WTS — World's Top Schools

Research · 2026

The Value 100

The most expensive school is rarely the best one — and the best one is quite often not the most expensive. We fitted every verified fee on record against our editorial scores, country by country and curriculum by curriculum, and asked a simple question: which schools charge dramatically less than their standing says they could — in their own market, for their own kind of offer? These are the answers.

602

schools with verified fees analysed

17

countries in the fit

-28.7%

median discount to expected fee (listed schools)

India6 schools

1The Cathedral and John Connon SchoolMumbaiIB-92.8%2The Bombay Scottish School, MahimMumbaiIndian (CBSE/ICSE)-59.6%3St. Xavier's Collegiate SchoolKolkataIndian (CBSE/ICSE)-58.8%4Campion SchoolMumbaiIndian (CBSE/ICSE)-56.6%5Aditya Birla World AcademyMumbaiIB-40.3%6Oberoi International SchoolMumbaiIB-37.7%

United States6 schools

1St. Xavier High School CincinnatiCincinnati, OHAmerican-64.8%2St. Thomas Aquinas High SchoolFort Lauderdale, FLAmerican-63.5%3Carmel High SchoolCarmel, INAmerican-62.8%4Bishop Gorman High SchoolLas Vegas, NVAmerican-61.4%5Jesuit High SchoolPortland, ORAmerican-60.2%6University SchoolHunting Valley, OHAmerican-58.6%

United Arab Emirates6 schools

1The Winchester SchoolDubaiBritish-57%2GEMS Modern AcademyDubai · Top 300IB-40.3%3Delhi Private School, DubaiDubaiIndian (CBSE/ICSE)-37.6%4Merryland International SchoolAbu DhabiBritish-31.5%5Dubai International Academy Emirates HillsDubaiIB-30.6%6Raha International SchoolAbu DhabiIB-29.2%

United Kingdom6 schools

1Lycée Français Charles de GaulleLondonBritish-54.7%2Badminton SchoolBristolBritish-53.5%3Solihull SchoolSolihullBritish-42.9%4Manchester Grammar SchoolManchester · Top 300British-38.5%5Royal Grammar School WorcesterWorcesterBritish-36.1%6Mount KellyTavistockBritish-36%

China6 schools

1Shanghai High School International DivisionShanghaiIB-49.6%2YK Pao SchoolShanghaiIB-31.8%3Xiamen International SchoolXiamenAmerican-17.7%4International School of TianjinTianjinIB-15.5%5Nanjing International SchoolNanjingIB-6.5%6Suzhou Singapore International SchoolSuzhouIB-4.3%

Thailand5 schools

1Chiang Mai International SchoolChiang MaiAmerican-49.3%2Harrow International School BangkokBangkokBritish-31%3KIS International SchoolBangkokIB-17.6%4NIST International SchoolBangkokIB-17.5%5Concordian International SchoolSamut PrakanIB-2.5%

Japan6 schools

1Lycée Français International de TokyoTokyoNational / other-48.4%2Kyoto International SchoolKyotoIB-30.7%3Deutsche Schule Tokyo YokohamaYokohamaNational / other-29.3%4Fukuoka International SchoolFukuokaIB-23.6%5Seisen International SchoolTokyoIB-16.5%6International School of the Sacred HeartTokyoAmerican-16%

Netherlands4 schools

1International School AlmereAlmereIB-45.8%2Rijnlands Lyceum OegstgeestOegstgeestIB-33.9%3UWC MaastrichtMaastrichtIB-30.1%4The International School of The HagueThe HagueIB-19%

Indonesia4 schools

1Gandhi Memorial Intercontinental SchoolJakartaIB-43.7%2Sekolah Bogor RayaBogorIB-35.9%3Mentari Intercultural School JakartaJakartaBritish-31.8%4British School JakartaSouth TangerangIB-3.3%

