 or 10 vs the national median, nothing held constant

49%

Bars are percent of home price. A light tail marks a range the study reported; “under 4%” is the review’s ceiling. Each study name links to its paper. Compiled October 22, 2026.

How much of the raw gap is really the school

Hold the house and the street equal, and a quarter to two thirds of the gap remains.

Each study first measured the simple price gap between school zones, then re-measured it across the same line or the same redrawn homes. The bar is the share that survived; the rest was the house and the neighborhood.

CharlotteKane, Riegg and Staiger 2006: one quarter of the naive estimate

25%

EnglandGibbons, Machin and Silva: 8 to 11% fell to about 3%

27 to 37%

MassachusettsBlack 1999: roughly half the usual estimate

50%

ConnecticutDhar and Ross 2012: 8.2 to 10 points fell to 4.1 to 6.5

50 to 65%

Shares computed from each paper’s own before-and-after estimates (England: 3% against 8 to 11%; Connecticut: 4.1 to 6.5 against 8.2 to 10). Compiled October 22, 2026.

When a line is redrawn

+6% and −3 to −5%

Lexington, Kentucky, 2020 to 2024: homes moved into a higher-scoring high school gained about 6%, homes moved out lost 3 to 5%, and many redistricted homes did not move at all. Prices adjusted when the plan was approved, before the first day of school. Ding, Bollinger, Clark and Hoyt

When a grade is new

19.5%, then fading

Florida’s first school grades in 1999: an A over a B was worth 19.5% at first, and less than half that after three rounds, because the grades moved with noise. Figlio and Lucas 2004

When ratings arrive online

+3.49%

When GreatSchools ratings first appeared in a ZIP code, prices there rose 3.49% against similar ZIPs not yet rated, and the gap grew over three years (working paper on 9,400 ZIPs in 19 states, Virginia among them). Hasan and Kumar 2019

Sources are the papers linked above, read October 22, 2026: Black (QJE 1999); Bayer, Ferreira and McMillan (JPE 2007); Figlio and Lucas (AER 2004); Kane, Riegg and Staiger (NBER 11347, 2005); Ries and Somerville (2010, no price response to an elementary rezoning in Vancouver, a response for secondary schools in the top quartile); Nguyen-Hoang and Yinger (2011 review); Dhar and Ross (JUE 2012); Gibbons, Machin and Silva (JUE 2013); Collins and Kaplan (2017); Ding, Bollinger, Clark and Hoyt (2020 and 2024); Brown and Katwal (Federal Reserve Bank of Boston); Hasan and Kumar (working paper, 2019); Redfin (September 2, 2026); Realtor.com (2016). This page shows no rating for any school.

Official recognitions

Awards from the U.S. Department of Education and the Virginia Board of Education.

Only awards given by a government body, each linked to the list that names the school. No magazine rankings, no website grades, and no claim that an award makes a school the right one for your child. Compiled October 22, 2026.

National Blue Ribbon Schools

Seven Fairfax schools and one Loudoun school since 2016.

The U.S. Department of Education’s award for overall achievement or for closing gaps. The department ended the program in August 2025, so 2024 was the last class.

2024Spring Hill Elementary ESFCPS
2022Mosaic Elementary ESFCPS
2021Sangster Elementary ESFCPS
2020Poplar Tree Elementary ESFCPS
2020Fairhill Elementary ESFCPS
2018Keene Mill Elementary ESFCPS
2017Emerick Elementary ESLCPS
2016Springfield Estates Elementary ESFCPS

Board of Education Exemplar Performance Awards

Virginia’s own award, by school year.

Highest Achievement unless marked Continuous Improvement. Virginia moved to its new performance framework in 2025-26; its labels are ratings, not awards, so they are not listed here.

