Ninh Binh Province recorded the highest average score in Vietnam's 2026 National High School Graduation Examination, according to rankings compiled by VietNamNet using official data released by the Ministry of Education and Training.

The ranking is based on the average scores across all 12 examination subjects in Vietnam's 34 provinces and centrally administered cities, following the country's recent administrative restructuring.

The nationwide average score across all subjects was 5.838 out of 10.

thi tốt nghiệp THPT.jpg
Students sit the 2026 National High School Graduation Examination.

Ninh Binh led the country with an average score of 6.320, becoming the only locality to exceed the 6.3-point mark.

It was followed by:

Ninh Binh – 6.320
Hanoi – 6.177
Hai Phong – 6.167
Nghe An – 6.166
Ha Tinh – 6.149

These provinces and cities posted consistently strong performances across multiple subjects, particularly in both natural sciences and social sciences.

Ho Chi Minh City ranked seventh nationwide with an average score of 6.040, approximately 0.2 points above the national average.

The southern metropolis also had 139,678 candidates, making it Vietnam's largest examination center while maintaining a place among the country's highest-performing localities.

Regional gap remains significant

At the lower end of the rankings, Son La Province recorded the country's lowest average score at 4.979, making it the only locality with an average below 5.0.

The next lowest-performing provinces were:

Vinh Long – 5.243
Dak Lak – 5.319
Dien Bien – 5.337

The difference between the highest-performing province, Ninh Binh, and Son La amounted to approximately 1.34 points.

Overall, the rankings show that provinces in the Red River Delta and the North Central Coast continued to outperform many other regions in Vietnam's 2026 national examination.

Comparison with previous years

The provincial rankings have shifted noticeably over recent years.

In 2025, Nghe An ranked first nationwide with an average score of 6.52, followed by:

Ha Tinh – 6.48
Ninh Binh – 6.45
Hanoi – 6.44

Ho Chi Minh City ranked sixth that year with an average score of 6.27, while Son La placed last with 5.41.

In 2024, before Vietnam's provincial administrative restructuring, the highest average score belonged to the former Vinh Phuc Province with 7.45, followed by the former Ninh Binh (7.35) and Nam Dinh (7.30).

The remainder of the top 10 included the former Binh Duong, Bac Ninh, Hai Phong, Ha Tinh, Phu Tho, Ha Nam, and An Giang.

Neither Hanoi nor Ho Chi Minh City ranked among the top 10 in 2024. Hanoi placed 12th, while Ho Chi Minh City ranked 20th.

At the bottom of the 2024 rankings, the former Ha Giang Province recorded the country's lowest average score of 5.68, followed by the former Cao Bang, Dak Lak, and Dien Bien provinces.

Le Huyen