A new report evaluating the educational levels of the country’s most populated metropolitan areas has once again placed the Ocala Metropolitan Statistical Area near the very bottom of the list, continuing a multi-year trend for the region.
WalletHub published its “Most and Least Educated Cities in America” report on June 29, evaluating the 150 most populated U.S. metropolitan statistical areas. The Ocala Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) is defined by the United States Office of Management and Budget as encompassing all of Marion County.
The city’s placement was determined by its performance in educational attainment, as well as the quality of education and attainment gap. According to WalletHub, Ocala ranked 134th out of 150 in educational attainment, and 148th in the quality of education and attainment gap, placing it third-to-last nationwide in that specific category.
To determine the rankings, WalletHub graded 11 relevant metrics on a 100-point scale. Out of the 150 MSAs analyzed, Ocala ranked 139th overall, receiving a total score of 31.63 out of 100 possible points.
The educational attainment dimension measured the share of adults aged 25 and older who have achieved various educational milestones. This included the percentages of adults with a high school diploma or higher, those with some college experience or an associate’s degree, individuals with a bachelor’s degree, and those with a graduate or professional degree.
The second dimension evaluated the quality of public school systems and universities, the number of enrolled students in top universities per capita, summer learning opportunities, and an education equality index score. The study also explicitly measured racial and gender education gaps, giving extra credit to metro areas where black residents or women hold a statistical advantage in bachelor’s degree attainment over their white or male counterparts compared to areas with no inequality.
The U.S. Census Bureau most recently estimated the city of Ocala’s population at 63,591 residents, while the University of Florida Bureau of Economic and Business Research estimated Marion County’s population at approximately 427,973 earlier this year.
For state-wide context, Ocala was the lowest-ranked Florida MSA included in the 150-city list. Tallahassee ranked the highest in the state at 23rd overall, and just one spot above Ocala was Lakeland-Winter Haven at 138th overall. Nationally, Ann Arbor, Michigan, took the top spot as the most-educated city, while Visalia, California, ranked last at 150th overall.
Here is how Ocala compared to all other Florida metropolitan areas included in the study:
| Overall Rank | Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) | Total Score |
| 23 | Tallahassee, FL | 65.75 |
| 52 | Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL | 56.88 |
| 55 | Naples-Marco Island, FL | 56.42 |
| 56 | North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton, FL | 55.81 |
| 65 | Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, FL | 54.81 |
| 68 | Jacksonville, FL | 54.44 |
| 71 | Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 53.81 |
| 72 | Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL | 53.26 |
| 93 | Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent, FL | 49.42 |
| 105 | Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, FL | 46.41 |
| 109 | Cape Coral-Fort Myers, FL | 45.05 |
| 115 | Port St. Lucie, FL | 42.88 |
| 138 | Lakeland-Winter Haven, FL | 32.88 |
| 139 | Ocala, FL | 31.63 |
In the areas of primary and secondary schooling, Marion County student test scores and high school graduation rates ranked among the lowest in the state again this year, after a similarly dismal performance last year.
The new data is also not the first time Ocala has found itself at the bottom of WalletHub’s list. Similar studies conducted by the personal finance website in 2021 and 2025 also found Ocala to be one of the least-educated metropolitan areas in the country.
In the 2025 education report, WalletHub cited the percentage of residents with bachelor’s degrees and the quality of the public school system as contributing factors to the low score.
Additionally, in a separate WalletHub report released last fall that evaluated the “Best Small Cities in America,” Ocala ranked 1,208th in education out of 1,318 small cities. While the city struggled in education, safety (1,275th), and affordability (1,033rd) in that particular study, it did shine in its quality of life, ranking 42nd overall thanks to its variety of restaurants, attractions, and parks.
To read the complete list of criteria for the rankings, or to see the rankings in full, visit WalletHub’s Most & Least Educated Cities in America (2026) online.