· updated monthly
The ten schools South africa parents researched most this year, chosen from the 90 international schools in the country. Ranked by how many families opened each school’s profile and spent time reading it between September 2025 and August 2026, then the full picture on curricula, class sizes and fees.
The 2026 ranking
Ranked purely by parent interest — the number of families who opened each school’s profile and spent time reading it between September 2025 and August 2026.
Deutsche Internationale Schule Pretoria (DSP) is a co-educational German-English bilingual day school in The Willows, Pretoria, founded in 1899. It offers German and South African curricula from creche through Grade 12, culminating in the Kombiabitur (dual German Abitur and South African NSC) or the English-language NSC with German Language Diploma. The school occupies a park-like campus with extensive sports facilities.
Cedar House operates as a combined prep and high school in Kenilworth, Cape Town, with a Prep campus at 27 Wetton Road and a High School campus at 5 Ascot Road. It follows the South African curriculum for students aged 9 to 18, covering Grades 4–12 and preparing learners for the National Senior Certificate examinations with IEB involvement. The school offers enrichment through Life Sciences Camp and Physical Sciences Camp, along with CAT and Design levies that support computing and design activities. Arts and drama are supported by Art Levy and Drama Levy, and IsiXhosa Camp provides language and cultural learning. Community and service are emphasised via the Social Action Levy, with Grade Camps delivering outdoor, experiential learning and teamwork experiences. Grade 4–9 Life Orientation Levy is charged every second year. The school also hosts events such as Food Day and Grade Day as part of student life and wellbeing.
What’s on offer
The mix of programmes and teaching languages across all 90 schools. Many offer more than one curriculum, so totals run higher than the school count.
Number of schools teaching each curriculum.
Number of schools teaching in each language.
Size & classes
School size and class size shape day-to-day experience as much as curriculum does.
Schools grouped by total enrolment.
Average school size is 642 students · based on the 81 schools that report enrolment.
Schools grouped by typical class size.
Average class size is 19.8 students · based on the 77 schools that report it.
What it costs
Fees shown are one year for a 12-year-old (or the closest age available), excluding one-time enrolment costs.
Across the 7 schools that publish a price for a 12-year-old. All figures in ZAR.
How many schools sit in each annual-fee range.
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