Charterhouse School Fees 2026/27: Boarding, Day, Admissions, Alternatives

Charterhouse School fees for 2026/27 are £21,015 per term for boarders (£63,045 a year over three terms) and £16,369 per term for day pupils (£49,107 a year) — both figures already include VAT (official fees page, checked 30 October 2026). On top of that, every applicant pays a non-refundable registration fee of £420 including VAT, and families who accept a place sign one contract and pay one deposit; the deposit amount itself is not published on the official site. Charterhouse quotes its fees per term, and its school year has three terms (which it calls “Quarters”), so the annual figures above are our arithmetic, not a published total.

If you searched “Charterhouse school fees”, “Charterhouse fees per term” or “Charterhouse school admissions”, you probably want three things: the real numbers with VAT handled correctly, a clear picture of how children get in at 13+, 14+ and 16+ (Charterhouse has several registration routes, and the deadlines differ), and an honest sense of who the school suits. This page answers those questions from Charterhouse’s official website and its 2024 ISI inspection report, then compares the school with Harrow School and Winchester College — and with NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY (NGA), a very different kind of option: an online international school for ages 6–18 that opens in September 2027.

The short answer: who Charterhouse suits — and who it doesn’t

• Suits: families who want a full boarding environment in the countryside, within reach of London. Of the 998 pupils counted at the September 2024 ISI inspection, 893 were boarders, and the school sits on a 250-acre campus in Godalming, Surrey, about 45 minutes from London by train.
• Suits: girls and boys alike. Charterhouse became fully co-educational in September 2022, and today it describes itself as a co-educational school for ages 13 to 18, with 13 single-sex and 2 mixed boarding houses.
• Suits: families who want a genuine choice between A Levels and the IB Diploma in the Sixth Form. Charterhouse runs both, and its 2026 IB cohort averaged 38 points according to the school’s results page.
• Suits: Surrey families who want a day place at a boarding school. Day pupils have their own shared study in a House, eat supper at school and can stay for evening prep — at £16,369 per term rather than £21,015.
• Harder fit: families who need to know the all-in cost before applying. The fees page gives only the two headline termly fees; the deposit, what the fee includes, extras and payment terms are “available on request” from the Admissions Office.
• Harder fit: families who missed the registration window. The recommended Year 6 pathway closes on 30 September of Year 6 — three years before entry — and the September 2027 Sixth Form window had already closed when we checked.
• Harder fit: families outside the UK who are counting on a bursary. Bursaries are means-tested with limited funds, the Sixth Form bursaries are described as being for local children, and every international pupil must have a UK guardian at all times.

What Charterhouse School is

Charterhouse is an independent boarding and day school for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Godalming, Surrey. It was founded in London in 1611 under the will of Thomas Sutton and moved to its present site in 1872; the 2024 ISI report describes it as a charitable company limited by guarantee whose governors are its trustees. For most of its history it was a boys’ school with girls admitted only in the Sixth Form. According to the school’s own news archive, girls joined Year 9 and Year 10 from September 2021, and the ISI report records that the school “became fully co-educational in September 2022”.

The ISI inspectors counted 998 pupils in September 2024, of whom 893 were boarders. Boarders live in one of 15 Houses on the main site — 13 single-sex and 2 mixed — and the school says boarders “come mainly from the south east of England and from countries overseas”. 114 pupils spoke English as an additional language, and the report notes that most of them were already fluent and needed little extra support. The school uses its own vocabulary: Year 9 is the Fourth Form, Years 10 and 11 are the Removes and Fifth Form (together the “Under School”), the Sixth Form is called “Specialists”, and the three terms are the Oration Quarter, Long Quarter and Cricket Quarter.

Inspection, qualifications and results

UK independent schools are not “accredited” in the American sense; they are registered with the Department for Education and inspected. Charterhouse’s most recent routine inspection by the Independent Schools Inspectorate took place on 17–19 September 2024. The published report finds that all the relevant Standards are met — leadership and governance, quality of education, pupils’ health and wellbeing, social and economic education, and safeguarding. Inspectors praised governors’ first-hand oversight, pupils’ welfare in “the busy boarding environment”, the support for SEND and EAL pupils and the co-curricular programme. Two next steps were recommended: that leaders check new statutory guidance is followed up quickly so that website updates happen immediately, and that “all teaching is planned to match pupils’ individual needs so that they make consistently good progress in all subjects”. The previous inspection was on 3 October 2022.

