What is the most expensive school in the world?

Of the schools named in the usual lists, the highest fee we could verify in a school's own documents is Aiglon College's in Switzerland: CHF 168,000 for boarding in Years 12 and 13 in 2026/27, VAT included. Counting compulsory extras, Beau Soleil's Grade 11 year costs CHF 183,390. Le Rosey, named in the Guinness record, has published CHF 164,400 for 2027/28.

What is the most expensive boarding school in the world?

It depends on what you count. By headline fee, Aiglon College leads the schools we could verify, at CHF 168,000 for 2026/27. Adding the charges every pupil in a year group must pay, Beau Soleil's Grade 11 (CHF 183,390, 2026/27) and an IB year at Le Rosey for a pupil under 18 who lives outside Switzerland (CHF 182,250, 2027/28) cost more. Institut auf dem Rosenberg gives only an average, CHF 165,000 a year with no school year named, so it is not ranked.

Is Le Rosey the most expensive school in the world?

Guinness World Records lists Le Rosey as the most expensive school, with CHF 115,500 a year as of 2018. Le Rosey's own conditions set boarding and tuition at CHF 159,600 for 2026/27 and CHF 164,400 for 2027/28, below Aiglon College's CHF 168,000 for 2026/27. With its IB and health charges, an IB year at Le Rosey costs CHF 182,250 in 2027/28 for a pupil under 18 who lives outside Switzerland. Our Le Rosey guide has the details.

What is the most expensive boarding school in Switzerland?

Of the schools we checked, by headline fee for 2026/27 it is Aiglon College in Chesières-Villars, at CHF 168,000 for Years 12 and 13 including VAT. By the total a family pays for one year group, Beau Soleil in Villars-sur-Ollon, at CHF 183,390 for Grade 11 including its compulsory other fees and trip fees. The full table, with sources, is in Swiss boarding school fees.

How much does Eton cost per year?

Eton College charges £21,891 per Half for 2026/27, including VAT, and its school year has three Halves: £65,673 in all. Families who need Eton to sponsor a Child Student visa pay £3,000 a year more, and new boys pay a £3,840 acceptance fee, of which £500 is refunded when they leave, according to the school's fees page.

Does a more expensive school give a better education?

A fee does not measure teaching. It reflects what the school includes, such as boarding, meals, trips, insurance, ski passes or exam fees, and the year group and boarding format. Aiglon's fee includes public examination fees, while Collège du Léman bills them separately. Compare published results, accreditation, staffing and fit instead; our guide to comparing Swiss boarding schools sets curriculum, setting and accreditation side by side.

What are the top 10 most expensive schools in the world?

The top-10 lists we read mix school years, currencies and day and boarding fees, and few give sources. Of the Swiss boarding schools we checked, six publish a boarding fee of CHF 120,000 or more in their own documents: Aiglon College, Le Rosey (2027/28), Beau Soleil, St. George's, La Garenne and Leysin American School. Below them come, among others, Collège du Léman, Surval Montreux, Champittet, Brillantmont, TASIS and Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz.

Most expensive school in the world: the published fees

The most expensive school in the world, by published fees

Lists of the most expensive schools in the world often disagree, because they mix school years, currencies, day and boarding fees, and figures without a source. This guide uses only what schools publish in their own fee documents, for a named year group and school year, read on 23 September 2026. On that basis, the highest fees we could verify are at Swiss boarding schools.

The gap can be large. One such list, last updated in April 2026, gives Aiglon's boarding fee as about USD 90,000 to 100,000 a year. Aiglon's own document for 2026/27 gives CHF 100,800 to 168,000 for boarding, depending on the year group (Financial Information).

Guinness World Records keeps an entry for the most expensive school by annual fees. It names Institut Le Rosey, with fees of CHF 115,500 a year, and dates from 2018 (Guinness World Records). Le Rosey's own figure for 2027/28 is CHF 164,400, which shows how quickly such records age.

The most expensive boarding schools, ranked by published fee

Of the Swiss boarding schools we checked (our houses and the schools named in these lists), the table ranks those whose own documents show a boarding fee of CHF 120,000 or more for the highest year group. All figures are annual boarding and tuition fees before compulsory extras.

