English-medium and IB schooling is where many Monaco family budgets stop looking “high salary, high rent” and start looking like a second mortgage. Principality leases hurt first. School fees decide whether a Fontvieille posting stays viable for a decade.
What should families expect to pay at ISM?
The International School of Monaco is the flagship English and French bilingual campus many expat families shortlist. Secondary guides citing recent published schedules place annual tuition from roughly the mid-€20,000s in primary years into about €30,000–34,000 for upper secondary, with younger kindergarten half-day options lower. Good Schools Guide ranges for ISM have sat near €27,000–34,400 for core years. Application fees around €500, registration fees, and a capital development contribution near €10,000 commonly sit outside tuition. Sibling discounts apply from later children.
ISM sometimes asks databases not to republish the live year. Treat any guide figure as directional and confirm the admissions invoice before you wire a deposit on a flat: Fontvieille cost of living and Rent in Monaco.
What are the alternatives and tradeoffs?
Public and contracted French-language schools in Monaco cost far less than ISM but assume French fluency for parents and children: English in Monaco. Across the border, Riviera international campuses in the Nice–Antibes belt often publish softer annual bands than ISM while adding train or car time: Monaco vs France cost. That trade can still beat a second child’s ISM invoice when rent already clears multi-thousand euros.
Nursery years before ISM still need CCSS-aware crèche planning: Childcare costs. Keep school fees in the same sheet as rent and healthcare, not as a September surprise: Monthly budget and How expensive is Monaco. District choice matters for morning drop-off more than for inventing cheap tuition: Where to live.
Common misconceptions
Assuming Monaco residence unlocks free English IB schooling fails. ISM is a premium private product.
Assuming last year’s brochure fee still equals this year’s invoice also fails. Confirm the live schedule every admissions cycle.
Summary
Budget ISM in the mid-€20,000s to low €30,000s per child for many full-year tracks, plus capital and registration cash, or compare Riviera schools if the commute beats a second mortgage. Confirm fees with the school before the lease deposit clears.
Sources
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