How much does private secondary school cost in Ireland in 2026?

Since 2018, Zurich has carried out in depth research into the cost of education in Ireland. During those nine years we have amassed a large volume of data on the cost of primary, secondary and college education in Ireland, and each year, we have provided valuable insights for parents to help them plan and save for their children’s education.

We also have handy calculators to help parents figure out the costs. If you’re looking into secondary school or college, you can work out the expected expenses. And if you’re considering private school, our secondary school cost calculator can include any additional costs for that too.

In this article we are going to cover:

1. Understanding the private secondary school sector in Ireland.
2. Type of fees and expenses.
3. What is affecting the school fees?
4. Average private secondary school fees.
5. The costs of private secondary schools in 2026.
6. Planning and budgeting

Understanding the private secondary school sector in Ireland

There are over 50 private or fee-paying secondary schools in Ireland₁. Fees can vary from school to school but can be a considerable expense for parents each year in addition to the cost of things like grinds, books, uniforms and transport.

The Irish Times has reported that the cost of sending a child to a fee-paying school has increased for many parents. According to the Irish Times, it could cost up to €50,000 for six years of private school education in Dublin₂. They also highlight that annual fees at secondary level have risen by up to 19%, with costs for day pupils ranging from €4,000- €14,000 per academic year.

The Irish Independent also find that the cost of fee-paying schools rose last year by up to €2,000 with the most expensive boarding school now charging over €31,000 a year₃.

Demand for places in private fee-paying schools remains high and parents are motivated by a number of factors when deciding to send their children to private schools in Ireland. For some parents, the appeal of different teaching approaches, more variety when it comes to specialist subjects and smaller class sizes are the main draws. For others it is due to them having attended a specific private school themselves and now they want their own children to attend the same school. A major factor however for parents is that private tutored students have a high rate of progression to university, and in particular for high Central Applications Office (CAO) point courses such as medicine₄.

Type of fees and expenses

As mentioned, the fees for private schools can vary, ranging from €4,000 to over €14,000. But this isn’t the only cost when sending a child to a fee-paying secondary school in Ireland.

The Zurich Cost of Education Survey 2026₅ highlights other secondary school expenses parents can expect to pay. Here's a list of expenses you can expect to pay each year and the lifetime cost of putting just one child through secondary education.

The highest annual expenditure items for parents with children in secondary school are grinds (€620), lunches (€353), transport (€304) and clothing (€257). Zurich's Cost of Education report also finds that in order to fund their children's education, 36% of parents have taken out a loan to fund their secondary school costs, and that is up 12% on last year’s figure.

What is affecting the school fees?

A number of factors influence how much fee-paying schools charge each year for attending students. An obvious one is the school’s reputation. If a particular school is reputable then it can charge higher fees. The location of the school, the facilities and specialist subjects on offer can also be other factors that drive up fees.

Private schools are also being impacted by inflation amid rising costs of energy, staffing and food, and this could be another reason why fees have gone up in the last number of years.

Planning and budgeting ahead

The good news is there are some measures parents can take to reduce the cost of sending their children to secondary school, such as providing packed lunches, walking to school and availing of book rental schemes. Other solutions to minimising the financial burden of children's education are early planning and financial saving.

With the cost of education increasing year-on-year, it makes sense to plan ahead and build up your savings. With a Regular Savings plan you can gradually build up the funds necessary to successfully support your children's education.

The table below illustrates just how much regular savings can grow with a Zurich LifeSave Savings Plus plan. For example, if you saved the Government child benefit of €140 per month for five years (as of June 2026) in the Prisma 4 fund from when your child was born, by the time they started school you could have built up savings of €9,040 in time to fund this crucial stage in their education.

Calculating the costs

Our cost of education calculators are useful tools to help you work out how much you need to save to cover the costs of putting children through secondary school and then on into college. If you are planning to send your children to a fee-paying school, our secondary school calculator can include any additional costs for fees. In addition, if you are hoping your children will go on to college, our college calculator can help you plan for this expense too.

Sources: 

₁Privateschools.ie

₂Irish Times

₃Irish Independent

₄Irish Independent

₅Zurich Cost of Education Survey 2026