Relocation guide
Moving to Shanghai with kids
Computed from 19 tracked schools — verified fees, live availability, no brochure numbers. All relocation guides →
For Shanghai, a realistic annual budget is around $37,800 per child, with most published fees clustering from roughly $26,000 at the lower quartile to about $44,200 at the upper end; for senior years, that translates to a median of RMB 311,000, with a spread from about RMB 194,457 to RMB 332,750. There is no inflation series here, so for a five-year posting you should treat today’s fees as a starting point rather than a reliable long-range forecast. Choice is broad rather than limitless: across 19 schools, families are chiefly choosing between IB (8) and American (6), with a smaller Chinese National segment (5), and only limited British (2), German (1) and French (1) options. Admissions pressure is best read as moderate: of three schools assessed, one is waitlist-only, giving a 33% constrained ratio, and just one school currently reports a waitlist.
Fee reality
$37,800
median annual day fee (USD) · middle half $26,000–$44,200 · 7 schools
Senior median: RMB 311,000 (~$43,540)
Fee trajectory
Fee-history coverage still building for this market.
Curriculum mix
Admission pressure
Moderate
1 of 3 schools are waitlist-only or closed at popular entry points (33%)
Waitlist reality
Questions families ask
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