International Schools in Tokyo

Tokyo's international sector is smaller than Dubai's or Singapore's but considerably more varied than its size suggests. ESG profiles 21 schools in the city: the IB in nine forms, the American curriculum with Advanced Placement, the British curriculum through IGCSE and A Level, full French, German, Canadian and Indian national programmes, Montessori, and genuine dual-language English–Japanese models. Twenty have complete profiles and 15 publish fees, which run from about ¥600,000 to ¥3,500,000 a year. What distinguishes Tokyo from other expatriate cities is the presence of a strong, free local system alongside the international one, single-sex secondary options that are rare internationally, and an unusually long-tenured community that makes availability rather than admission the binding constraint. This guide covers the curriculum landscape, the fee bands, the ward geography, Japanese-language provision and how to narrow 21 schools to five.

The American School in Japan (ASIJ), an international school in Tokyo

Quick answer

Compare Tokyo's international schools — IB, American, British and national curricula, fee bands, single-sex options, Japanese-language provision, wards and bus routes.

At a glance

Curriculum: what Tokyo actually offers

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The IB dominates Tokyo's international sector. St. Mary's, Seisen, Aoba-Japan, K. International, Tokyo International School, Shinagawa International School and Mitsui International School build their programmes around it, Summerhill applies IB thinking in the early years, and Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama and Canadian International School Tokyo offer the Diploma alongside their national programmes. Aoba-Japan is the clearest continuum case, taking a child from age two through to the Diploma without a change of school or philosophy.

The American route runs through The American School in Japan, the city's oldest and largest international school, with Advanced Placement in the senior years and a US-format transcript that a North American university or receiving high school reads without translation. Joy to the World International School and Nishimachi offer American-style primary programmes on a smaller scale.

The British route is anchored by The British School in Tokyo, operating across its Showa and Azabu Hall sites with the English National Curriculum through IGCSE and A Level, and Clarence International School Tokyo offers the British EYFS for the youngest children.

The national schools serve families who know where they are returning: Lycée Français International de Tokyo for the French system, Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama for the German, Canadian International School Tokyo and Columbia International School for Canadian provincial curricula, and the Indian International School in Japan for CBSE — which is also, at ¥600,000 to ¥1,200,000, the lowest published fee band in the city by a considerable margin.

Fees and what sits above them

Tokyo divides into four fee bands. The lowest is the Indian International School in Japan at ¥600,000 to ¥1,200,000. The second runs ¥1,000,000 to ¥1,600,000 and holds Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama, Lycée Français International de Tokyo, Canadian International School Tokyo, Columbia International School and Tokyo International School. The third, ¥1,400,000 to ¥2,600,000, contains K. International, Aoba-Japan, Nishimachi and Seisen. The top band, ¥1,800,000 to ¥3,500,000, is The British School in Tokyo, St. Mary's, the International School of the Sacred Heart and The American School in Japan.

Six schools in the dataset publish no fee figure and ask families to contact them directly: Montessori School of Tokyo, Summerhill, Clarence, Shinagawa International School, Mitsui and Joy to the World, alongside New International School of Japan. That is not a warning sign — smaller and early-years settings often price by programme and hours — but it does mean a shortlist containing them needs a direct enquiry before you can compare like with like.

Above tuition, Tokyo charges what most expatriate cities do not, at least not at the same scale: a one-off entrance or facilities fee on first enrolment, which at the established schools is a significant amount rather than an administrative charge. Application fees are non-refundable. Bus routes, lunch, uniform where required, devices and examination entry are separate. Employer relocation packages in Japan commonly cover tuition but not the entrance fee, and that distinction is worth clarifying before you sign anything.

Japanese language: the decision families under-weight

Every international school in Tokyo teaches some Japanese. The differences lie in how seriously, and they are large enough to change a child's experience of living in the country.

At one end, Nishimachi International School teaches Japanese to every student as an integral part of its programme rather than as an optional extra, and New International School of Japan runs a genuine dual-language model in which English and Japanese both function as languages of instruction across multiage classes. Children from these schools tend to leave Tokyo able to use the language socially and, in some cases, academically.

