In this guide
The Sydney school landscape
Sydney does not have a deep international school cluster in the Singapore or Dubai sense. The genuinely international campuses are International Grammar School (IGS), Sydney Japanese International School, German International School and a small number of further bilingual or curriculum-specific schools. The bigger story for relocating families is the Australian independent and Catholic school market, which is large, well-resourced and accepts foreign passport holders without restriction. Most expat families on multi-year postings end up at one of the established Australian independent schools, especially when the family is anchored in the eastern suburbs, the lower north shore or the inner west.
This matters for the fee comparison. Comparing IGS at AUD 30,000 to a major Australian independent at AUD 36,000 to AUD 42,000 produces very different total costs, and the choice often turns on curriculum (IB, NSW HSC or another) rather than cost alone. The 2026 picture below covers both layers.
2026 fee table at a glance
Indicative 2026 tuition for the upper primary and lower secondary years, in Australian dollars. All figures are tuition only and exclude the capital levy, building fund, technology, transport, uniform and excursion costs covered below.
| School | Curriculum | Primary tuition | Secondary tuition |
|---|---|---|---|
| International Grammar School (IGS) | IB & NSW HSC | AUD 26,000 to 32,000 | AUD 32,000 to 38,000 |
| German International School Sydney | German & bilingual | AUD 21,000 to 28,000 | AUD 26,000 to 33,000 |
| Sydney Japanese International School | Japanese & English | AUD 19,000 to 24,000 | AUD 22,000 to 28,000 |
| St Andrew's Cathedral School | NSW HSC, IB at sixth | AUD 31,000 to 37,000 | AUD 40,000 to 45,000 |
| SCEGGS Darlinghurst | NSW HSC | AUD 33,000 to 38,000 | AUD 42,000 to 47,000 |
| Sydney Grammar (boys) | NSW HSC | AUD 37,000 to 42,000 | AUD 44,000 to 49,000 |
| Cranbrook (boys) | NSW HSC, IB at sixth | AUD 36,000 to 41,000 | AUD 43,000 to 48,000 |
| Ascham (girls) | NSW HSC, IB at sixth | AUD 35,000 to 40,000 | AUD 42,000 to 47,000 |
| Reddam House | NSW HSC | AUD 30,000 to 36,000 | AUD 39,000 to 44,000 |
The international schools sit materially below the top tier Australian independent schools on headline tuition. The trade is curriculum portability and university destination breadth, which tends to be the load-bearing decision for families on rotation rather than long-term residency.
A second observation worth flagging is the spread between primary and secondary tuition. Australian schools historically charge meaningfully more for the senior years, and the gap has widened in 2026 with several Tier 1 independents pushing through a 6 to 8 per cent above-inflation increase for senior school. A child entering at Year 3 and leaving at Year 12 will see tuition roughly double over the ten years even before annual indexation, which matters for families building a multi-year savings plan. The international schools tend to run a flatter fee curve, which is part of why they remain popular for families with multiple children moving through the system together.
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Hidden costs and the all-in number
Australian schools, including the international ones in Sydney, layer a number of supplementary fees on top of tuition. The principal categories are the capital levy or building fund (typically AUD 1,500 to AUD 4,000 per year, voluntary at some schools but practically expected), an application fee (AUD 200 to AUD 350), a confirmation deposit (AUD 1,000 to AUD 4,000 at signing), the technology levy (AUD 600 to AUD 1,500 per year, particularly at the BYOD schools), and the annual costs of uniform, books, sports kit, music tuition, excursions and overnight camps.
For a Tier 1 Australian independent school the all-in number sits 15 to 25 per cent above headline tuition. For an international school in Sydney the loading is closer to 10 to 18 per cent because the capital and technology levies tend to be smaller. A useful rule of thumb is to add AUD 6,000 to AUD 12,000 per child per year on top of the headline tuition for an honest year one budget. For a side-by-side cost view, see our Sydney international school fees piece and the fees explorer tool.
Concessions, discounts and sibling rules
Sibling discounts are standard across the Sydney market. Most schools run a 5 to 12.5 per cent reduction on the second child's tuition and 10 to 20 per cent on the third. Several international schools and a smaller number of Australian independents offer corporate fee assistance schemes for embassy, diplomatic or research postings; these are not widely advertised and need to be asked for directly.