Published boarding fees of CHF 120,000 or more at the Swiss schools checked
School	Place	Year group	School year	Fee, CHF per year
Aiglon College	Chesières-Villars	Years 12 and 13	2026/27	168,000
Institut Le Rosey	Rolle	Classes 5 to Terminale	2027/28	164,400
Beau Soleil	Villars-sur-Ollon	Grades 11 and 12	2026/27	148,440
St. George's International School	Clarens, Montreux	Years 12 and 13, full boarding	2026/27	132,400
La Garenne	Villars-sur-Ollon	Years 12 and 13	2026/27	129,000
Leysin American School	Leysin	Single fee	2026/27	128,000

Sources: Aiglon, Le Rosey, Beau Soleil, St. George's, La Garenne and Leysin American School, read on 23 September 2026. Le Rosey's website now carries only its 2027/28 document; its 2026/27 document set CHF 159,600 (archived copy), which also places it second. Aiglon states that its fees include VAT.

Below that line come, among others, Collège du Léman at CHF 117,500 for Grades 5 to 12, Surval Montreux at CHF 115,000, Collège Champittet at CHF 112,000 for seven-day boarding, Brillantmont at CHF 111,000 for Grades 11 to 13, TASIS at CHF 106,500 and Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz at CHF 104,900 for Grades 11 and 12, all for 2026/27. The full comparison of our houses, with extras and entry costs, is in Swiss boarding school fees.

Counting the compulsory extras

The headline fee is not always the bill. Some schools add charges that every pupil in a year group must pay, and those change the order at the top. The table below adds them for the five highest totals among our houses, with each school's source and date.

The five highest annual totals among our houses, 2026/27
School	BoardingCHF	Compulsory extrasCHF	Total per yearCHF	DayCHF	Once, on entryCHF
Beau SoleilVillars-sur-Ollon VDBoarding and tuition, Grade 11School fee schedule, as of 14 Sept 2026	148,440	34,950	183,390	boarding only	24,990
AiglonChesières-Villars VDBoarding, Years 12-13School fee schedule, as of 7 Sept 2026	168,000	0	168,000	99,400	24,000
St. George’s International SchoolClarens, Montreux VDFull boarding, Years 12-13School fee schedule, as of 14 Sept 2026	132,400	4,300	136,700	49,250	13,000
La GarenneVillars-sur-Ollon VDBoarding, Diploma Years (Years 12-13)School fee schedule, as of 14 Sept 2026	129,000	0plus mandatory school trips (no amount published)	129,000	94,000	19,000
Leysin American SchoolLeysin VDTuition, room and boardSchool fee schedule, as of 14 Sept 2026	128,000	600	128,600	boarding only	20,500

Annual fees for the highest boarding year group as each school publishes them, in the school's currency. “Total per year” adds the compulsory extras every pupil of that year group pays; items that apply only to some pupils or to other year groups are left out and shown on the school's page. “Once, on entry” adds registration, deposit and joining fees; some deposits are refunded when the pupil leaves. Optional items, travel and pocket money are not included. Download the table as a CSV file (all houses, with sources)

Beau Soleil's Grade 11 year comes to CHF 183,390: CHF 148,440 in boarding and tuition, CHF 26,460 of other fees for medical insurance, expeditions and cultural activities, and CHF 8,490 of trip fees, which Grade 12 does not pay (fees). Aiglon's CHF 168,000 already includes Swiss health insurance for boarders and public examination fees (Financial Information).

Le Rosey is not one of our houses, so it is not in the table. Its 2027/28 conditions add CHF 13,900 a year in IB Classes 1 and Terminale, and a health charge that is compulsory for pupils not permanently resident in Switzerland: CHF 3,950 a year, rising to CHF 8,620 for older pupils (conditions 2027/28). For an IB pupil under 18 who lives outside Switzerland, the year costs CHF 182,250, close to Beau Soleil's Grade 11, although the two figures belong to different school years.

What the highest fees include

Two schools with similar headline fees can leave very different bills, because the fee documents cover different items. The table compares five items that the fee documents treat differently, as each of the six schools in the ranking describes them.

