Hunter was an all-girls school for its first 105 years, with the official name 'Hunter College High School for Intellectually Gifted Young Ladies'. The school was almost closed by Hunter College President Jacqueline Wexler in the early 1970s. In 1914, both schools were named after the Female Normal School's first president, Thomas Hunter. The high school was separated from what would become Hunter College in 1903. A kindergarten was added in 1887, and in 1888 the school was incorporated into a college. The original school was composed of an elementary and a high school. Hunter was established in 1869 as 'The Female Normal and High School', a private school to prepare young women to become teachers. The New York Times called Hunter 'the prestigious Upper East Side school known for its Ivy League-bound students' and 'the fast track to law, medicine and academia.' Publicly available data indicate that Hunter has the highest average SAT score, the highest average ACT score and the highest percentage of National Merit Finalists of any high school in the United States, public or private. Hunter has been ranked as the top public high school in the United States by both The Wall Street Journal and Worth.

According to the school, 'students accepted to Hunter represent the top one-quarter of 1% of students in New York City, based on test scores.' Enrollment is approximately 1200 students. Hunter is publicly funded, and there is no tuition fee. It is administered by Hunter College of the City University of New York (CUNY). Hunter College High School is a secondary school located in the Carnegie Hill neighborhood on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

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