Spotlight · 2026/27
The Top State Schools
Some of the strongest schools in our ranking charge no tuition at all. Selective grammars in London's commuter belt, exam-entry magnets in New York and Virginia, centuries-old gymnasiums in Amsterdam, lycées internationaux outside Paris — every school below is fee-free and holds its place in the World's Top Schools ranking on merit alone.
40
fee-free schools ranked
8
countries
$0
annual tuition, every school
Free does not mean open. Most schools on this list are fiercely selective — by entrance exam (UK grammars, US magnets), by catchment or residency, or by prior grades. International families should confirm eligibility, residency requirements and any fees charged to non-domestic students before applying.
United States8 schools
How to get inExam schools and magnets admit by competitive test and grades — the SHSAT for New York's specialized high schools, TJ's own admissions process in Fairfax County, Boston's exam-school route. Places are generally reserved for residents of the district; charter schools like BASIS run lotteries instead.
France5 schools
How to get inLycées internationaux admit into their sections internationales by language test and dossier — apply directly to the section, usually in spring. The mainstream French stream follows the carte scolaire (catchment). Tuition is free; international sections may ask a small association fee.
Hong Kong3 schools
How to get inGovernment and aided schools allocate places through the SSPA system, with a discretionary round where top schools interview. Free for local students — families generally need Hong Kong residency for eligibility.
United Kingdom10 schools
How to get inGrammar schools admit by the 11+ exam, sat at the start of Year 6 — each school or county sets its own test and gives priority to local catchments. Apply through the council's Common Application Form by 31 October the year before entry.
Australia1 school
How to get inFully selective state schools admit by academic entrance test — Perth Modern through WA's GATE selective testing, with equivalents like the Selective High School Placement Test in NSW. Sit the test a year before entry; local residency is usually required.
Singapore2 schools
How to get inJunior colleges admit on O-Level results through the Joint Admissions Exercise; integrated-programme schools recruit earlier via PSLE scores or DSA talent entry. Non-citizens pay monthly government-set fees and face limited places.
Netherlands7 schools
How to get inGymnasiums follow the Dutch track system: entry at 12 needs a VWO-level advies from the primary school. The most popular city gymnasiums allocate oversubscribed places by ballot or priority rules; tuition is free with a modest voluntary parental contribution.
South Africa4 schools
How to get inAdmission prioritises the school's feeder zone, siblings and early application (applications typically open more than a year ahead). Note: SA public schools may charge modest governing-body school fees, with means-tested exemptions — still a fraction of private tuition.
What counts as a state school here
Every school on this list has a verified annual tuition of zero for domestic students — state-funded grammars, public magnet and exam schools, publicly funded gymnasiums and lycées, plus the rare endowment-funded school that charges nothing. They are ranked by the same eight-category editorial composite as every other school on the site; being free earns no bonus and costs no penalty. Chips mark the funding model: state selective schools admit by competitive exam.
State or independent — which wins where?
Our editorial deep-dive on when a free school beats a £50,000 one.
Prefer to browse with filters? See all state schools in the Directory or view them inside the full ranking.