What the published fee covers at the six schools in the ranking
School	Ski pass	Health insurance	Exam fees	Residence permit	VAT
Aiglon College, 2026/27	Included for boarders	Included for boarders	Public examination fees included	Residence tax and permits included for boarders	Included
Institut Le Rosey, 2027/28	Included	CHF 3,950 a year for pupils not resident in Switzerland (CHF 8,620 for older pupils), charged separately	IB charge of CHF 13,900 in Classes 1 and Terminale	Not stated	Not stated
Beau Soleil, 2026/27	Not stated	Within the compulsory other fees of CHF 26,460	Not stated	Not stated	Not stated
St. George's, 2026/27	Weekly skiing in Term 2 and a ski camp included; ski equipment rental extra	CHF 2,800 a year, charged separately	IB charge of CHF 1,500 a year, covering examination expenses	Help with the application for full boarders	Not stated
La Garenne, 2026/27	Included for boarders	CHF 2,500 unless insured in Switzerland	External exam fees not included	CHF 2,100 for new boarders of non-European nationality	Included
Leysin American School, 2026/27	Included, with group ski or snowboard lessons	School health plan included, with a contribution of CHF 300 per semester	External exam fees not included	Swiss residence permit included	Not stated

Sources: Aiglon, Le Rosey, Beau Soleil, St. George's, La Garenne and Leysin American School, read on 23 September 2026. Not stated means the fee document does not mention the item; ask the school before you compare.

What families pay beyond the fee

Private lessons: CHF 115 for 50 minutes at Aiglon (Financial Information), CHF 100 to 120 a period at Le Rosey (conditions 2027/28) and CHF 110 for 40 minutes at Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz (Financial Guide).
Pocket money: CHF 20 to 120 a week at Le Rosey, depending on the section (conditions 2027/28); Aiglon charges CHF 1,360 a year in advance for boarders in Years 5 to 8 (Financial Information).
Single rooms: CHF 10,000 a year at St. George's (fee schedule) and CHF 15,000 at Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz (Financial Guide).
A personal account: Leysin American School recommends CHF 10,000 a year for personal spending, supplies and optional trips (financial information).

The most expensive boarding school in Switzerland

For the 2026/27 school year, the answer depends on what you count. Of the schools we checked, by headline fee it is Aiglon College, at CHF 168,000 for Years 12 and 13 including VAT. By the total a family must pay for one year group, it is Beau Soleil, at CHF 183,390 for Grade 11. Le Rosey, the name the Guinness record gives, set CHF 159,600 for 2026/27 (archived conditions) and has published CHF 164,400 for 2027/28.

Entry costs are highest at the top of the table too. A new boarder pays CHF 24,000 on joining Aiglon (Financial Information) and CHF 24,990 on joining Beau Soleil (fees), each including a CHF 15,000 deposit that is refundable after the pupil leaves. At Le Rosey, the payment on admission for 2027/28 is CHF 72,800, made up of the first term's fee of CHF 54,800 and a guarantee deposit of CHF 18,000, after a CHF 3,000 registration fee (conditions 2027/28).

Le Rosey and Institut auf dem Rosenberg

Le Rosey in Rolle, with a winter campus in Gstaad, is the school named in the Guinness record and placed first by the April 2026 list quoted above. Its admissions page states no tuition fee, but its financial and contractual conditions for 2027/28, version September 2026, are on its website: CHF 164,400 for boarding and tuition, in three terms of CHF 54,800 (conditions 2027/28).

The fee includes the ski pass, golf, riding and sailing lessons, and all compulsory expeditions and weekend activities on its campuses, among them the riding centre, the sailing centre and the Gstaad winter campus. Unlike the capital or campus funds that several Swiss schools charge on entry, Le Rosey asks for no development contribution. Our guide to Le Rosey fees covers its payment terms.

Le Rosey does not ask for, nor does it accept, donations for school development of any kind.
Institut Le Rosey, Financial and contractual conditions 2027-28, version September 2026

Institut auf dem Rosenberg in St. Gallen is placed second by the same April 2026 list. Its fee page gives no single boarding fee and names no school year: a Base Fee of CHF 100,000 a year covers tuition, meals and some activities, individual fees for the room and other items average CHF 65,000, and the school puts the average cost of a boarding year at CHF 165,000. An average of this kind is not a fee for a named year group, so the school is not ranked here; our guide to Institut auf dem Rosenberg covers its fees.

