The ranking holds 216 schools in Turkey with an international accreditation or an authorised programme. IB programmes at 99 of them. Cambridge, IGCSE and A-Level, at 29. A preschool section at 6. A year of school costs from $3 048 to $52 500.
The median fee for a year of school in Turkey is $21 233. That is 18th for affordability out of 19 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.
| Country | Median a year | Schools | With an IB programme |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paraguay | $4 622 | 8 | 63% |
| Tajikistan | $4 996 | 13 | 0% |
| Kyrgyzstan | $6 324 | 26 | 8% |
| Uzbekistan | $6 525 | 47 | 19% |
| Georgia | $7 897 | 29 | 17% |
| Chile | $7 995 | 57 | 65% |
| Azerbaijan | $8 824 | 28 | 36% |
| Kazakhstan | $10 026 | 89 | 26% |
| Armenia | $10 295 | 15 | 33% |
| Argentina | $11 012 | 155 | 36% |
| Cyprus | $11 501 | 38 | 29% |
| Uruguay | $11 638 | 28 | 39% |
| Montenegro | $13 313 | 9 | 33% |
| Thailand | $15 618 | 189 | 22% |
| Serbia | $15 799 | 21 | 29% |
| Brazil | $18 195 | 176 | 55% |
| Vietnam | $18 889 | 137 | 18% |
| Turkey | $21 233 | 216 | 46% |
| Israel | $29 188 | 15 | 40% |
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.
| Cheapest | $3 048 a year | Adapazarı ENKA Okulları |
| Median | $21 233 a year | top of the fee range at 34 schools with a published fee |
| Most expensive | $52 500 a year | The British International School Istanbul |
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 Turkey are taken from published price lists, not from what third parties say.
16 % of schools in Turkey name a fee on their own site (34 of 216). Across the whole ranking of 1296 schools it is 35 %. 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 →
192 of the 216 schools in the ranking are private. The other 24 are state schools, set out below. 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.
24 schools with an international accreditation are funded by the state: Kabataş Erkek Lisesi, Kartal Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Şükrü Şankaya Anadolu Lisesi, Prof. Dr. Mümtaz Turhan Sosyal Bilimler Lisesi, Vefa Lisesi, Nilüfer Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Tenzile Erdoğan Kız Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Çemberlitaş Anadolu Lisesi, Hüseyin Avni Sözen Anadolu Lisesi, Bornova Anadolu Lisesi, TEV Tuna-Orhan Nail İzgi Anadolu Lisesi, Beşiktaş Sakıp Sabancı Anadolu Lisesi, Yeşilköy Anadolu Lisesi, Kartal Anadolu Lisesi, İzmir Atatürk Lisesi, Ankara Türk Telekom Sosyal Bilimler Lisesi, Samiha Ayverdi Anadolu Lisesi, Cağaloğlu Anadolu Lisesi, Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi, Demirören Medya ve Teknoloji Mesleki ve Teknik Anadolu Lisesi, İstanbul Erkek Lisesi, Nişantaşı Nuri Akın Anadolu Lisesi, Şişli Anadolu Lisesi, Hatipzade Veli Başer Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi. Admission to these schools is usually competitive, and tuition is free or markedly cheaper than at a private school. In the ranking they stand alongside private schools and are scored on the same nine criteria.
Schools in Turkey with an IB programme (99): MEF International School Istanbul, Özel SANKO Okulları, The British International School Istanbul, Özel Arı Okulları, YÜCE Okulları, Irmak Okulları, Kabataş Erkek Lisesi, TED Ankara Koleji Vakfı Okulları, Kartal Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Bilkent Laboratory and International School, Işıkkent Eğitim Kampüsü, TED Bursa Koleji, Istanbul International Community School, MEF International Schools, Izmir, Şükrü Şankaya Anadolu Lisesi, Ernst-Reuter-Schule Ankara, Yeni Yol Okulları, Gökkuşağı Koleji Ankara Çankaya Kampüsü, Aljazari International School of Science and Technology, ENKA Schools İstanbul, Terakki Vakfı Okulları, Özel Ankara ABC Okulları, Özel Ezgililer Eğitim Kurumları, Anka Bilim Koleji, Prof. Dr. Mümtaz Turhan Sosyal Bilimler Lisesi, Çakır Okulları, Vefa Lisesi, TED Üsküdar Koleji, İhsan Doğramacı Vakfı Özel Bilkent Okulları, Antalya Toplum Koleji, İSTEK Ankara Okulları, American Collegiate Institute, FMV Ayazağa Işık Okulları, NÛN Okulları, Bodrum Özel Marmara Koleji, Nilüfer Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, FMV Erenköy Işık Lisesi - Fen Lisesi, MEF Lisesi (Ulus), Bilkent