Edited by Aziza Francienne · B2C Marketing Manager
Japan has a growing selection of international schools, concentrated in Tokyo but with strong options in Kobe, Nagoya, Osaka, and Kyoto. The IB is the dominant framework, though American and British pathways are well represented. Fees are lower than Hong Kong or Singapore on average, and Japan's record-breaking expat workforce of 2.3 million means the international school market is expanding. Families find a safe, well-organised society with excellent public transport, though the language barrier can be challenging outside school hours.
Compare 19 international schools in Japan. Filter by curriculum, fees (average JPY 1,879,531), location, and more to find the right international school now.
UWC ISAK Japan is a co-educational, full-boarding high school in Karuizawa, Nagano. It opened in 2014 as International School of Asia, Karuizawa (ISAK) and joined the UWC movement in 2017. Students study in Grades 10–12. Grade 10 is described as “Pre-IB” with a leadership and project-work focus, and Grades 11–12 follow the IB Diploma Programme (including TOK, the Extended Essay and CAS). UWC ISAK Japan empowers transformational leaders to make a positive impact now and in the future. As Japan’s first full-boarding international high school, we educate intellectually curious, compassionate, and innovative students from diverse backgrounds.
New International School of Japan (NewIS) is a dual-language school in Minami-Ikebukuro, Tokyo, welcoming students from Pre-K (age 3) through Grade 12. Learning is delivered in English and Japanese, and the school describes its program as a dual-language implementation inspired by Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence, taught in multiage classes. Typical classrooms are staffed by two full-time teachers for about twenty children. From the year children turn six, students learn to play the violin by ear, and Mandarin Chinese is offered as an elective. The school also notes physical education includes International Tae Kwon Do. For access, NewIS is a short walk from major stations including Ikebukuro, and it offers a routed school bus service.
Makuhari International School (MIS) is a private international school in Wakaba, Chiba City, serving Pre-School (two-year-olds), Kindergarten 1–3 (ages 3–6) and Grades 1–6 (ages 6–12). The curriculum follows the objectives of the Japanese Curriculum and, as a MEXT-designated exceptional school, supplements them with elements from other curricula; English literacy draws on a UK-style literacy framework, and maths uses White Rose Maths. Most lessons are taught in English, with Japanese or Japanese Studies (and some Social Studies in Grades 5–6) taught in Japanese. The campus is a 13‑minute walk from Kaihin Makuhari Station and about 30 minutes from Narita Airport and central Tokyo. MIS runs school buses to areas including Chiba, Funabashi, Tsudanuma, Baytown and Urayasu. After-school clubs include art, athletics, language, culture, drama and music, and the Global Citizenship Award Program includes projects such as growing rice in the school rice paddy.
KIU Academy in Kyotanabe, Kyoto, is a bilingual international school serving Grades 1–12. The Academy combines an American-based curriculum with Japanese curriculum awareness and delivers instruction in both English and Japanese across elementary, middle and high school programs. KIU Academy is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the Association of Christian Schools International (ACSI), offering students a pathway that meets international and Japanese educational standards. The school’s admissions pages list a structured fee package for tuition, entrance, and other costs for annual enrollment. KIU Academy emphasizes bilingual fluency, cross-cultural communication and preparation for university study. While specific clubs and class sizes are not detailed on the official site, the Academy positions itself as a place where students gain practical bilingual skills and global perspectives designed to support further education in Japan and abroad.
Senri International School of Kwansei Gakuin (SIS) is a Japanese middle and high school in Minoh City, Osaka (north Osaka), founded in 1991 and sharing one campus with its sister school, Osaka International School, through the “Two Schools Together” model. Students follow curricula leading to Japanese middle and high school diplomas, and SIS also offers a route for students to pursue the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (DP), studied in grades 11–12 (ages 16–18). SIS highlights a three-term semester system designed to support transfers and flexible study patterns, and it emphasizes English development across subjects. The campus guide notes English is commonly used across shared-campus activities. Boarding is available via the school’s Akebono Dormitory for students who cannot easily commute.
Sunnyside International School is located in Gifu City, about a 20-minute train ride from Nagoya, in an area known for the Nagara River and surrounding mountains. The school’s programmes span early childcare (from 6 months) through elementary Grade 6, with kindergarten and a primary department. Sunnyside became Japan’s first PYP authorized “Article one” school in 2016, and its primary programme is underpinned by the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP). The school’s language policy places Japanese as the first language of schooling while increasing English use step-by-step, supported by English specialist teachers. A distinctive feature highlighted on the site is its collaboration with educator James Nottingham’s “Challenging Learning,” including use of the “Learning Pit” model to help students understand what learning feels like.