For families on short rotations of one or two years, a meaningful number of schools also offer prorata enrolment, with fees billed by term rather than by year. The Catholic schools and several of the independent secondary schools are particularly accommodating on this. Bursary and scholarship programmes exist at almost every Tier 1 Australian independent school but are competitive and apply mostly to entry at Year 7 or Year 11.
One quieter benefit worth knowing about is the GST treatment of school fees in Australia. Education provided by a registered school is GST-free, which means that the headline tuition is the headline tuition with no additional consumption tax loaded on top. Some supplementary charges (uniform, music tuition, technology services) are GST-inclusive, but the core fee bill is cleaner than in some other markets. For families with employer-paid education allowances, the GST treatment can shape how the allowance interacts with tax residency. Take advice early in the posting if education is part of the package.
Another point on payment scheduling. Most Sydney schools bill termly in advance, with the first term invoice payable in December or January before the school year starts. A small but growing number of schools offer a monthly direct debit option, sometimes with a small surcharge of 1 to 2 per cent. Cash flow planning matters more for relocating families than for established residents because the first year tends to coincide with significant other one-off costs (rental bonds, vehicles, furniture), so check the payment timing carefully before signing.
Australian independent and Catholic alternatives
For families on long postings or eventual permanent residency, the Australian independent and Catholic school market is genuinely competitive. The schools listed in the table above (Sydney Grammar, Cranbrook, Ascham, SCEGGS, St Andrew's, Reddam) all accept foreign passport holders and run credible IB or NSW HSC pathways. Catholic schools in the Sydney Archdiocese system charge meaningfully less, typically AUD 8,000 to AUD 18,000 per year, and operate to a high standard with the additional requirement of Catholic education.
Public schools, including the comprehensive and selective options, charge non-resident fees of approximately AUD 12,000 to AUD 15,000 per year for international students. This is a real option for some expat families, particularly those on temporary visas with school-aged children, and is worth investigating before assuming the private route is required. For more on the broader school market, including the best IB-focused options, see our best IB schools in Sydney piece.
How Sydney compares to other postings
Sydney sits in the middle of the global expat school cost range for Tier 1 options. The top tier independent schools (Sydney Grammar, Cranbrook, Ascham) all run AUD 50,000 to AUD 60,000 all-in per child once the supplementary costs are included, which is roughly USD 33,000 to USD 40,000 at 2026 exchange rates. That is below Singapore Tier 1 (USD 40,000 to USD 45,000) and well below Hong Kong (USD 50,000 plus) but above Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur. The international schools in Sydney (IGS, GISS, SJIS) sit at AUD 35,000 to AUD 45,000 all-in, which is materially cheaper.
For families weighing Sydney against another posting on cost alone, the broader cost of living (Sydney housing, healthcare and groceries) tends to move the decision more than schooling. See our moving to Sydney with kids guide for the full picture.
How to choose on cost
The honest version of the Sydney fee conversation runs in three steps. First, pick the curriculum. If your family is moving on for a fixed-term posting and needs portable qualifications, IGS or one of the Australian independents offering IB at sixth form is the cleaner answer. If you are likely to stay long term, the NSW HSC is widely recognised and pricing flexibility is broader. Second, pick the geographic catchment based on your housing decision and acceptable commute. Sydney traffic is a real factor, and the difference between a 15 minute and a 45 minute morning run is meaningful. Third, build the year one budget honestly. Include the capital levy and technology costs, not just the headline tuition, and check the school's sibling and corporate concession rules before signing.
For a side-by-side view, the school comparison tool lets you pull up to three Sydney schools next to each other. Pair it with our best international schools in Sydney ranking for the broader picture, and use the cost calculator for a complete year one outlay model.
A useful sanity check before signing is to model what fees look like across the full duration of your expected stay. A two-child family at a Tier 1 independent school in Sydney for five years will see roughly AUD 500,000 to AUD 600,000 in cumulative tuition and supplementary fees, before factoring in annual indexation. Compare that to the same family at IGS, where the same period sits closer to AUD 380,000 to AUD 450,000. The gap is real and matters for the broader relocation budget, particularly when housing, healthcare and visa costs are also being absorbed during the first year. Read the cost as a multi-year commitment rather than a single annual bill.