Outside Switzerland: Eton and Harrow

The two English schools that appear in the same lists publish termly fees in pounds, including VAT. We give them in their own currency and do not convert them, because a converted figure depends on the exchange rate of the day.

Published boarding fees at Eton and Harrow, 2026/27
School	Place	Fee	Billing	Other charges
Eton College	Windsor, Berkshire	£21,891	Per Half, three Halves a year, including VAT	Registration £480; acceptance fee £3,840, of which £500 is refunded on leaving; £3,000 a year for Child Student visa sponsorship
Harrow School	Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex	£21,990	Per term, including VAT	Registration £450; Year 9 acceptance fee £1,200; entry deposit and final confirmation deposit of £2,400 each; £3,000 a year for Child Student visa sponsorship

Sources: Eton College fees and Harrow School fees and deposits, both for 2026/27, read on 23 September 2026. Both schools also ask families living overseas for an additional deposit of one term's fees.

Over a school year, Eton's three Halves come to £65,673. Harrow's termly fee covers board, tuition, textbooks, a stationery allowance and laundry, with an extra charge for any subject that needs additional tuition.

Why a high fee is not a quality ranking

A school fee is the price of a package: accommodation, supervision, meals, trips, sport, insurance and, at some schools, exams. The packages differ, so the same money buys different things. Aiglon includes public examination fees, while Collège du Léman invoices exam fees separately (table of fees); Leysin American School includes a laptop and ski lessons (financial information); ENSR bills VAT and health insurance on top (boarding fees).

Price also follows the format rather than the teaching. At Aiglon, a day place in Years 12 and 13 costs CHF 99,400 and a boarding place CHF 168,000, while a boarder in Years 5 and 6 pays CHF 100,800 (Financial Information). None of these figures says how well a school teaches.

What a fee cannot tell you has to be checked separately:

Published examination results, with the year and the number of candidates.
Accreditation and authorisation, checked on the accrediting body's own list rather than on the school's website.
The share of boarders, the size of the boarding houses and the ratio of adults to pupils at weekends.
Pastoral care and safeguarding: ask to see the policies and who is responsible for them.
Fit: curriculum, languages, age range and the setting in which your child will do well.

Our guide to comparing Swiss boarding schools compares the houses by curriculum, boarding age, setting and accreditation, and how to choose a Swiss boarding school covers admissions and timing.

How the fees were checked

Only a school's own fee document or fee page counts; portals, directories and press lists do not.
Each figure is the published annual boarding fee for the highest year group, with the year group and school year the school gives.
Fees stay in the school's currency; nothing is converted.
Compulsory extras are added only where the school lists them as charged to every pupil in that year group.
Schools that publish only an average, without a year group or school year, are named but not ranked.
All documents were read on 23 September 2026. Fees change every year, so check the school's current document before you decide.

If you would like the current fee documents for a shortlist of schools side by side, you can write to us.

