Charter schools in California
1,263 open public charter schools in the 2025-26 federal directory, about 719,236 students in 2024-25.
Public charter schools (tuition-free)
Charter schools by town
Each town page lists its own charter schools and the others within 15 miles.
- Los Angeles (166)
- San Jose (47)
- San Diego (45)
- Sacramento (37)
- Oakland (34)
- Stockton (29)
- Santa Rosa (22)
- Fresno (20)
- Chula Vista (15)
- Petaluma (14)
- San Francisco (14)
- Santa Ana (14)
- Simi Valley (13)
- Inglewood (12)
- Redding (11)
- Richmond (11)
- San Bernardino (11)
- Tracy (11)
- Woodland Hills (11)
- Modesto (10)
- Temecula (10)
- Visalia (10)
- Chico (9)
- Huntington Park (9)
- Escondido (8)
- Hanford (8)
- Arcata (7)
- El Cajon (7)
- Grass Valley (7)
- Kingsburg (7)
- Vallejo (7)
- Vista (7)
- Anaheim (6)
- El Dorado Hills (6)
- Hayward (6)
- Hesperia (6)
- Madera (6)
- Northridge (6)
- Pacoima (6)
- Pasadena (6)
- Redlands (6)
- San Marcos (6)
- Sebastopol (6)
- Van Nuys (6)
- Victorville (6)
- Watsonville (6)
- West Hills (6)
- Eureka (5)
- Lancaster (5)
- Long Beach (5)
- Oceanside (5)
- Redwood City (5)
- Reseda (5)
- San Juan Capistrano (5)
- Sherman Oaks (5)
- Sylmar (5)
- Thousand Oaks (5)
- Bakersfield (4)
- Camarillo (4)
- Campbell (4)
- Canoga Park (4)
- Compton (4)
- Delano (4)
- East Palo Alto (4)
- El Segundo (4)
- Fontana (4)
- Granada Hills (4)
- Irvine (4)
- La Mesa (4)
- Lathrop (4)
- Lemoore (4)
- Marysville (4)
- Moreno Valley (4)
- Nevada City (4)
- Orange (4)
- Oroville (4)
- Porterville (4)
- Riverside (4)
- Rocklin (4)
- Santa Barbara (4)
- South Gate (4)
- Sun Valley (4)
- Ukiah (4)
- West Sacramento (4)
- Yuba City (4)
- Alameda (3)
- Anderson (3)
- Antioch (3)
- Auburn (3)
- Chatsworth (3)
- Clovis (3)
- Corona (3)
- Costa Mesa (3)
- Denair (3)
- El Centro (3)
- Elk Grove (3)
- Gardena (3)
- Hawthorne (3)
- Hickman (3)
- Lake View Terrace (3)
- North Hills (3)
- Orangevale (3)
- Pacific Palisades (3)
- Palm Desert (3)
- Palmdale (3)
- Paradise (3)
- Pomona (3)
- Red Bluff (3)
- Salinas (3)
- Tarzana (3)
- Vacaville (3)
- Willits (3)
- Acton (2)
- Adelanto (2)
- Aliso Viejo (2)
- Altadena (2)
- Beaumont (2)
- Carmichael (2)
- Ceres (2)
- Chino (2)
- Coachella (2)
- Concord (2)
- Cottonwood (2)
- Crescent City (2)
- Duarte (2)
- El Cerrito (2)
- El Dorado (2)
- Encinitas (2)
- Encino (2)
- Guerneville (2)
- Helendale (2)
- Highland (2)
- Hollister (2)
- Julian (2)
- Laguna Niguel (2)
- Lake Balboa (2)
- Lake Elsinore (2)
- Lakeside (2)
- Lincoln (2)
- Lodi (2)
- Lompoc (2)
- Lucerne Valley (2)
- Maricopa (2)
- McClellan (2)
- Menifee (2)
- Merced (2)
- Middletown (2)
- Monterey (2)
- Morgan Hill (2)
- Napa (2)
- National City (2)
- Newcastle (2)
- North Hollywood (2)
- O'Neals (2)
- Oakhurst (2)
- Orcutt (2)
- Orland (2)
- Perris (2)
- Placerville (2)
- Poway (2)
- Rancho Cordova (2)
- Ridgecrest (2)
- Rio Linda (2)
- Rohnert Park (2)
- Roseville (2)
- San Andreas (2)
- San Fernando (2)
- San Lorenzo (2)
- San Luis Obispo (2)
- Santa Cruz (2)
- Santa Maria (2)
- Spring Valley (2)
- Tulare (2)
- Turlock (2)
- Valley Center (2)
- Valley Village (2)
- Ventura (2)
- Walnut Park (2)
- Waterford (2)
- Winchester (2)
- Winnetka (2)
- Yorba Linda (2)
- Yucaipa (2)
- Acampo (1)
- Agua Dulce (1)
- Alpine (1)
- Apple Valley (1)
- Aptos (1)
- Arleta (1)
- Ballico (1)
- Beale AFB (1)
- Bell (1)
- Ben Lomond (1)
- Boulder Creek (1)
- Camino (1)
- Carson (1)
- Caruthers (1)
- Castaic (1)
- Clarksburg (1)
- Colton (1)
- Cypress (1)
- Daly City (1)
- Davis (1)
- Dixon (1)
- East Nicolaus (1)
- Escalon (1)
- Fairfax (1)
- Forest Ranch (1)
- Forestville (1)
- Fortuna (1)
- Fountain Valley (1)
- Freedom (1)
- Fremont (1)
- Georgetown (1)
- Gilroy (1)
- Glen Ellen (1)
