International school fees in Phuket: what to expect in 2026

The 2026 headline tuition

Phuket international school tuition for 2026 falls into three clear tiers. The top tier, anchored by British International School Phuket and UWC Thailand International School, runs THB 525,000 to THB 760,000 per year for secondary years (USD 14,500 to USD 21,000). The mid tier, covering HeadStart, Kajonkiet, QSI, Berda Claude and Oakridge, runs THB 280,000 to THB 580,000 (USD 7,800 to USD 16,000). The smaller boutique schools, including Boat Lagoon, The Cabin, Cherngtalay International and Tilton, run THB 230,000 to THB 420,000 (USD 6,400 to USD 11,700). Early years and primary fees are typically 20 to 35 percent below the secondary headline, and sixth form fees are usually at or near the top of the range.

These figures are the published tuition. The realistic family cost is materially higher once the standard add ons are included, which the rest of this guide covers in detail. For an exact figure for your specific situation, run your school choices and year of entry through our cost calculator.

Fees by school

The table below shows 2026 published tuition by school across early years, primary, secondary and sixth form. Figures are in Thai baht and assume the standard, non-discounted annual fee. Where a school offers two campuses, the figure shown is for the senior or flagship campus.

BISP and UWC sit clearly at the top of the market and have moved their fees in line with each other over the past three years. The mid tier (HeadStart, Kajonkiet, QSI, Berda Claude, Oakridge) is tightly clustered with smaller gaps between schools at each age level. The boutique end is the most price-sensitive segment and most schools there review fees in response to local market conditions rather than to the regional benchmark. For the full ranking of which school sits at which price point and whether the gap is justified, see our best international schools in Phuket piece.

The hidden fees parents miss

Published tuition is rarely the final number. The fees that catch out new families are usually one of six categories. The first is the capital levy or development fee. Most Phuket international schools charge a one off capital levy at registration of THB 80,000 to THB 250,000 per child, which contributes to ongoing capital projects. BISP and UWC sit at the upper end of this range; the mid tier schools at THB 60,000 to THB 150,000. Some schools allow the capital levy to be paid in two or three instalments across the first two or three years; others require full payment at registration.

The second is the registration fee itself, typically THB 5,000 to THB 25,000, non refundable. The third is an annual technology or resource fee that several schools have introduced over the past three years to cover one to one device programmes, learning platforms and curriculum licensing. This typically runs THB 10,000 to THB 25,000 per year at the schools that charge it. The fourth is the school bus, which runs THB 40,000 to THB 90,000 per year depending on the distance from the school. The fifth is uniform, set up cost THB 8,000 to THB 18,000 in the first year and a smaller annual replacement cost thereafter.

The sixth and often biggest is the exam fee at sixth form, which runs THB 35,000 to THB 70,000 for IB Diploma examinations and a similar range for the AQA, Edexcel or Cambridge A-Level series. These are charged in Year 12 and Year 13 separately. Add to these the trip fees (school excursions, residentials, the Year 7 induction trip and at sixth form the IB CAS expedition fees) and the realistic loading sits at 15 to 25 percent on top of headline tuition.

Building the all in number

For a single child in Year 8 at BISP in 2026, the realistic family cost is approximately THB 800,000 to THB 850,000 per year once tuition (THB 660K), the prorated capital levy (THB 25K to THB 40K), the technology fee (THB 20K), the school bus (THB 60K) and uniform plus trips (THB 20K to THB 35K) are added together. For two children at the same school across primary and secondary, the figure scales to roughly THB 1.45 million per year, assuming a modest sibling discount on the capital levy.

For a single child in Year 8 at HeadStart, the equivalent calculation comes to approximately THB 600,000 per year. For Kajonkiet the same child sits at approximately THB 500,000 per year. For Boat Lagoon or The Cabin, the figure sits at THB 430,000 to THB 480,000. The gap between BISP at one end and the boutique schools at the other is therefore around THB 350,000 to THB 400,000 per child per year, after all loadings.

For a family with three school age children, the all in education line at the top tier sits at roughly THB 2.2 million to THB 2.5 million per year. At the mid tier it sits at THB 1.5 million to THB 1.8 million. At the boutique end it sits at THB 1.1 million to THB 1.4 million. These figures help to frame the realistic family budget decision rather than the school choice itself; many families end up choosing differently for different children based on the right academic fit. The cheapest international schools in Phuket piece covers the lower end of the market in detail, and the moving to Phuket with kids guide places the school cost in the context of the broader family budget.

Payment plans and discounts

Most Phuket international schools accept tuition in either three or four instalments aligned to the academic terms, with the first instalment due before the start of the academic year. A growing minority (HeadStart, Oakridge, several boutique schools) now offer monthly payment plans, which is unusual in the regional market and reflects the boutique scale of the Phuket sector. Annual upfront payment usually attracts a 2 to 4 percent discount; this is worth requesting at the registration stage if cash flow allows.

