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Budapest, Hungary · est. 2019 · Private
REAL School Budapest
Budapest, Hungary · est. 2019 · PrivateIllustration · Budapest
61.8#26 in the country
Know this school? Leave a review →REAL School Budapest is an independent, not-for-profit international primary and middle school in Óbuda, District III of Budapest, for children aged 5 to 14. It was founded in 2019 by Barna and Viktória, parents who spent several years with Green School in Bali and adapted its idea to an urban European setting. The school teaches through real projects: students design and complete projects about nature, the city and society, alongside regular academic lessons in English, maths and science following the National Curriculum in England and the school's own entrepreneurship and regeneration curriculum. Children learn in mixed-age groups; there are no devices in the Lower School and purposeful technology use in the Upper School. The language of instruction is English, as the school states directly. The school is a COBIS Accredited Member and the only school in Hungary to receive two COBIS Beacon School statuses; under Hungarian law it is licensed as a kindergarten and school up to grade 8. In 2026 it was named in the Top 10 shortlist of the World's Best School Prizes for environmental action.
Key facts
Tuition
≈ $18 641–23 498 a year
16 500–20 800 EUR
Programmes
being checked
Admits from
5 years · Pre-School
Languages of instruction
English
School website
Registration fee
≈ $113
100 EUR
About the fees Fees for 2026/27, euro per year: age 5 16500, ages 6-7 17500, ages 8-9 19700, ages 10-11 20200, ages 12-14 20800 (age on 1 September 2026). Fees are paid in three termly instalments due 30 days before each term; paying the full year by 31 May or within 7 days of enrolment gives a 4% discount: from 15840 to 19970 euro. Younger siblings receive 10% for the first and 20% for subsequent ones. Fees include all learning resources, plant-based lunches and snacks, learning trips and after-school care; REAL Zone after-school activities are not included. Students aged 10 and above need their own notebook computer. Pull-out English lessons during school hours cost 10% of tuition while provided. Enrolment shorter than a year carries a 25% surcharge. A tuition assistance programme exists for ages 11-14 based on family finances. Fees are set in euro and may be paid in EUR, HUF, USD or GBP; no cash is accepted.
Admissions The school accepts international students aged 5 to 14 throughout the year while places are available, with a minimum enrolment of one full school year. The steps are: research, registration of interest, an online meeting with the school, an online application (ages 11+ also send a short video and personal statement), a family meeting with the founders about the school's values, three trial days, and a contract with payment of the seat reservation fee. The application fee is 100 euro. Teaching is in English: children of all English levels are welcome, but preference goes to strong English speakers; children older than 8 must be conversational in English, and from 11 reasonably fluent in spoken and written English, assessed during application. The school currently has no staffing for children with special needs, severe learning differences or serious behavioural issues. It seeks families who share its mission and does not discriminate by nationality, origin, religion or family structure.
Stages and year groups The school is licensed in Hungary as a kindergarten and school up to grade 8 for ages 5-14; students learn in mixed-age groups in the Lower School and Upper School. English, maths, science and humanities follow the National Curriculum in England, alongside the school's own curriculum on nature, technology, wellbeing, entrepreneurship and regeneration, with learning built on projects. The school does not offer exam programmes (IGCSE, IB) or the Hungarian national programme; graduates move on to British, American and Hungarian high schools.
Address Záhony utca 7, 1031 Budapest (Graphisoft Park)
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
COBIS · accreditationThe school is an accredited member of COBIS. It follows the National Curriculum in England and its own curriculum, from kindergarten to grade 8.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations →
What stands behind each entry
COBISCouncil of British International Schools
An association of British schools abroad with a quality inspection of its own. It has nine membership categories, and the word "accredited" appears in seven of them, although COBIS does its own inspection in one: in the rest it recognises an accreditation granted by somebody else.
What the badge means for this school. The school has been through this organisation's accreditation. It was judged as a whole: governance, safeguarding, staff, premises, teaching. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
The school publishes nothing about where its leavers go: no share going on to university, no exam results, no list of universities.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
·Sports hallnot stated on the website
·Laboratoriesnot stated on the website
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
·Librarynot stated on the website
✓Catering
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Playground · Makerspace
Clubs and activities: Aikido · Vegan cooking · Woodworking · Pottery
Source: realschool.hu
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
✓Teacher qualifications
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
·Students per teacher or class sizenot stated
What the listings show: at least a Bachelor's degree in education or equivalent, or a post-graduate teaching qualification; support educators hold a teaching or English-language qualification
The school hires teachers with at least a Bachelor's degree in education or a post-graduate teaching qualification, and support educators with a teaching or English-language qualification. Teachers come from around the world; they co-design projects with students and spend one full day a week outdoors with their class. Hiring follows Hungarian employment law and includes a commitment to safeguarding. The Principal is Mary-Ann Ridgway.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
·Nurse or medical roomnot stated on the website
·Counsellornot stated on the website
·Child protection policynot stated on the website
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
·Anti-bullying policynot stated on the website
The school calls safeguarding a top priority and takes reports of any concerns at a dedicated address, besafe@realschool.hu. In its hiring the school states its commitment to safeguarding and promoting children's welfare. Wellbeing is a separate subject with its own curriculum, and groups start the day with community time for discussion.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
"Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 8 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives. The full methodology →