Tokyo West International School (TWIS) is located in Hachioji in western Tokyo (Tama area) and welcomes children from PreK through High School. In PreK and Kindergarten, TWIS serves ages 2–5 and teaches in a primarily English setting while also offering Japanese learning time. In Elementary (Grades 1–6), classes are capped at about 18 students and learning is grounded in the IB Primary Years Programme (PYP), with subjects integrated through Units of Inquiry. A distinctive feature is the school’s garden-based learning, used for hands-on projects connected to sustainability. TWIS also describes a progressive AI education plan from Grade 6 to 12.
Linden Hall School in Fukuoka operates two campuses to serve students from 6 to 18: Elementary at Gojo, Dazaifu City, and Junior and Senior High at Futsukaichi-kita, Chikushino City. It is a day school with on-campus dormitory facilities. The Elementary program provides six years of English-immersion education, with most classes taught in English; Japanese language and moral education are taught in Japanese. The programme follows the MEXT Ichijou-Kou curriculum and is designated a Specially Exempt School. The High School offers an IB Diploma Programme and TI Course; Linden Hall was recognised as an IB World School on 4 October 2013. College counselling, overseas study opportunities, and international exchanges are provided. Facilities include glass-walled Elementary building, on-campus athletic fields and rice paddies, a dormitory, and a High School with a computer room and library. Extracurriculars span music, sport, and programming, with Round Square membership supporting leadership and service through international exchanges.
Tamagawa Academy is a private Japanese school on a single campus in Machida, Tokyo. The school offers education from kindergarten through Grade 12. The campus is described as a 610,000 m² green area known as “Tamagawa no Oka (Tamagawa Hill).” For international pathways, the school introduced the IB Middle Years Programme (MYP) in April 2007 and the IB Diploma Programme (DP) in July 2010. DP subject options include English, Japanese and Mandarin languages, alongside sciences, mathematics, humanities and arts. Students also participate in a wide range of clubs, including robotics and coral research, as well as orchestra and English drama.
NUCB International College is a co-educational boarding high school in Nisshin City, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. The school opened in September 2022 as part of the Nagoya University of Commerce and Business education group. NUCB International College offers a dual-path academic structure in which students work toward both the Japanese high school graduation qualification and the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme. Before entering the IBDP, students complete a Pre-IB programme designed to prepare them for the academic requirements of the diploma years. Instruction is conducted primarily in English, except for language subjects. The academic programme emphasizes inquiry-based learning and includes required IB components such as Theory of Knowledge, Extended Essay, and Creativity, Activity, Service. Students live on campus in a full boarding environment, which is integrated with daily school life. The school also organizes structured academic and enrichment programmes, including seasonal camps to support student readiness for upper secondary study.
Sapporo International School (SIS) is an English-medium school in Sapporo serving students from Kindergarten through Grade 9. SIS implements an American curriculum aligned to the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), alongside an AIQ (Arabic, Islamic and Qur’an) curriculum and the Japanese National Curriculum. The school began in 2020 and consolidated into a larger, three-floor campus building by 2024. Beyond the regular program, SIS offers Summer School and an After School Program, including Arabic language and Qur’an tajweed/memorization classes. Families can also find short courses and events such as the SIS Robotic Course (robots, Arduino/Micro:bit and indoor drone learning).
NUCB International Junior and Senior High School (NIHS) is an MEXT-accredited junior and senior high school in Showa Ward, Nagoya, about a 7-minute walk from Gokiso Station. Students study in a bilingual environment and the school states it has recruited ten native English instructors, teaching small classes with an emphasis on oral communication. NIHS is an IB World School authorized for the Diploma Programme and has also obtained IB Middle Years Programme authorization. Beyond timetabled classes, the school describes after-school TOEIC preparation and a United Nations General Assembly debate simulation in English. Facilities highlighted by the school include a large central atrium used as a multi-purpose space, a “World Online Classroom” designed for interactive video-linked learning, an Active Learning Lab for discussion and presentations, as well as an on-site electronic library.