At the other end are schools where Japanese sits alongside Spanish or French as one modern language option, taught a few periods a week. That is a perfectly reasonable choice for a family on a two-year posting whose priority is curriculum continuity.

The mistake is not choosing one over the other. It is not asking, and then discovering after three years in the country that a child who could have become functionally bilingual has conversational fragments instead. Ask each shortlisted school how many hours a week Japanese is taught in your child's year group, whether classes are streamed by prior ability, and what a child who joins with no Japanese can realistically reach by the end of primary.

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Wards, campuses and the daily commute

Tokyo's schools cluster west and centre. Minato holds Nishimachi in Azabu and Tokyo International School, and it is where a large share of the corporate expatriate community lives. Shibuya holds the International School of the Sacred Heart. Setagaya, greener and more residential, holds St. Mary's and Seisen, and suits families who want space and a slower pace within reach of the centre. K. International sits east in Koto, near the bayside developments. The British School in Tokyo operates across Showa and Azabu Hall. Columbia International School is out in Saitama and serves a genuinely different commuting geography.

Because no international school allocates places by address, the practical question is not which ward you are entitled to but how long the journey takes at 7.30am. Tokyo's rail network is superb, which tempts families to accept commutes they would reject anywhere else; a fifty-minute journey with two changes is technically easy and daily exhausting for a seven-year-old.

School bus routes are what make the map workable. Most of the established schools operate them, and an existing route into your intended neighbourhood is frequently the difference between a school being realistic and not. Get the route map before you view apartments, and treat it as the boundary of your housing search rather than an afterthought.

Availability, not admission, is the constraint

Tokyo's international schools generally assess rather than select competitively. They want recent reports, a written task, an interview and a reference, and they use them to place a child correctly and to check that the school can meet their language and learning needs. A capable child from a reasonable school system will be admitted somewhere good.

What limits families here is capacity. Postings to Japan tend to be long, families extend, and the established schools consequently see little annual turnover in the primary years. A year group that fills at Reception can stay full for years, and it is entirely normal for a school to have no space at Year 3 and immediate space at Year 7.

The consequence for your search is that every availability question must name the year group and the start date. "Do you have space?" produces a useless answer; "do you have a place in Year 4 starting in August, and if not, how many families are ahead of us and how many places came free in that year group last year?" produces a plannable one.

It also means applying earlier than feels necessary. Twelve months ahead is comfortable, six is workable, three requires flexibility about which school. Our Tokyo admissions guide sets out the full timeline, the April versus August calendar split and the document pack in detail.

The British School in Tokyo — an international school in Tokyo
The British School in Tokyo, Tokyo

Narrowing 21 schools to five

Start with age range, because Tokyo has more phase-limited schools than most cities. Summerhill and Clarence run to age six, Montessori School of Tokyo and Joy to the World to Grade 6, Mitsui to Grade 5, Tokyo International School to fourteen, Nishimachi to fifteen, and Columbia from six. A family with a three-year-old and a fourteen-year-old will find the through-schools — ASIJ, The British School in Tokyo, Aoba-Japan, K. International, Seisen, the Sacred Heart, the Lycée, Deutsche Schule and Canadian International School Tokyo — solve a logistical problem that reputation alone does not.

Then apply curriculum, which typically halves the list. Then apply single-sex preference if you have one, which in Tokyo is a real option rather than a theoretical one. Then apply budget honestly, using the four bands above and remembering the entrance fee.

Then apply availability, asking the year-group-and-date question of everyone remaining. This is usually the step that produces the final shortlist, and it is the reason the shortlist should be five schools rather than two.

Finally, visit. Ask to speak with a family who arrived from your country in the last two years, walk the corridors rather than the reception area, and test the commute at the actual hour. In a city where families stay long and cohorts are stable, the question of whether your family will fit the community is not a soft one — it is most of the decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many international schools are there in Tokyo?

