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International schools in Albania

18 internationally accredited schools

The market in brief

The ranking holds 18 schools in Albania with an international accreditation or an authorised programme. IB programmes at 3 of them. Cambridge, IGCSE and A-Level, at 9. A preschool section at 14. A year of school costs from $1 350 to $16 234.

Cities: Tirana (15) · Durres (1) · Lezhe (1) · Fier (1)

Albania next to other countries in the ranking

The median fee for a year of school in Albania is $6 552. That is 6th for affordability out of 29 countries in the ranking. A comparison only means anything at a single exchange rate, so every figure is converted to dollars from one weekly snapshot.

CountryMedian a yearSchoolsWith an IB programme
Paraguay$4 673956%
Tajikistan$5 011130%
Bosnia and Herzegovina$5 020933%
Kyrgyzstan$6 324277%
Uzbekistan$6 5214719%
Albania$6 5521817%
Chile$7 2395864%
North Macedonia$7 5691060%
Georgia$7 9302917%
Azerbaijan$8 8242836%
Lithuania$9 6033853%
Argentina$10 21321226%
Armenia$10 3361533%
Kazakhstan$10 5148926%
Cyprus$11 1843928%
Uruguay$11 6383531%
Latvia$11 7491479%
Portugal$12 4046925%
Estonia$12 6936100%
Montenegro$12 947933%
UAE$13 04341215%
Croatia$13 7261656%
Serbia$14 6852326%
Thailand$15 34820920%
Brazil$16 78119848%
Vietnam$17 62614417%
Slovenia$19 5671182%
Turkey$20 17024546%
Israel$28 3511540%

The median is steadier than the average: one school charging three times the rest does not shift it. It is taken from the top of a school's fee range, that is from the senior stage, which is what families budget for. Free state schools are left out of the median, or it would stop answering the question of what you pay.

What a school in Albania costs

Cheapest$1 350 a yearLezha Academic Center
Median$6 552 a yeartop of the fee range at 10 schools with a published fee
Most expensive$16 234 a yearWorld Academy of Tirana

Figures are converted to dollars at a weekly rate; schools publish their fees in their own currency. One-off charges, meals, transport and uniform are not included unless the school says otherwise. Fees for schools in Albania are taken from published price lists, not from what third parties say.

Why some schools in Albania do not publish a fee

56 % of schools in Albania name a fee on their own site (10 of 18). Across the whole ranking of 2047 schools it is 41 %. We read every school's site and worked out what schools write instead of a sum, and why openness follows the country and the network rather than the school: the study of school fees →

Private schools in Albania

All 18 schools in the ranking are private. We have not yet found a state school in Albania with an international accreditation. The type of school does not affect the score: private and state schools sit in one list and are scored by the same formula, and only verifiable data moves the number.

Schools with IB and Cambridge programmes in Albania

Schools in Albania with an IB programme (3): World Academy of Tirana, Tirana International School, Albanian College Tirana. 2 of them run the full three-stage cycle: PYP, MYP and DP. Authorisation is confirmed against the International Baccalaureate register.

The British Cambridge programme - IGCSE and A-Level - is taught at 9 schools in Albania: Woodrow Wilson International School of Tirana, British School of Tirana, Shkolla Ernest Koliqi, The Independent College of Tirana, Shkolla e Mesme Jopublike "Turgut Özal" Tiranë, Udha e Shkronjave, Shkolla 9-vjeçare Jopublike "Turgut Özal" Tiranë, Tomorrow's Education System (TES), Kings Tirana.