Sibling discounts vary widely. BISP offers a 5 to 10 percent discount from the second child onwards in primary and a smaller discount in secondary. UWC's discount structure is more nuanced and tied to the school's needs-based fee policy. HeadStart, Kajonkiet, Oakridge and several mid tier schools offer 5 to 15 percent discounts on the second and subsequent children. The smaller boutique schools rarely offer a formal sibling discount but may negotiate at the margins for families enrolling three children or more.

Scholarships are most developed at UWC Thailand, which holds dedicated needs-based and merit scholarships tied to the UWC movement. BISP runs a small academic scholarship programme at sixth form. HeadStart and several smaller schools run occasional bursaries that are not publicly advertised. Families with strong academic or sport profiles should ask explicitly at the application stage; the worst answer is no, and several schools have quietly increased their scholarship provision in response to the changing local economy.

Fee trajectory over the past five years

Phuket international school fees rose between 4 and 7 percent per year between 2020 and 2024, broadly tracking the regional Asian market. Since 2024, the trajectory has steepened slightly, with annual increases of 6 to 9 percent at the top tier as schools have invested in expanded facilities, additional academic staffing and the expansion of boarding at BISP. Mid tier schools have moved more conservatively, with annual increases of 4 to 6 percent over the same period.

Families planning a five year stay should budget for cumulative fee increases of around 30 to 40 percent over the full duration. This is materially below the Singapore and Hong Kong markets, where five year cumulative increases of 50 percent or more have been common, but still ahead of general consumer price inflation in Thailand. Building a 7 percent annual increase into the long term family budget is a defensible starting assumption, with adjustment up or down based on the specific school's recent fee history.

Phuket fees in regional context

Phuket Tier 1 fees sit roughly 25 percent below Bangkok Tier 1, 60 percent below Hong Kong's leading international schools and 70 percent below the Singapore top tier for broadly comparable academic outcomes. The mid tier is even more favourable in relative terms; HeadStart at THB 580,000 sits at roughly USD 16,000, which is around 40 percent of the equivalent Hong Kong mid tier and around 30 percent of the equivalent Singapore mid tier.

The combination of competitive fees and the Thai Long-Term Resident or Thailand Privilege visa has made Phuket a serious option for families who would previously have defaulted to a larger Asian city. The trade-off is the smaller sixth form cohorts (limiting subject choice at Diploma and A-Level), the shallower SEN provision and the seasonal traffic constraint, all of which the Phuket pillar piece covers in detail.

Where the value sits

For most expat families, the question is not the cheapest fee or the most expensive school, but where the value sits in the middle. The Phuket mid tier, in our reading, has the strongest value to academic outcome ratio of any Asian market we have surveyed. HeadStart, Kajonkiet and Oakridge deliver outcomes comparable to schools charging 60 to 80 percent more in Bangkok or Singapore. The trade-offs are smaller sixth form cohorts and less depth at the very top end of the academic spectrum.

For families certain about a Tier 1 academic outcome and a deep sixth form subject offer, the BISP and UWC fees are defensible. Both schools place students at Oxbridge, the Ivy League and the leading European destinations, and the cohort size at sixth form (BISP especially) supports a broad subject menu. For families on a more constrained budget, the mid tier is a credible alternative without compromising on quality of teaching for the majority of children.

The schools to be cautious about are not the cheapest ones, but the schools whose published fees do not match their inspection rating or university destination record. A modest number of Phuket schools quote fees that suggest a mid tier position but deliver outcomes closer to the boutique end. Asking for the most recent inspection report, the three year university destination list and the sixth form cohort size is the practical way to identify these schools at the visit stage.

Planning a five year budget

A family with two children planning a five year posting in Phuket should budget for total education spend of roughly THB 7 million to THB 10 million at the mid tier, or THB 14 million to THB 18 million at the top tier, across the full five years. This includes 6 to 8 percent annual fee increases, the capital levy paid upfront, the standard add ons and the IB or A-Level exam fees at the end. It excludes university preparation, external tutoring and the cost of any specific learning support.

Stretching the budget further is possible at the boutique end, where two children for five years can be educated for under THB 5 million in total, although the practical reality is that most families combine schools (one child at a mid tier school and one at a boutique school) rather than placing both at the boutique end. This is unusual but increasingly common given the Phuket sector's heterogeneity. The cost calculator models any combination of schools and year groups, which is the most flexible way to plan a multi child budget.

Related guides

• Best international schools in Phuket
• Cheapest international schools in Phuket
• Moving to Phuket with kids

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