ESG profiles 21 international schools in Tokyo, of which 20 have complete profiles and 15 publish fee information. They span the IB, the American and British curricula, the French, German, Canadian and Indian national systems, Montessori, and dual-language English–Japanese models. For a city where the local system is strong and monolingual, that is a substantial international sector, and it is concentrated in a relatively small number of central and western wards.

Which curriculum is most common in Tokyo?

The IB is the most widely offered, available at St. Mary's, Seisen, Aoba-Japan, K. International, Tokyo International School, Shinagawa International School, Mitsui International School, Summerhill and as a senior option at Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama and Canadian International School Tokyo. The American curriculum with Advanced Placement is anchored by The American School in Japan, and the British curriculum by The British School in Tokyo. Aoba-Japan runs a full IB continuum from age two.

Which are the long-established schools in Tokyo?

The American School in Japan, St. Mary's International School, Seisen International School, the International School of the Sacred Heart, Nishimachi International School and The British School in Tokyo are the schools with the deepest history and the most settled communities in the city. They are also the schools most likely to have waitlists in the primary years, because families join early and stay.

Are there single-sex international schools in Tokyo?

Yes, and this is unusual for an international sector. St. Mary's International School educates boys from age five to eighteen, Seisen International School educates girls from primary upward, and the International School of the Sacred Heart is a girls' school with a co-educational early years section. Families who want single-sex secondary education have a genuine choice in Tokyo that they would not have in most comparable cities.

Do Tokyo international schools teach Japanese?

All teach some Japanese, but the depth differs by design. Nishimachi International School teaches Japanese to every student as a core part of its programme, and New International School of Japan runs a genuine dual-language English and Japanese model. Others treat Japanese as one modern foreign language among several. For a family staying more than three years, this distinction matters more than almost any other feature on a prospectus.

How much do Tokyo international schools cost?

Published annual tuition runs from about ¥600,000 at the Indian International School in Japan, through ¥1,000,000 to ¥1,600,000 at Deutsche Schule Tokyo Yokohama, Lycée Français International de Tokyo, Canadian International School Tokyo, Columbia International School and Tokyo International School, to ¥1,600,000 to ¥2,600,000 at Aoba-Japan, K. International, Seisen and Nishimachi, and ¥2,000,000 to ¥3,500,000 at St. Mary's, The British School in Tokyo, the International School of the Sacred Heart and The American School in Japan. One-off entrance fees are charged on top.

Where in Tokyo are the international schools located?

Mostly in the central and western wards. Minato holds Nishimachi and Tokyo International School, Shibuya the International School of the Sacred Heart, Setagaya St. Mary's and Seisen, and Koto K. International. The British School in Tokyo operates Showa and Azabu Hall sites, and Columbia International School sits out in Saitama with a different commuting pattern. School bus routes extend the practical catchment well beyond each campus's own ward.

Are there good options for very young children?

Yes, and Tokyo is unusually well served at the youngest ages. Summerhill International School takes children from one to six, Clarence International School Tokyo runs a British EYFS programme from one to six, Montessori School of Tokyo runs pre-K through Grade 6, and Aoba-Japan admits from age two. For a family arriving mid-year with a toddler and a waitlisted older child, these schools frequently provide the practical bridge.

How selective are Tokyo international schools?

Most assess for placement and language readiness rather than selecting competitively: recent reports, a written task, an interview and a reference from the current school. The binding constraint in Tokyo is availability rather than admission standards. A capable child will usually be accepted somewhere good; the question is whether the specific school has a seat in the specific year group at the specific time.

Should we choose an international school or the Japanese system?

The international sector suits families on defined postings, families needing a portable qualification, and children joining after the early primary years. The Japanese public system, free and academically strong, suits younger children on longer stays where the family is prepared to operate in Japanese. Between the two sit the dual-language schools, which give substantial Japanese without committing a child's whole academic future to a system they may leave.

International schools in The long-established schools

International schools in IB schools across the city

International schools in National-curriculum schools

International schools in Bilingual, Montessori and early years

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