Bucharest more expensive than the average city in Europe for international schools in 2023 - research

Bucharest is more expensive than the average city in Europe for international schools, ranking 13th out of 31 cities in the new 2023 research released by the International Schools Database. The top 3 most expensive cities in Europe are all located in Switzerland, while Copenhagen is last at number 31.

Switzerland remained the most expensive country in Europe for international schooling in 2023, with Zurich - Zug (median price USD 30,701 per year), Lausanne - Vaud (USD 27,271), and Geneva (USD 26,553) being the top three most expensive cities in the continent. In fact, median prices in Swiss cities are a minimum of 16% higher than any other European city included in the research.

Meanwhile, Copenhagen remains the least expensive city for international schooling in Europe, ranking 31st. The median price here is USD 5,143.

In Bucharest, the median price is USD 12,812 per year. Overall, the cost in the Romanian capital ranges from a minimum of USD 5,870 to a maximum of USD 24,478.

“Eastern Europe’s reputation as a cheaper part of the continent does not hold up when it comes to international school fees. 6 of the 8 Eastern European cities in our research have median prices of over USD 10,000 per year,” reads the research.

“Some major European capital cities are lower in the price rankings than you may expect. Rome, Berlin, Madrid, and Amsterdam all feature in the lower half of our price scale.”

The International Schools Database also released a global ranking, which shows that New York City remains the most expensive metropolis worldwide for international schooling. However, it is cities across China that really dominate the top end of the pricing scale, with Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Guangzhou all featuring in the top 10 highest prices.

“Having said that, however, the median price of schools in New York City (USD 45,950) is still significantly higher than those in the Chinese cities. Beijing has the second highest median price (USD 36,799) in the world after NYC, but there is still almost a USD 10,000 difference between the two,” the International Schools Database explained.

South Africa and Malaysia stand out as the least expensive places in the world for international schooling, with 5 cities in the bottom 10 (Ipoh - Perak, Johor Bahru, and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, and Cape Town and Johannesburg in South Africa).

The European report is available here, while the global version can be found