The short answer

International school tuition in Thailand ranges from about ฿260,000 a year at budget schools to almost ฿1.2 million at the top, before one-off fees of up to ฿260,000, buses, lunches and exams. Plan around ฿550,000 a year per child at a budget school, ฿750,000–900,000 at a mid-range school and ฿1.15 million or more at a top one, add 25–30% in the first year, and assume fees rise most years. Start saving as early as possible: a monthly plan growing at around 8% a year over 13 years means growth can pay over 40% of the target. Use a lump sum if you have one, plan the currency, and protect the plan with life cover. Lawrence will build it with you, free.

International school fees in 2026/27

Yearly tuition at Bangkok international schools, from their published 2026/27 fee schedules, and a realistic planning budget including extras.

Source: Thailand Starter Kit (4 August 2026), from schools' published fees. Planning budgets include buses, lunches, uniforms, trips and exams. Add 25–30% in year one. At ฿44.38 = £1.

What some well-known schools charge

To make the ranges concrete, here are published 2026/27 fees at some well-known Bangkok-area schools:

• International School Bangkok (ISB) — from ฿659,000 for Pre-K to ฿1,197,000 for high school, plus a ฿260,000 registration fee.
• Harrow International School Bangkok — up to ฿1,063,000 for Years 12–13, with a ฿225,000 admission fee and a refundable deposit; boarding costs extra.
• Regents International School Bangkok — ฿668,100 for Years 3–6, rising to ฿780,000 for Years 12–13.
• Ruamrudee International School — from ฿538,400 for Pre-K to ฿790,500 for Grade 12, plus ฿200,000 registration.
• St Andrews International School Sukhumvit 107 — from ฿220,000 for part-time nursery to ฿799,000 for Year 12.
• Wells International School — from ฿259,000 for nursery to ฿570,000 for Grades 11–12 in Bangkok.

Outside Bangkok, fees vary widely; Phuket, Chiang Mai, Hua Hin and Pattaya all have well-regarded schools across the price range. Our international schools directory compares 178 schools across Thailand by curriculum, fees and location.

The costs on top of tuition

Tuition is only part of the bill. Families are often surprised by what comes on top:

Learning support for children still building their English can add ฿60,000–160,000 a year in the early years at some schools. And fees jump at key stages: at one top school, moving from Pre-K to elementary is a rise of more than 50% in one step.

Fees rise — plan for it

International school fees usually rise most years. One Bangkok school states its tuition is set to rise by about 6–10% per academic year. Add the jumps between school stages, and the cost of a child's later years can be far higher than today's fee list suggests.

At a mid-range planning budget of ฿825,000 a year, fourteen years of schooling costs about ฿11.55 million at today's prices. If fees rise 7% a year, the same fourteen years cost about ฿18.6 million — roughly £419,000 at today's exchange rate. That's the real number to plan for.

One child, nursery to Year 13

Fourteen years of schooling at today's planning budgets, before and after yearly rises.

Simple illustration at ฿44.38 = £1, excluding year-one fees. Rises of 7% a year modelled on one school's stated 6–10%.

Choosing a school with your finances in mind

The right school is about your child first — curriculum, teaching, community, location and how long you'll be in Thailand. But money matters too, and it's far easier to plan before you commit than to change schools later.

• Look at the whole journey — the fees for the stage your child will finish at, not just the one they start in.
• Ask for the full fee schedule, including one-off fees, buses, lunches and exams.
• Ask how much fees have risen over the past few years, and what's planned.
• Think about the commute — living near school can save a large bus bill, and hours each week.
• Check the curriculum route to university — British, American and IB lead to different options and costs.
• Consider siblings — some schools offer meaningful discounts for second and later children.

Our international schools directory compares 178 schools across Thailand.

Budgeting for the first year

The first year at a new school is the most expensive, because one-off charges come on top of tuition. At one mid-range Bangkok school, registration and enrolment fees together come to ฿170,000 before the first term's tuition; at the top schools, registration or admission alone can be ฿225,000–260,000, often with a refundable deposit of ฿200,000 or more on top. Add a year's bus service and lunches, uniforms and a device, and year one can easily cost 25–30% more than later years.

