Today, the Hong Kong Professional Education Press (HKPEP) Education Information Research Institute officially released the "HKPEP Top 100 Global International Schools in Education Competitiveness 2026" list, the "HKPEP Top 50 China Greater Bay Area International Schools in Education Competitiveness 2026" list, and the "HKPEP Top 50 China Mainland International Schools for Foreign Children in Education Competitiveness 2026" list.
As the institution of publishing authoritative rankings in the field of international education for 13 consecutive years and the first institution to publish the ranking of international schools worldwide, the assessment criteria of this selection of educational competitiveness is based on internationally used educational indicators published in the Yearbook of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, adopting a-dimensional assessment framework of “educational input – educational process – educational outcome”, combined with 63 subdivided indicators, comprehensively judging more than 1,500 schools offering international courses worldwide, providing a core reference for the selection of international schools and the development of the industry globally (please visit www.hkpep.com for the detail of the selection system of international school educational competitiveness and its 63 indicators of first-level, second-level, and third-level, as well as the processing methods of the evaluation materials and the calculation method of the ranking).
Top 100 Worldwide: US and UK Dominate, Chinese Institutions Show Regional Characteristics
In the " HKPEP Top 100 Global International Schools in Education Competitiveness 2026" list, international schools from the United States the United Kingdom still maintain a dominant position, continuing their leading momentum. The United States leads with 34 schools listed, while the United Kingdom has 27 schools on the list, accounting for more than 60% of the total.
Top-ranked Phillips Academy Andover maintained its first place with a full score of 1,000, highlighting its outstanding performance in core indicators as school resources and facilities (188 scores), teacher quality (90 scores), and academic performance (90 scores), achieving a high degree of synergy educational investment and outcomes. Westminster School and Eton College in the United Kingdom ranked the second and the fourth respectively, with both schools achieving a full 6 scores in extracurricular activities maintaining a high score of 9 in student support measures during the educational process, demonstrating the profound heritage of British elite education.
China has a total of 19 schools in the top 100, including 6 in the Hong Kong region and 13 in the mainland. Beijing Normal University High School Affiliated Experimental School International Department, International Cooperation Projects of Renmin University High School (ICC), and the International Department of Beijing No.11 Middle School are among the top 50, showing the strong strength of public schools in the mainland to run international education; Shanghai has five schools on the list, covering various types of schools such as public international departments, private and foreign-funded private schools. The Shenzhen International Academy of Communication and Wuhan Britain-China School also occupy a place with their special curriculum system and academic performance.
It is worth noting that outside of China, Singapore has four schools on the list, while Tokyo's K International School as Japan's only shortlisted institution with a high 64 scores on the international school indicator, showing the strength of Japanese international schools when it comes to cross-border educational integration; the Dubai branch of the North Collegiate School and Dubai Public School in the UAE made it to the top of the list with their high level of internationalization, and the competitiveness of international education in the Middle East is gradually improving.
Top 50 of the Greater Bay Area: Hong Kong Institutions Dominate the Top; The Pearl River Delta Private Schools Rise
The " HKPEP Top 50 China Greater Bay Area International Schools in Education Competitiveness 2026" list shows a regional pattern of "Hong Kong leading, and the Pearl River Delta following closely." Schools from the Hong Kong region dominate the top five, with the German Swiss International School ranking the first with a perfect score of 1000. It received a score of 9 in both the teaching quality and student support measures, and its academic performance also reached 74 points, demonstrating a prominent comprehensive competitiveness. Traditional prestigious schools in Hong Kong, such as St. Paul's Co-Educational College and Diocesan Boys' School, followed closely behind. These schools generally excel in teacher quality and school ethos construction, and their educational investment resource facility indicators all scored over 170 points.
Institutions in Guangdong province in the Pearl River Delta region are showing strong tendencies of development. Shenzhen College of International Education ranked the third and the highest-ranked Chinese international school in the mainland, achieving 179 scores for its school resources and facilities and 73 scores for its academic performance, having the significant strength among private schools; The International Department of South China Normal University Affiliated High School ranked the seventh as the highest-ranked public international department in the Guangzhou area, 6 scores for its extracurricular activities, making it stand out in quality education.
From the perspective of school running types, the foreign-funded private/directly-funded schools in the Greater Bay Area are mainly concentrated in Hong Kong, the schools in the Pearl River Delta region are mainly private schools and public international departments. Private colleges such as Guangdong Country Garden School and Fettes College Guangzhou made it into the top 20. Among the public international departments, Shenzhen Middle School (Experimental System) and Shenzhen Senior High School (Group) International Course System have also performed well, forming a pattern of multi-school running types developing in coordination.
Top 50 international schools for foreign children in China: Shanghai emerges as a hub; quality of education shows a polarization
The " HKPEP Top 50 China Mainland International Schools for Foreign Children in Education Competitiveness 2026" list shows an absolute clustering strength in Shanghai, with seven of the top ten schools coming from Shanghai. Shanghai American School topped the list with a score of 1000, with an internationalization index of 51 and student support measures of 8, making it a benchmark institution for the education of foreign personnel's children in the Yangtze River Delta region.
Beijing has four schools in the top ten, with established institutions such as International School of Beijing and Dulwich College Beijing at the forefront. These schools typically excel in academic performance indicators, with International School of Beijing achieving 69 scores in academic performance, ranking the first of similar institutions. In terms of regional distribution, schools in Jiangsu, Guangdong, Shandong, and other regions have also been included, but they are ranked lower, and there are fewer schools with high scores, which reflects the distribution characteristics of "concentration at the top and uneven regional distribution" of international schools for the children of foreign personnel in Mainland China.
In terms of the quality of education, the ranking shows a clear polarization. Top schools such as the International Department of Shanghai High School and International Department of Shanghai Foreign Language University Affiliated Foreign Language School have a balance of high scores in various indicators; while some schools ranked at the bottom have significantly lower scores than the average indicators such as teacher quality and school resource facilities, with a significant gap in the quality of education compared to the top schools.
The HKPEP Education Information Research Institute explains that even the final comprehensive score is not a "top list" ranking the comprehensive strength of education in schools, nor is a judgment on the size and strength of the educational competitiveness of various schools, but only a "health check" for monitoring competitiveness. Every school can regard it as a mirror, take a look at itself, and also compare it with others. However, there is no need to be proud or self-deprecating, nor be arrogant or complain. If all schools, especially excellent schools, can listen to it with an open mind, look at it with a mind to learn from it,analyze it with a truth-seeking mind, and use it with a mind to self-examine, then our work of monitoring the global international school education competitiveness can realize its maximum value and become a reference guide for parents to choose schools and for educators. The specific list ranking is as follows:
