Beijing

Start with the schools that offer the curriculum and support your child needs, then check places for the exact grade and start date. A school can have space overall while a particular class, course or support programme is full.

Look beyond a single curriculum label. ISB teaches its own standards-based programme and offers IB Diploma and AP options in the senior years. WAB and BCIS offer IB programmes, while schools with a British foundation may offer different qualifications later on. Compare the sequence your child would follow, using our curriculum guide. curriculum guide

Beijing’s municipal measures describe a category of schools for children of foreign nationals, including licensing arrangements and provision for Chinese language and culture. This category does not cover every school discussed here. Establish each shortlisted school’s status and how it affects admissions and the programme your child would take. ↗

Under Article 23 of the measures, these schools enrol children of foreign nationals residing legally in Beijing. With district education-authority approval, they may also enrol other groups. These include children of Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan residents, Chinese citizens legally residing overseas and introduced talents; eligibility turns on the documents, not a nationality label alone. Bilingual private schools operate under different arrangements. ↗

ISB’s published criteria show what this means in practice. Families must document one of four categories: foreign-passport children of the founding embassies’ staff; foreign-passport families with a parent on a Chinese work visa and the child on a dependant (S1) visa; Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan families with travel permits, or holders of Q1 visas or Chinese residence permits; and Chinese passport holders with foreign permanent residency and more than a year abroad. Chinese families permanently resident in the mainland are not eligible. Applications run all year; the file needs passports, a birth certificate, the Beijing visas, recent school records in English and teacher recommendations, followed by an English test for non-native speakers and a family meeting. Entry to EY2–Grade 1 follows age on August 31, and Grade 11 applicants (age 16) can take the full IB Diploma or individual IB courses. ↗ ↗ ↗

Keystone Academy, founded in 2014 in Shunyi, describes a Chinese-English bilingual programme and enrols both Chinese and foreign students. Its profile lists IPC, IB Middle Years and IB Diploma programmes. Boarding becomes compulsory from Grade 9. Assess the language demands and residential expectations alongside its academic options. ↗

The following examples combine school schedules and secondary fee listings. Academic years and source limitations are identified below. Compare the same age group and obtain an itemised quotation before making a budget.

• International School of Beijing (Shunyi, 2026–27): annual tuition is RMB 155,800 for EY2 half-day or RMB 247,800 for full-day; RMB 251,800 for EY3–4; RMB 291,800 for Kindergarten; RMB 301,800 for Grades 1–2; RMB 311,800 for Grades 3–5; RMB 331,800 for Grades 6–8; RMB 351,800 for Grades 9–10; and RMB 361,800 for Grades 11–12. Application is RMB 2,800 and the one-time entry fee is RMB 18,000. Optional bus transport costs RMB 16,800–27,300 annually. ↗
• Western Academy of Beijing (Chaoyang, 2026–27): tuition is RMB 148,000 for early years half-day or RMB 249,000 for full-day; RMB 296,000 for Grade 1; RMB 317,400 for Grades 2–5; RMB 336,800 for Grades 6–8; RMB 370,800 for Grades 9–10; and RMB 380,500 for Grades 11–12. Transport within the WAB bus network is included; check whether the route serves your home. ↗
• Dulwich College Beijing (Shunyi): a secondary 2026–27 listing gives tuition of roughly RMB 251,000 in early years through RMB 385,000 in Grades 11–12. The official page lists an RMB 2,900 application fee, a refundable placement deposit and a one-time RMB 15,000 capital development fee. Secondary tuition listing. ↗
• The British School of Beijing (Nord Anglia): Sanlitun’s 2025–26 primary schedule lists RMB 247,000 for full-day nursery/reception through RMB 311,400 for Years 4–6. Its fee page records an RMB 2,800 application fee, an RMB 16,000 refundable deposit, annual bus charges of RMB 17,500–23,000 and a one-time RMB 25,000 EAL charge for eligible Years 1–6 pupils. A separate 2026–27 secondary listing puts Shunyi tuition at roughly RMB 248,000–369,000. Shunyi fee listing. ↗
• YCIS Beijing (Chaoyang, 2025–26): the schedule lists RMB 137,000 for K2 half-day, RMB 239,000 for K3–K4, RMB 287,000–295,000 for primary, RMB 316,000 for Years 7–9 and RMB 334,000 for Years 10–13. Application is RMB 2,500 and the refundable deposit RMB 20,000. The schedule includes a founding-student HKDSE discount of roughly 33%; do not assume that older offer remains available. ↗
• Keystone Academy (Shunyi, 2026–27): tuition is RMB 294,150 for primary, RMB 325,650 for middle school and RMB 328,800 for high school. Boarding and meals cost an additional RMB 110,250 annually, with boarding required from Grade 9. High-school tuition plus that boarding charge totals RMB 439,050 before any other applicable costs. ↗
• Harrow International School Beijing (Shunyi): a secondary compilation gives tuition of roughly RMB 228,600–356,600 by year group. Other third-party figures differ. A current official schedule was not publicly available, so use a direct quotation rather than combining those ranges. ↗
• Beijing City International School (Chaoyang): a secondary compilation gives a fee range of roughly RMB 244,000–343,500. The school has not published a current official schedule, so treat this as an estimate beside the school-issued figures above. ↗

Shunyi, northeast of central Beijing near the airport, has schools including ISB, Dulwich, BSB Shunyi, Harrow and Keystone. Nearby housing may shorten some school journeys, but the district covers a wide area. Test the specific route and include each parent’s work journey in the comparison.

Chaoyang also offers several options: WAB near the Shunyi border, YCIS, BCIS and BSB Sanlitun. BSB Sanlitun serves the younger years, so families considering it should also plan for secondary education. Other schools have different age ranges and campus arrangements; confirm where your child would attend.

Reporting on Beijing’s 2024 air-quality results gives an annual average PM2.5 concentration of 30.5 µg/m³, compared with 89.5 in 2013. It records 290 days classified as having good air quality and two heavily polluted days in 2024. These dated citywide figures show a trend, not daily conditions at a particular campus. ↗

Ask each school how it measures indoor air quality, maintains filters and decides when outdoor play or sport moves inside. Request the written procedure and examples of how it was used. A building’s filtration equipment and a citywide annual average answer different questions.

Entry dates differ by school. For a mid-year move, assessment, subject placement and any catch-up work come first. WAB’s fee terms provide a 10% reduction per calendar month for qualifying enrolment after the October break. ↗ ↗

Joining charges differ from annual tuition. ISB lists an RMB 2,800 application fee and an RMB 18,000 entry fee for 2026–27. WAB lists an RMB 2,100 application fee and requires RMB 30,000 of annual tuition to secure enrolment; that portion is non-refundable, not an additional RMB 30,000 fee. Keep refundable deposits separate from costs and check any English-language support charge.

Keystone’s boarding requirement from Grade 9 affects the weekly routine even for families living in Beijing. Visit the houses and ask about supervision, weekends, medical support, communication with parents and time at home. Its description includes residential faculty; confirm staffing for your child’s house and age group.

School schedules support the ISB, WAB and Keystone examples and some of the joining charges at other schools. Dulwich and BSB Shunyi tuition figures come from secondary listings; Harrow and BCIS ranges also require direct confirmation. The air-quality figures come from reporting on the city’s 2024 results. School fee sources: ISB WAB Dulwich Beijing BSB Sanlitun Keystone Academy

The guide uses published sources, with fee years identified where recorded. For our approach to sources, other profiles and corrections, use the links below. our research standard school directory guides hub corrections