Erzurum Laboratuvar Okulları, Tenzile Erdoğan Kız Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Tarsus Amerikan Koleji, Çemberlitaş Anadolu Lisesi, Gazi Üniversitesi Vakfı Özel Okulları, Kocaeli Özel Marmara Koleji Anadolu Lisesi, Özel Eren Fen ve Teknoloji Lisesi, FMV Ayazağa Işık Lisesi - Fen Lisesi, Eskişehir Gelişim Okulları, Hüseyin Avni Sözen Anadolu Lisesi, Üsküdar Amerikan Lisesi, Muradiye Eryaman Sevgi Koleji, Adapazarı ENKA Okulları, Deutsche Schule Izmir, BJK - Kabataş Vakfı Özel Okulları, İELEV Özel Lisesi, FMV Işık Okulları Erenköy Yerleşkesi, AREL Koleji, İSTEK Antalya Lara Okulları, GKV Özel Cemil Alevli Koleji, TEV Tuna-Orhan Nail İzgi Anadolu Lisesi, Beşiktaş Sakıp Sabancı Anadolu Lisesi, Yeşilköy Anadolu Lisesi, SEV Amerikan Koleji, İstanbul ENKA Schools, The Koç School, Aka Koleji Bahçelievler Yerleşkesi, Denizli İstek Okulları, Özel Mürüvvet Evyap Okulları, Özel ALEV Okulları, Ankara Türk Telekom Sosyal Bilimler Lisesi, Maya Okulları Antalya Yerleşkesi, İSTEK Mersin Okulları, Özel Taş İlkokulu - Ortaokulu, Özel Minecan Okulları, Kültür2000 Koleji, Eyüboğlu Kemerburgaz Kampüsü, Özel Atayurt Okulları, İstanbul Marmara Okulları, İSTEK Kemal Atatürk Okulları, Gökkuşağı Koleji İstanbul Ataşehir Kampüsü, İTÜ Geliştirme Vakfı Okulları Özel Ekrem Elginkan Lisesi, Özel Sezin Okulu, Adapazarı Özel Şahin Okulları, Özel Zafer Koleji, ALKEV Özel Okulları, Balıkesir Açı Koleji, Çanakkale Koleji, MEF Okulları, Özel Rüzgar Fen Lisesi, Özel Kariyer İlkokulu, TOBB ETÜ Koleji, Özel Acıbadem Okulları, MBA Okulları İstanbul Çamlıca Kampüsü, YTÜ Okulları, Nesibe Aydın Okulları Konya Kampüsü, Paylaşım Koleji, Nesibe Aydın Okulları Gaziantep Merkez Kampüsü, Özel Ay Okulları, Nesibe Aydın Okulları Antalya Kampüsü, Özel Buse Bilim Koleji. 11 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 29 schools in Turkey: MEF International School Istanbul, The British International School Istanbul, Özel Beştepe Koleji, Özel Arı Okulları, Kabataş Erkek Lisesi, Özel Büyük Kolej, Kartal Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Bilkent Laboratory and International School, MEF International Schools, Izmir, Gökkuşağı Koleji Ankara Çankaya Kampüsü, Özkaya İzmir King's House School, Prof. Dr. Mümtaz Turhan Sosyal Bilimler Lisesi, Antalya Toplum Koleji, Bilkent Erzurum Laboratuvar Okulları, İTK Bahattin Tatış Kampüsü Anadolu Lisesi, Tenzile Erdoğan Kız Anadolu İmam Hatip Lisesi, Çemberlitaş Anadolu Lisesi, Istanbul International School, British Embassy School Ankara, Pakistan Embassy International Study Group, Başkent Üniversitesi Özel Ayşeabla Okulları, International Gateway Academy, Özel Namık Altaş Koleji, Özel Tarabya İngiliz Okulları, Gökkuşağı Koleji İstanbul Ataşehir Kampüsü, Samiha Ayverdi Anadolu Lisesi, Gökkuşağı Koleji Bursa Özlüce Kampüsü, Gökkuşağı Koleji Antalya Muratpaşa Kampüsü, Özel Antalya Koleji.
A facility counts only when the school names it outright on its own site: a modern campus is not a swimming pool. Swimming pool: 35 schools · Boarding: 20 schools · School transport: 69 schools.
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 Turkey that is 6.4 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 →
The ranking holds 216 schools with an international accreditation or an authorised programme: Istanbul - 97, Ankara - 35, Izmir - 23, Antalya - 12, Bursa - 7, Eskişehir - 5, Gaziantep - 4, Tarsus - 3, Denizli - 3, Adana - 2, Adapazarı - 2, Samsun - 2, Konya - 2, Silifke - 2, Kayseri - 2, Iskenderun - 2, Kocaeli - 1, Erzurum - 1, Bitlis - 1, Ordu - 1, Balıkesir - 1, Bodrum - 1, Çanakkale - 1, Diyarbakır - 1, Gebze - 1, Mersin - 1, Alanya - 1, Marmaris - 1, Antakya - 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.
The median fee in Turkey is $21 233 a year. That is 18th for affordability out of 19 countries in the ranking. Cheaper: Paraguay, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Chile, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Argentina, Cyprus, Uruguay, Montenegro, Thailand, Serbia, Brazil, Vietnam. The comparison only holds inside one year: all fees are converted into dollars at one weekly rate.
Our list holds none in Turkey: all 216 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.
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.