2024-25Woodson High HSFCPS
2024-25Loudoun Valley High HSLCPS
2024-25Woodgrove High HSLCPS
2024-25Thomas Jefferson HS for Science and Technology HSFCPS
2024-25Sangster Elementary ESFCPS
2024-25Aldie, Hamilton, Lincoln and Waterford Elementary; Hillsboro Charter Academy ESLCPS
2023-24Sangster Elementary; Thomas Jefferson HS for Science and Technology ES, HSFCPS
2023-24Lewis, South Lakes and West Potomac High HSFCPS
Continuous Improvement
2023-24Aldie, Emerick, Hamilton and Waterford Elementary; Hillsboro Charter Academy ESLCPS
2023-24Hutchison Farm Elementary ESLCPS
Continuous Improvement
2022-23Sangster, Spring Hill and Westbriar Elementary; Thomas Jefferson HS for Science and Technology ES, HSFCPS
2022-2321 more FCPS schools, Annandale High, Falls Church High and West Potomac High among themFCPS
Continuous Improvement

Green Ribbon and Purple Star

Sustainability, and support for military families.

Green Ribbon is a U.S. Department of Education award; Purple Star is a Virginia Department of Education designation renewed every three years.

2018Lanier Middle MSFCPS
U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon School
2018 to 2025Every FCPS schoolFCPS
Purple Star, military-connected families: FCPS is a Purple Star Division
2023, 2024Five LCPS schools each yearLCPS
Purple Star designations on the VDOE lists

Not found in the official lists and therefore not shown: 2015 Blue Ribbon winners, 2025-26 Exemplar awards, and complete Purple Star rosters. Research read the department and VDOE pages on October 22, 2026; a school missing here may simply be on a list the research did not reach. Famous graduates are left out on purpose: the page is about schools and lines, not people.

Questions

What people ask about school boundaries and buying.

How do I find out which schools a house is zoned for in Fairfax or Loudoun County?

Type the address into the finder on this page: it places the home on the division's own 2026-27 lines and names its elementary, middle and high school. Or pick a level and type a school to see its whole boundary. Then confirm the exact address with the division: the FCPS Boundary Locator for Fairfax County, or the LCPS Attendance Boundary E-Listing (LABEL) for Loudoun County. Both are free.

Where do these school boundaries come from?

From the school divisions' own files, not from a data vendor. Fairfax County publishes its elementary, middle and high school attendance areas as open GIS data (last edited August 27, 2026); Loudoun County Public Schools publishes its 2026-27 elementary, middle and high school zones on ArcGIS Online (last edited August 14, 2026). Each result shows the file, the division's edit date and the day we checked it.

Can I buy by ZIP code to get a certain high school?

No. A ZIP code is a postal area and a school boundary follows parcels and streets, so most ZIPs are split between two or three high schools, and more elementary schools than that. The finder shows which ZIPs a boundary touches and how much of each, and it lists the subdivisions inside the line, which is the better guide. The exact address is what counts.

Are these boundaries going to change?

Some will. Fairfax County adopted new boundaries for 2026-27, adopted lines for the new Skyview High School for 2027-28 on July 16, 2026, and expects more boundary recommendations by January 2027. Loudoun County changed Dulles South zones for 2026-27 and plans a high school zone process in spring 2027 for the new Thornton Summit High School. We check the division files every week and the date on each result is the division's own.

What does school choice mean in Northern Virginia?

Mostly choice inside the public system. Your address sets your base school. After that a family can ask for a transfer (Fairfax student transfers for listed reasons, Loudoun Special Permission where a school has room), apply to a program (full-time AAP centers, TJ, the Academies of Loudoun, IB, Prince William specialty programs), enter a lottery (Fairfax language immersion, Arlington option schools, Loudoun's two public charter schools), or choose a private school or home instruction. Most windows open months before a move; the timeline on this page shows each one.

How much does private school cost in Northern Virginia?

