Estimate private-school fees per term, per year and across several years, including VAT, confirmed discounts and extra costs.
Estimate your school-fee budget
Enter 0 for a day school.
Use only the amount your school confirms is outside the taxable fee.
Estimated school-fee result
| Taxable amount per term, all children | |
|---|---|
| Non-taxed extras per term, all children | |
| First-year VAT | |
| Increase assumed each later year |
This is a budgeting estimate. Use the fee schedule and VAT treatment supplied by the school for a final figure.
How the School Fees Calculator UK works
The calculator starts with tuition, boarding and any other charges you identify as VAT-taxable. It subtracts the confirmed school discount, adds the entered VAT rate, adds separately entered non-taxed extras and multiplies the result by the number of children and billing periods.
Current UK VAT treatment of private-school fees
Since 1 January 2025, education and vocational training supplied by private schools in the UK for a charge have been subject to VAT at the standard 20% rate. The change also covers boarding services supplied by private schools. HMRC explains that VAT can be due on the total received for educating the pupil, including certain externally funded bursaries, so do not assume every bursary automatically reduces the taxable amount.
Some goods and services can receive different treatment. Necessary classroom supplies provided for pupils’ direct use can remain exempt, while optional extras and separately supplied services depend on the facts. Check the school’s invoice and the current HMRC guidance on private-school fees before deciding which amount belongs in each field.
What to include in your estimate
| Cost | Where to enter it | Check before using |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | Tuition before VAT | Whether the quoted fee already includes VAT |
| Boarding | Boarding before VAT | The school’s taxable amount |
| Taxable compulsory charges | Other VAT-taxable charges | The VAT line on the invoice |
| Confirmed non-taxed extras | Other charges | The school’s written VAT treatment |
| Sibling or school discount | Confirmed school discount | Whether it reduces the taxable consideration |
Worked example
Suppose one child has tuition of £7,500 per term, no boarding fee, £300 of taxable charges, £450 of other charges and a confirmed £500 school discount. At 20% VAT, the taxable amount is £7,300 and VAT is £1,460. The term total is £9,210. Across three terms, the first-year estimate is £27,630 before any later annual fee increase.
Compare private school fees for your family
Start with the fee schedule from a school you are considering. Enter tuition and any boarding charge for one child, then add confirmed extras and discounts. Run the estimate for one child and again for two to see the change in the term and annual budget. This private school fees calculator is most useful when you use each school’s actual invoice rather than a national average; it cannot quote a particular school’s price.
School tuition and the full cost
School tuition is often only the starting point. Check whether the published figure is per term or per year and whether VAT is already included before entering it. Uniform, transport, lunches, trips and examinations can add to school costs, but include them only in the appropriate field after checking how the school bills and taxes each item. A low tuition quote may still lead to a higher overall budget once those costs are included.
Independent school fees forecast
For an independent school fees calculator scenario, enter the number of years the child may attend and try more than one annual fee-rise assumption. Compare a 0% increase with your own planning rate to see how sensitive the projected total is. The school fees forecast is a budget scenario, not a promise about future prices; review it when the school publishes a new fee schedule.
Use a school fees estimator for two scenarios
For a quick school fee calculator comparison, enter the published fee for one child and check the first-year total. Then change the number of children or annual increase to see how the budget changes. A private school fees estimator is only as useful as the fee schedule you enter: ask the school which charges are included and whether its quote already contains VAT before comparing it with another school.
Planning for more than one year
School fees commonly change between academic years, but the future rate is not guaranteed. The projection compounds the same percentage across the whole estimated annual cost. It is a scenario, not a prediction. Try a lower and higher increase to see a reasonable budget range, and keep deposits, registration charges, transport, uniforms, trips, devices, examinations and insurance separate if they are not included in the school’s published fee.
School age calculator UK: choose the years you need to budget for
If you searched for a school age calculator UK, first confirm your child’s intended entry year and year group with the school. This page estimates fees; it does not work out school eligibility from a date of birth. Once you know the expected entry and leaving years, enter the number of years you need to fund. That gives your fee estimate a more useful starting point.
Looking for the Good Schools Guide fees calculator?
If you arrived looking for the Good Schools Guide fees calculator, this is an independent tool and is not affiliated with The Good Schools Guide. Use a school’s current published fee schedule to build your estimate here, then compare the total with another school using the same number of children and years. Ask each school about included extras, discounts and whether quoted fees include VAT so you can compare like with like.
Affordability and education planning
A fee total does not show whether a household can comfortably afford it. Compare the projected cost with income, emergency savings and other commitments. For education-related comparisons, the United Kingdom GPA Calculator helps convert academic results, while the Housing Benefit Calculator can illustrate a separate household-support estimate. Families checking government childcare support can also use the Tax-Free Childcare Calculator UK.
Browse other planning tools on the United Kingdom Calculator homepage.
Frequently asked questions
Are UK private-school fees subject to VAT?
Private-school education and boarding services supplied for a charge have generally been subject to the standard 20% VAT rate since 1 January 2025.
Should I enter fees before or after VAT?
Enter the tuition, boarding and taxable charges before VAT. The calculator adds the VAT rate entered in the form.
Does a bursary always reduce the VAT calculation?
No. HMRC states that VAT may be due on everything received in return for the education, including some external bursary funding. Enter only a discount that the school confirms reduces the taxable amount.
Does the estimate include uniforms and school trips?
Only if you enter them in the relevant extra-charge field. Their VAT treatment can vary, so use the school’s invoice.
How is the multi-year projection calculated?
The first-year total is increased by the same annual percentage for each later year and the yearly amounts are added together.