Ascot International School Japan is a Cambridge International School in Kita-ku, Kobe City (Hyogo), serving students from Early Years through Upper Secondary. The school opened its Early Years section in January 2018 and joined the Cambridge International network in May 2022. Students follow Cambridge pathways leading to IGCSE and A-levels, with the curriculum noted as aligned to the English National Curriculum, and Japanese learning offered alongside the English-language program. The campus includes a gymnasium and a full artificial turf soccer pitch, and the school highlights woodland areas used for nature-based learning. After school, students can join activities such as AFA Soccer, basketball, badminton, gaming and homework club.
Aichi International School (AIS) is an integrated kindergarten and elementary school in Hoshigaoka, Nagoya, serving children aged 3–12. Kindergarten is taught in a 100% English immersion setting, and the elementary school (Grades 1–6) runs a bilingual program with approximately 70% of instruction in English and 30% in Japanese. AIS states its curriculum is tailored from guidelines set by Japan’s Ministry of Education and British Columbia, Canada. For assessment, AIS notes that Grades 3–6 take the International Schools’ Assessment (ISA) in English and Math, and students also sit EIKEN-based tests. After school, children can join language-learning and sports/culture options such as Japanese lessons, tea ceremony, drama club, soccer and computer club. The school is reachable by subway and bus, with Hoshigaoka Station within walking distance.
Kobe Bilingual School (KOBILS) is a bilingual international school in Momoyamadai, Tarumi Ward (west Kobe), offering full-time programs for Kindergarten (ages 3–6) and Elementary (ages 6–12). The school describes its approach as English immersion with Japanese also taught, including Kokugo, and support for Japanese as a Second Language (JSL) for some students. KOBILS states that its curriculum blends Scotland’s Curriculum for Excellence with elements of Japan’s education guidelines as a KOBILS original curriculum. Class sizes are about 13 students, up to a maximum of 20. Distinctive features include a life skills curriculum that teaches practical finance (including budgeting and banking) and an annual Careers Week with visiting professionals.
YES International School Tokyo is a learning community in Shibuya, opened in May 2018, for children who are homeschooling or who find standard school life difficult. The daily program is built around project-based learning, where mornings can start with “morning projects” exploring themes such as science, language, art and programming, alongside creative learning in music and art. Students also take part in practical routines such as a cooking class and shared lunch time. Weekly movement sessions that include capoeira and soccer. The school describes individual support tailored to each child’s pace. A distinctive feature is its official Discord server, “YES Elegant,” designed with parent visibility and student-led rule-making.
Kunimoto Alberta International School is a six-year all-girls program in Tokyo offering Grades 7 through 12. The school delivers both the Alberta (Canada) curriculum and the Japanese national curriculum, allowing students to study within an international academic framework while remaining in Japan. The campus is located in Setagaya Ward, a residential area in western Tokyo and is within walking distance of Kitami Station on the Odakyu Line. This makes the school accessible from central parts of the city. Facilities include a library, computer room, science rooms, gymnasium, tea ceremony room, kitchen facilities and outdoor sports areas such as a lacrosse field and tennis court. A distinctive feature noted by the school is that it operates an Alberta-accredited program in Japan, with instruction aligned to Alberta Education standards. Students can also participate in a wide range of clubs, including arts, sports, language and service activities.
Linden Hall School in Fukuoka operates two campuses to serve students from 6 to 18: Elementary at Gojo, Dazaifu City, and Junior and Senior High at Futsukaichi-kita, Chikushino City. It is a day school with on-campus dormitory facilities. The Elementary program provides six years of English-immersion education, with most classes taught in English; Japanese language and moral education are taught in Japanese. The programme follows the MEXT Ichijou-Kou curriculum and is designated a Specially Exempt School. The High School offers an IB Diploma Programme and TI Course; Linden Hall was recognised as an IB World School on 4 October 2013. College counselling, overseas study opportunities, and international exchanges are provided. Facilities include glass-walled Elementary building, on-campus athletic fields and rice paddies, a dormitory, and a High School with a computer room and library. Extracurriculars span music, sport, and programming, with Round Square membership supporting leadership and service through international exchanges.
Founded in 1949, Nishimachi International School is a coeducational K–9 day school in central Tokyo. The school enrolls about 480 students, with approximately 20 students per class in Kindergarten through Grade 6 and middle school classes typically ranging from 10–20. Instruction is in English and all students study Japanese. The school describes its curriculum as based on American Common Core standards alongside its Japanese language and culture program taught daily through Grade 9. Beyond academics, students can join activities such as drama, band, ikebana, and sports including soccer, basketball, volleyball, track and field, cross country and badminton. The school also runs overnight trips to Kazuno (Grades 4–8) and winter ski trips (Grades 4–9).
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