Australia6 schools

1Marist College AshgroveAshgrove, QLDNational / other-36.9%2Guildford Grammar SchoolGuildfordNational / other-28.8%3Geelong Grammar SchoolCorio, Victoria · Top 300IB-26.3%4Anglican Church Grammar SchoolBrisbaneIB-20.7%5Westminster SchoolAdelaideNational / other-18.3%6The McDonald CollegeNorth Strathfield, SydneyNational / other-18.2%

Malaysia4 schools

1Uplands SchoolPenangIB-36.9%2Nexus International School MalaysiaPutrajayaIB-19.3%3Tenby International School Setia Eco ParkShah AlamBritish-6.6%4Epsom College in MalaysiaNegeri SembilanIB-1.2%

Germany6 schools

1Berlin International SchoolBerlinIB-33.5%2International School of BremenBremenIB-28.6%3International School of StuttgartStuttgartIB-8.3%4Bavarian International SchoolMunichIB-7.4%5International School of HamburgHamburgIB-4.8%6Metropolitan School FrankfurtFrankfurtIB-2.7%

Canada6 schools

1Edge SchoolCalgary, ABNational / other-31.9%2Balmoral Hall SchoolWinnipegIB-31.1%3Halifax Grammar SchoolHalifaxIB-30.6%4University of Toronto SchoolsTorontoAmerican-20.8%5Rothesay Netherwood SchoolRothesayNational / other-20%6West Point Grey AcademyVancouverIB-16.2%

Peru4 schools

1Colegio AlpamayoLimaNational / other-27.1%2Colegio Peruano Norteamericano Abraham LincolnLimaAmerican-22.8%3Markham CollegeLimaIB-13.2%4Colegio Santa ÚrsulaLimaNational / other-1.8%

Singapore4 schools

1Global Indian International School (Singapore)SingaporeIB-25.2%2German European School SingaporeSingaporeIB-17.1%3Chatsworth International SchoolSingaporeIB-9.9%4Tanglin Trust SchoolSingapore · Top 300IB-0.3%

South Korea5 schools

1North London Collegiate School JejuJejuIB-13.7%2Seoul International SchoolSeongnamAmerican-13.5%3Cheongna Dalton SchoolIncheonAmerican-12%4Korea International SchoolSeongnamIB-8.1%5Dulwich College SeoulSeoulIB-5.5%

Hong Kong4 schools

1German Swiss International SchoolHong KongIB-5.7%2French International School of Hong KongJardine's LookoutIB-5.3%3Hong Kong International SchoolHong KongIB-5.2%4Harrow International School Hong KongHong KongIB-2.8%

Methodology

We regress the natural log of each school's verified annual day fee (USD) against its World's Top Schools editorial score, fitting separately within every country that has at least eight verified-fee schools — schools only ever compete against their own market, never across currencies or economies. Expected fees are then adjusted for the school's curriculum family (IB, British, American, Indian, national) using each family's typical price level in that market: a CBSE school in Dubai is judged against CBSE pricing, not IB pricing. The value gap is the percentage by which the actual fee undercuts that curriculum-adjusted expectation. We list up to six schools per country. Only schools with independently verified fees of $3,000+ and editorial scores of 40+ qualify. Fees change; we recompute continuously.

What we deliberately exclude

  • State-subsidised and local-exam-entry schools (e.g. Singapore MOE schools, Hong Kong DSS/aided schools, Japanese entrance-exam academies, Quebec subsidised colleges) — their low fees reflect public subsidy or closed local admission, not value an arriving family can access.
  • Single-discipline specialist academies (ballet, music, sport) — their fees don't buy a full K-12 education, so fee comparison is meaningless.
  • Countries with fewer than eight verified-fee schools — value is judged against local peers only, never a global average that rewards weak currencies.

Curious what those excluded schools look like through this lens — and why the spectacular numbers mislead? Read: The bargains we turned down.

Full picture: the Global School Fees Report 2026

Inflation league, boarding premium, the UK VAT experiment — the annual flagship.

Read the report