If you're moving to Thailand with children, budget for this separately from your relocation costs — and if your employer contributes to school fees, check exactly what's covered, because one-off fees and extras are often excluded.

Three ways to pay for school

From income, as you go

The most common approach: pay each term from salary or pension. Simple, but every baht comes from your pocket, and a job change, illness or weaker pound can put schooling at risk.

From a lump sum

A house sale, bonus or inheritance can be invested and drawn on as fees fall due — with money for the next few years kept safe and the rest invested for growth.

From a savings plan started early

Monthly saving from a child's early years, invested for growth, lets the returns pay a large part of the bill. It's the most powerful approach — and the earlier you start, the more growth does.

Most families combine them: income for the early years, savings and investments for the expensive later years and university.

Let growth pay part of the bill

Here's what starting early can do. Say you want £100,000 ready in thirteen years — for a child's secondary school years or university. Saved in cash at no interest, that's about £641 a month. Invested in a plan growing at around 8% a year after charges — the growth Lawrence's education plans typically aim for — it's about £366 a month. You pay in about 57%; growth provides the rest.

The same logic works for any target. To build about £130,000 — roughly seven years of mid-range secondary fees at today's prices — in eleven years at 8%, you'd save around £617 a month and pay in about £81,500. Investment growth isn't guaranteed, which is why plans should start early, be reviewed every year and move to safer investments as the fees approach.

Where to start

A savings plan for every child, and the right way to pay fees from pounds.

Building a school-fee plan, step by step

1. Choose the likely schools — or a tier — for each child, and note the stages.
2. List the fees year by year from now until each child leaves, including year-one costs.
3. Allow for rises — at least the school's own guidance, or 6–7% a year.
4. Decide what income will cover and what savings must provide.
5. Start a monthly plan per child, as early as possible, invested for growth.
6. Add any lump sums, keeping the next few years' fees safe.
7. Move to safer investments as each school stage approaches.
8. Protect it with life cover, and review every year.

Planning for more than one child

With two or three children, the years when fees overlap are the hardest. Two children at a mid-range school at the same time can mean ฿1.6–1.8 million a year at today's prices, and more once fees rise — often just when the older child is heading for the most expensive senior years and university is in sight.

• Draw a timeline showing every child's school years side by side, to spot the peak years.
• Give each child their own plan, so you can see progress and adjust separately.
• Front-load savings for the peak years, when income alone may not stretch.
• Ask about sibling discounts on registration and tuition.
• Keep retirement saving going — your children can borrow for university; you can't borrow for retirement.

Our guide to international regular savings solutions compares monthly plans you could use for each child.

Currency: earning in pounds, paying in baht

Thai schools charge in baht. If your income or savings are in pounds, the exchange rate can change the real cost of a school year by thousands of pounds. A pound bought around ฿70 in the late 2000s and about ฿44 in October 2026 — the same ฿825,000 fee would have cost roughly £11,800 then and about £18,600 now.

• Fix the rate for the year's fees once you know the bill, with a forward contract.
• Use a specialist for termly payments rather than a high-street bank.
• Hold some savings in baht as each child nears school, especially in the final years.
• Budget at a cautious rate when planning years ahead.

Our guide to forward currency contracts explains how to fix a rate.

Paying fees smartly

• Ask about sibling discounts — some schools reduce registration or tuition for second and later children.
• Consider paying a year upfront — one school offers 3% off for paying the full year in advance.
• Avoid costly instalments — at one school, paying in two or three instalments adds 5–6%.
• Watch card surcharges of 1–3%; a bank transfer at a good rate is usually cheaper.
• Pay on time — late fees can run to ฿200–500 a day at some schools.
• Read the refund rules before you pay, in case plans change.