From the schools' own 2026-27 tuition pages: about $30,000 to $49,000 a year for independent elementary school, $30,000 to $54,000 for middle school and $41,000 to $60,000 for high school; about $14,000 to $23,000 for Montessori; and about $8,800 to $12,700 for parish K-8 schools and $22,900 to $25,400 for one diocesan high school. Fees, deposits and extended day are extra at many schools. About a quarter of students at a typical independent school get need-based aid.

Does this page rate or rank schools?

No. It shows where each school's line runs, the subdivisions and ZIP codes inside it, and where to confirm. Which school is right for your family is your call; Ahmed does not steer buyers by school, and the page carries no ratings or scores.

Which school divisions are covered?

Fairfax County Public Schools (138 elementary, 26 middle and 24 high schools with a boundary) and Loudoun County Public Schools (59 elementary, 17 middle and 17 high). For Prince William County use the division's own PWCS Find Your School lookup, and for Arlington the APS Boundary Locator; both are linked under the finder. The City of Falls Church and Manassas Park each have one high school for the whole city, so no high school map is needed there.

Why do Fairfax elementary schools go to grade 6?

Most Fairfax County elementary schools serve kindergarten to grade 6 and most of its middle schools serve grades 7 and 8 (the FCPS files list 123 of 138 elementary schools as K-6). Three FCPS secondary schools, Hayfield, Lake Braddock and Robinson, hold grades 7 to 12 in one building. Loudoun County uses kindergarten to grade 5, 6 to 8, and 9 to 12. Each result on this page shows the grades from the division's own file.

Your next step

Found the boundary? Now the house.

Tell me the school and what you need in a home, or ask what your own home is worth. I answer in English or Arabic, with real numbers, not a pitch.

For owners

What's my home worth?

Send a message

Ask Ahmed

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وكيلك العقاري الموثوق في شمال فرجينيا.

Keep exploring

The towns behind the boundaries.

County guide

School Boundary FinderFairfax and Loudoun schools, elementary to high, 2026-27

Type an address, or a school.

The finder in six numbers

The ZIP code gets the mail. The boundary gets the bus.

A ZIP code is not a boundary. 20175 is split among 6 high schools.

The division’s own file, dated, and nothing in between.

Fairfax County

Loudoun County

Boundaries move. Here is what the two boards have decided and what is next.

Fairfax County Public Schools

Loudoun County Public Schools

The things families ask each other. From the divisions’ own pages, side by side.

Registering a child

Kindergarten age

The 2026-27 calendar

Start and end times

School buses

Advanced academics

Application high schools

Moving, and when a line moves

Before and after school care

New to English, or needs an IEP

“School choice” here means five doors. The address opens the first one.

Your base school

A transfer to another school

A program you qualify or apply for

A seat drawn by lottery

Private school or home

Every window, August 2026 to August 2027.

30 school terms, in plain English.

Private school in Northern Virginia: the kinds, the calendar and the cost.

Independent

Religious-affiliated

Montessori

Boarding and one-to-one

Posted 2026-27 tuition, one child, one year.

Need-based aid

529 plans, K-12

Virginia tax-credit scholarships

Federal scholarship credit, 2027

What a 7 out of 10 means, where it comes from, and why this page shows none.

GreatSchools: a 1 to 10 against other schools in the state.

Niche: a report card from A+ to D-, once a year.

The state’s own label, and the full profile behind it.

Do school ratings move home prices, or is that a myth?

Same kind of home, other side of the line: a few percent. Raw medians: a third to a half.

Hold the house and the street equal, and a quarter to two thirds of the gap remains.

Awards from the U.S. Department of Education and the Virginia Board of Education.

Seven Fairfax schools and one Loudoun school since 2016.

Virginia’s own award, by school year.

Sustainability, and support for military families.

What people ask about school boundaries and buying.

Found the boundary? Now the house.

What's my home worth?

Ask Ahmed

The towns behind the boundaries.

Fairfax County

Loudoun County

Chantilly

South Riding

Selling in Northern Virginia

Priced on evidence.