- Gold River (1)
- Goleta (1)
- Hemet (1)
- Hopland (1)
- Huntington Beach (1)
- Imperial Beach (1)
- Irwindale (1)
- Jamul (1)
- Keyes (1)
- Knights Landing (1)
- La Jolla (1)
- Laguna Hills (1)
- Lake Forest (1)
- Lawndale (1)
- Lemon Cove (1)
- Lennox (1)
- Lindsay (1)
- Live Oak (1)
- Loomis (1)
- Los Altos (1)
- Los Gatos (1)
- Lynwood (1)
- Manila (1)
- Marina (1)
- Mather (1)
- Menlo Park (1)
- Mission Viejo (1)
- Moorpark (1)
- Newport Beach (1)
- North Highlands (1)
- Novato (1)
- Nuevo (1)
- Oakdale (1)
- Occidental (1)
- Ojai (1)
- Oregon House (1)
- Oro Grande (1)
- Oxnard (1)
- Pacific Grove (1)
- Pala (1)
- Palm Springs (1)
- Palo Cedro (1)
- Penn Valley (1)
- Penngrove (1)
- Phelan (1)
- Pittsburg (1)
- Porter Ranch (1)
- Quartz Hill (1)
- Rancho Cucamonga (1)
- Reedley (1)
- Rialto (1)
- Richvale (1)
- Ripon (1)
- Riverbank (1)
- San Carlos (1)
- San Gabriel (1)
- San Jacinto (1)
- San Pablo (1)
- San Pedro (1)
- Sanger (1)
- Santa Clarita (1)
- Santa Monica (1)
- Saratoga (1)
- Scotts Valley (1)
- Seaside (1)
- Shingle Springs (1)
- Sonoma (1)
- Strathmore (1)
- Studio City (1)
- Topanga (1)
- Tujunga (1)
- Union City (1)
- Upland (1)
- Valencia (1)
- Venice (1)
- Walnut Creek (1)
- Wawona (1)
- West Covina (1)
- West Hollywood (1)
- Westlake Village (1)
- Wildomar (1)
- Wilmington (1)
- Windsor (1)
Online charter schools in California (108)
These schools told the federal survey that most or all of their teaching is online (2024-25). Their address is an office; ask each one which parts of California it enrolls from.
Other charter schools in California (25)
Schools in towns without a page of their own, by town.
Who runs and charters them
Networks and districts with the most charter schools in California: Los Angeles Unified (51), Campbell Union (11), Kingsburg Elementary Charter (7), Natomas Unified (5), New Jerusalem Elementary (5), Rincon Valley Union Elementary (5), Sacramento City Unified (5), Stockton Unified (5).
Charter authorizers named most often: Los Angeles Unified (51), Campbell Union (11), Kingsburg Elementary Charter (7), Sacramento City Unified (5), Natomas Unified (5), Rincon Valley Union Elementary (5), Stockton Unified (5), New Jerusalem Elementary (5).
Names as the state reported them to the federal directory (2025-26).
Charter schools: how they work
- Public and free. NCES describes a public charter school as a publicly funded school, usually run by a group or organization under a contract (the charter) with the state, the district or another body. The federal definition says a charter school does not charge tuition.
- Families choose it. Under the same definition, a charter school is one parents choose to send their children to, and it admits students by lottery when more apply than it has room for.
- Its own rules, its own accountability. The charter frees the school from some state or local rules; in return it must meet the standards written in its charter. It is nonsectarian.
- No program badge. ChoiceFunded’s program badges and “schools that accept” lists cover private schools only. Charter schools are listed separately here, with no badge, and are never counted with private schools.
Sources: 20 U.S.C. 7221i (federal Charter Schools Program definitions); NCES, Condition of Education: Public Charter School Enrollment. Each state writes its own charter law, so ask the school how enrollment works there.
- Private schools in California (listed separately)
- School choice in California: what is available
- Charter schools in every state
- California next to other states: charter and private school choice
School facts: U.S. Department of Education, Common Core of Data (2025-26 directory, 2024-25 enrollment and staff). Where our data comes from.