Best schools in Albania: ranked on data anyone can check

1World Academy of TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of IBPart of the network Ariston Education≈ $8 247–16 234 a year · 7 300–14 370 EUR · Pre-School from 5 years80.28/9 criteria2Tirana International SchoolTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of MSA, IB, College BoardPart of the network Quality Schools InternationalPrice on request · Pre-School from 2 years78.37/9 criteria3Woodrow Wilson International School of TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of CambridgePrice on request · Pre-School from a few months76.97/9 criteria4British School of TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of COBIS≈ $4 906–11 468 a year · 400 000–935 000 ALL · Pre-School from 9 months76.38/9 criteria5Shkolla Ernest KoliqiTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Cambridge≈ $5 274 a year · 430 000 ALL · Pre-School76.28/9 criteria6The Independent College of TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Cambridge≈ $3 615–5 084 a year · 3 200–4 500 EUR · Pre-School from 3 years74.98/9 criteria7École française internationale de TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of AEFE, CambridgePrice on request · Pre-School from 2.5 years73.47/9 criteria8Shkolla e Mesme Jopublike "Turgut Özal" TiranëTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of CambridgePrice on request72.97/9 criteria9Albanian College TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of IB, Cognia, College Board≈ $4 519–11 806 a year · 4 000–10 450 EUR · Pre-School from 3 years72.78/9 criteria10Udha e ShkronjaveTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Cambridge≈ $7 359 a year · 600 000 ALL · Pre-School from 5 years72.58/9 criteria11Shkolla 9-vjeçare Jopublike "Turgut Özal" TiranëTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of CambridgePrice on request70.37/9 criteria12Tomorrow's Education System (TES)Tirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Cambridge≈ $4 600–5 335 a year · 375 000–435 000 ALL · Pre-School70.18/9 criteria13GDQ International Christian SchoolTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of MSA, ACSI, College BoardPrice on request · Pre-School from 5 years68.57/9 criteria14Albanian College DurrësDurres, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of Cognia, College Board≈ $3 389–6 552 a year · 3 000–5 800 EUR · Pre-School from 3 years68.38/9 criteria15Flatrat e DijesFier, AlbaniaSchool in the register of CambridgePrice on request · Pre-School67.27/9 criteria16Kings TiranaTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Pearson≈ $9 025–14 975 a year · 7 989–13 255 EUR67.08/9 criteria17Lezha Academic CenterLezhe, AlbaniaSchool in the register of Cognia$1 350–2 150 a year65.68/9 criteria18Albanian International SchoolTirana, AlbaniaSchool in the registers of ACS WASC, College BoardPrice on request · Pre-School from 3 years63.97/9 criteria

Facilities at schools in Albania

A facility counts only when the school names it outright on its own site: a modern campus is not a swimming pool. Swimming pool: 1 school · Boarding: 1 school · School transport: 15 schools.

How to compare schools in Albania

Comparing schools on a single feature is useless: the most expensive is not the best, and a famous name says nothing about what is backed by documents. The score is therefore built from nine criteria with different weights - from academic programmes and accreditation to facilities, clubs and fees relative to other schools in the country.

A criterion counts towards the score only when there is verifiable data behind it. That is why every score says how many of the nine criteria were counted: at schools in Albania that is 7.6 out of 9 on average. A school with a detailed site and a school with no site cannot earn an equally reliable score, and that is shown rather than hidden.

Ratings and reviews from Google Maps, Yandex Maps and 2GIS are not used: their terms forbid aggregation. Only verified reviews left here count. Full methodology →

Frequently asked questions

How many international schools are there in Albania?

The ranking holds 18 schools with an international accreditation or an authorised programme: Tirana - 15, Durres - 1, Lezhe - 1, Fier - 1. Every school says where its accreditation came from: found in a public register, confirmed by a document from the school, or claimed by the school with nothing behind it. We do not hide a claim, but it does not go into the score.

Is an international school in Albania expensive next to other countries?

The median fee in Albania is $6 552 a year. That is 6th for affordability out of 29 countries in the ranking. Cheaper: Paraguay, Tajikistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan. The comparison only holds inside one year: all fees are converted into dollars at one weekly rate.

Are there free schools with an international programme in Albania?

Our list holds none in Albania: all 18 schools with an international accreditation charge a fee. If a state school with an authorised programme appears, it will enter the ranking on equal terms with private ones.

How do you check that a school really holds its accreditation?

We look the school up in the public register of the organisation itself. There are ten such registers today: International Baccalaureate, Cambridge International, CIS, NEASC, COBIS, AEFE, MSA (Middle States Association), Cognia, Pearson Edexcel and the network of German schools abroad. The list grows with the geography of the ranking: a new country usually has an organisation of its own. An accreditation found in a register is marked green and goes into the score. One confirmed only by a document from the school is yellow, and weighs less. One claimed in words is red, and the school's accreditation score is then the lowest. Membership of a network or an association is counted apart: a school joins a network, but earns an accreditation, so membership weighs one step lower. That is why a school calling itself international and a school standing in the ranking are two different things.

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