Protect the plan

A school-fee plan depends on you. If a parent dies or can't work, the fees still fall due. Families can protect against that with:

• Life cover sized to the remaining fees, ideally written in trust so it pays out quickly.
• Income protection or critical illness cover for the main earner.
• Health insurance for the whole family, so medical bills don't raid the school fund.
• Wills and guardianship in both countries, naming who would care for the children.

We take leads for insurance and can introduce you to specialists who arrange cover for expat families. Our guide to financial planning for international families covers protection in more detail.

When grandparents want to help

Many grandparents would love to help with school fees — and it can be one of the most effective ways for a family to pass on money. A few points are worth knowing:

• Regular gifts from income can be free of UK inheritance tax if they're part of a pattern and don't reduce the giver's standard of living — worth checking with an adviser.
• Thai gift tax exempts gifts from parents and grandparents to children and grandchildren up to ฿20 million per calendar year.
• Paying into a savings plan or trust for a grandchild can be more effective than paying fees directly, giving growth time to work.
• Agree it in writing within the family, so everyone knows what's expected.

Questions to ask a school about fees

1. What is the full fee schedule for every year group, including one-off fees?
2. How much have fees risen in each of the last few years?
3. What's included in tuition — lunch, trips, exams, devices?
4. Are there sibling or early-payment discounts?
5. What are the payment dates, methods and any surcharges?
6. What is the refund policy if we have to leave?

Don't forget university

School fees end at 18, but for many families the biggest single cost comes next: university, in the UK, Thailand or elsewhere. Fees and living costs depend heavily on the country and on your child's fee status, which can be affected by where your family has been living. It's worth planning school and university together, with the university years funded mainly from savings started when your child was young. Our guide to preparing for international school or university fees looks at university in more detail.

The most common mistakes

1. Planning at today's fees — ignoring yearly rises and stage jumps.
2. Forgetting year-one costs — registration and deposits can add hundreds of thousands of baht.
3. Starting to save too late, leaving growth little time to help.
4. Keeping fee money in risky investments just before it's needed.
5. Paying fees through a bank at a poor exchange rate, term after term.
6. No protection if a parent dies or can't work.
7. Raiding retirement savings to pay school fees.
8. Forgetting university until it's close.

Three real-world examples

James and Ploy: starting at birth

James and Ploy started a monthly plan for their daughter when she was born, aiming to fund her secondary years and university. With thirteen years of growth, the plan is designed so that growth, not just their contributions, pays a large share of the bill.

Mark: the bonus that became a fee fund

Mark, a Bangkok-based engineer, received a large bonus when his two sons were in primary school. He kept the next three years' fees in cash and invested the rest for their secondary years, fixing the exchange rate each year as the fees fell due.

Claire and Tom: the year-one shock

Claire and Tom moved to Bangkok with two children and hadn't budgeted for registration fees and deposits. After a difficult first year, a review with Lawrence set up savings plans for both children and a forward contract for each year's fees.

Your school-fee checklist

• I've shortlisted schools and know their full fees.
• I've listed fees year by year for each child, with year-one costs.
• I've allowed for yearly rises and stage jumps.
• I have a savings plan per child, started as early as possible.
• Fee money is moving to safer investments as it's needed.
• I have a currency plan for paying fees.
• The plan is protected with life and health cover.
• I review it every year, and I'm planning for university too.

Paying school fees safely

Fraudsters sometimes send fake invoices or "updated bank details" for school fees. Always confirm payment details directly with the school, by phone or in person, before sending money — and use a private, protected connection on public Wi-Fi when you bank online.

How we researched this guide

Fees, one-off costs, extras, discounts and payment terms come from Thailand Starter Kit's analysis of international school fees in Thailand (4 August 2026), based on schools' published 2026/27 fee schedules. Planning budgets come from our guide to financial planning for international families. The education-planning illustration assumes growth of 8% a year after charges, the level Lawrence's education plans typically aim for; growth isn't guaranteed. Conversions at ฿44.38 = £1 (Wise, 12 October 2026). Checked 14 October 2026. This guide is general information, not personal financial advice — always confirm current fees with each school.