Questions parents ask

What is the most expensive school in the world?: Of the schools named in the usual lists, the highest fee we could verify in a school's own documents is Aiglon College's in Switzerland: CHF 168,000 for boarding in Years 12 and 13 in 2026/27, VAT included. Counting compulsory extras, Beau Soleil's Grade 11 year costs CHF 183,390. Le Rosey, named in the Guinness record, has published CHF 164,400 for 2027/28.
What is the most expensive boarding school in the world?: It depends on what you count. By headline fee, Aiglon College leads the schools we could verify, at CHF 168,000 for 2026/27. Adding the charges every pupil in a year group must pay, Beau Soleil's Grade 11 (CHF 183,390, 2026/27) and an IB year at Le Rosey for a pupil under 18 who lives outside Switzerland (CHF 182,250, 2027/28) cost more. Institut auf dem Rosenberg gives only an average, CHF 165,000 a year with no school year named, so it is not ranked.
Is Le Rosey the most expensive school in the world?: Guinness World Records lists Le Rosey as the most expensive school, with CHF 115,500 a year as of 2018. Le Rosey's own conditions set boarding and tuition at CHF 159,600 for 2026/27 and CHF 164,400 for 2027/28, below Aiglon College's CHF 168,000 for 2026/27. With its IB and health charges, an IB year at Le Rosey costs CHF 182,250 in 2027/28 for a pupil under 18 who lives outside Switzerland. Our Le Rosey guide has the details.
What is the most expensive boarding school in Switzerland?: Of the schools we checked, by headline fee for 2026/27 it is Aiglon College in Chesières-Villars, at CHF 168,000 for Years 12 and 13 including VAT. By the total a family pays for one year group, Beau Soleil in Villars-sur-Ollon, at CHF 183,390 for Grade 11 including its compulsory other fees and trip fees. The full table, with sources, is in Swiss boarding school fees.
How much does Eton cost per year?: Eton College charges £21,891 per Half for 2026/27, including VAT, and its school year has three Halves: £65,673 in all. Families who need Eton to sponsor a Child Student visa pay £3,000 a year more, and new boys pay a £3,840 acceptance fee, of which £500 is refunded when they leave, according to the school's fees page.
Does a more expensive school give a better education?: A fee does not measure teaching. It reflects what the school includes, such as boarding, meals, trips, insurance, ski passes or exam fees, and the year group and boarding format. Aiglon's fee includes public examination fees, while Collège du Léman bills them separately. Compare published results, accreditation, staffing and fit instead; our guide to comparing Swiss boarding schools sets curriculum, setting and accreditation side by side.
What are the top 10 most expensive schools in the world?: The top-10 lists we read mix school years, currencies and day and boarding fees, and few give sources. Of the Swiss boarding schools we checked, six publish a boarding fee of CHF 120,000 or more in their own documents: Aiglon College, Le Rosey (2027/28), Beau Soleil, St. George's, La Garenne and Leysin American School. Below them come, among others, Collège du Léman, Surval Montreux, Champittet, Brillantmont, TASIS and Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz.

Sources

Financial Information 2026-2027Aiglon College, read on 23 Sept 2026
Financial and Contractual Conditions, 2027-28 School Year, Cadets-SeniorsInstitut Le Rosey, read on 23 Sept 2026
Financial and Contractual Conditions, 2026-27 School Year, Cadets-Seniors (version September 2025, archived copy of 13 December 2025)Institut Le Rosey, via the Internet Archive, read on 23 Sept 2026
Admissions: how to applyInstitut Le Rosey, read on 23 Sept 2026
Tuition and Boarding Fees 2026-2027Collège Alpin Beau Soleil, read on 23 Sept 2026
Fee Schedule and Terms and Conditions, Boarding 2026-2027St. George's International School, read on 23 Sept 2026
General Conditions School Year 2026-2027La Garenne International School, read on 23 Sept 2026
Financial Information, 2026-2027 Academic YearLeysin American School, read on 23 Sept 2026
Tuition fees 2026-27Collège du Léman, read on 23 Sept 2026
School Fees 2026-2027, Fees and ConditionsSurval Montreux, read on 23 Sept 2026
Tuition fees 2026-27Collège Champittet, read on 23 Sept 2026
Fees 2026-2027Brillantmont International School, read on 23 Sept 2026
Tuition and Fees, 2026-2027 Academic YearTASIS The American School in Switzerland, read on 23 Sept 2026
Financial Guide 2026-2027, Boarding StudentsLyceum Alpinum Zuoz, read on 23 Sept 2026
Annual fees 2026/2027, boarding schoolEcole Nouvelle de la Suisse Romande, read on 23 Sept 2026
Most expensive school (annual fees)Guinness World Records, read on 23 Sept 2026
FeesEton College, read on 23 Sept 2026
Fees and DepositsHarrow School, read on 23 Sept 2026
School FeesInstitut auf dem Rosenberg, read on 23 Sept 2026

Sources read and figures checked on 23 Sept 2026. Fees and dates change; the school's own documents are what count.

The most expensive school in the world, by the fees schools publish