Pupils take GCSEs and then either A Levels (almost all A Level pupils take three subjects plus the Extended Project Qualification; those who want four subjects are steered to the IB) or the IB Diploma Programme (three Higher Level and three Standard Level subjects, with Maths, English Literature and a language compulsory to 18, plus the Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge and CAS). Every Year 9 pupil studies Latin. On its exam results pages for 2026 the school reports an average IB score of 38 points, 65% of Sixth Form papers at A*–A and 90% at A*–B, and 84% of GCSE grades at 7–9 (average grade 7.74); two IB pupils scored the maximum 45 points. Note that different news pages on the site quote slightly different percentages (for example 37.5 IB points and 88% A*–B elsewhere), so treat the figures as the school’s own summary. Leavers in 2026 took up places at universities including Oxford, Cambridge, Imperial, UCL, LSE, Princeton, Duke, UCLA and UC Berkeley, according to the school; no Oxbridge headcount is published.

Charterhouse School fees 2026/27 (official, including VAT)

The numbers below come from Charterhouse’s fees page, headed “School fees 2026/27”, checked on 30 October 2026. The page lists just two figures, both marked as including VAT, and says a detailed schedule of fees is available on request from the Admissions Office. UK private school fees have carried 20% VAT since 1 January 2025; because Charterhouse quotes its fees inclusive of VAT, there is nothing to add to the published figure.

For context, the school’s previously published 2025/26 table gave £20,016 per term for boarding and £15,591 for day, also including VAT, so the 2026/27 increase is about 5% for both. The school does not say on its fees page how often or when fees are reviewed; assume they will rise again during your child’s time at the school.

One-off charges when your child applies and joins

What the fee includes — and what the site does not say

Unlike Harrow or Winchester, Charterhouse does not state on its fees page what the termly fee covers (board, meals, textbooks, laundry, trips and so on), and it publishes no list of extras such as individual music lessons, exam entry fees or the EAL programme. Payment terms, instalment options, any fees-in-advance scheme and any sibling or Forces discounts are also not published on the official site. All of this sits in the detailed fee schedule that the Admissions Office sends on request, so ask for it before you budget, and ask specifically for a typical annual extras figure for a boarder in your child’s year group.

What five years at Charterhouse cost at today’s prices

Using only the official 2026/27 figures, with no bursary and no fee rises, here is the arithmetic for a child who joins in Year 9 and stays to Year 13 (15 terms):

• Boarder: 15 × £21,015 = £315,225, plus the £420 registration fee and the unpublished deposit.
• Day pupil: 15 × £16,369 = £245,535, plus £420 registration.
• Sixth Form only (two years, 6 terms): boarding 6 × £21,015 = £126,090; day 6 × £16,369 = £98,214.
• Two children boarding for five years each: 2 × £315,225 = £630,450 before any discount, extras, guardianship or travel.

Because fees rise most years, the real total for a child starting in 2027 or later will be higher. Our guide to online vs in-person international school costs shows how boarding budgets like this compare with day and online schooling more generally.

Charterhouse bursaries and scholarships

Charterhouse separates need-based bursaries from merit-based scholarships. The Assistance with Fees page says bursary awards “can cover up to 100% of school fees, depending on financial need”, that all bursaries are means-tested annually and reviewed each year, and that in some cases additional help with uniform, travel or extracurricular costs may be available. Each family is assessed individually on household income, assets and personal circumstances; the process involves full financial documentation and may include a family interview and a home visit by the school’s agent, Bursary Administration Ltd. Funds are limited and allocated on a rolling basis, so the school advises applying as early as possible — you can tick the bursary request on the registration form or ask the Admissions Team for a Bursary Application Form.

Two details matter for how you plan. First, Year 9 entrance bursaries are “academically competitive”: they are awarded after the ISEB Common Pre-test and the Interview and Activity Afternoons, with school reports and testimonials taken into account, so a child needs to be a strong candidate as well as financially eligible. Second, the Sixth Form bursaries are described as being designed for local children joining to study A Levels or the IB Diploma. The number of pupils on bursaries, the total spent each year, any qualifying income thresholds and whether overseas families are eligible are not published on the official site.

Scholarships are won in open competition. At 13+ there is an academic Foundation Scholarship plus co-curricular awards in Art and Textiles, Drama, Dance, Performing Arts, Design Engineering, Music and Sport; for September 2027 entry, co-curricular applications close on 11 December 2026, with portfolio or video submissions due 8 January 2027 and assessments between 19 and 27 January 2027, while the Foundation (academic) deadline is 19 March 2027 with assessments on 26 and 27 April 2027. A pupil may hold one co-curricular award alongside a Foundation Scholarship. At 16+ the Sir Robert Birley Academic Scholarship is assessed through the normal entrance process and GCSE results, and co-curricular awards (deadline 2 October 2026 for 2027 entry, assessed in November) bring enrichment programmes rather than fee reductions — the Art award includes £1,000 a year towards materials, and the Music award includes free lessons on main instruments. A Wei Music Scholarship for candidates resident in Asia offers fee remission, but the percentage is not published. The school says a bursary can top up a scholarship where there is financial need, and it does not publish any fee-remission percentage for ordinary scholarships.

How a school week works: day pupils, boarders and time zones

Charterhouse is an in-person school on UK time with a full boarding rhythm. The Day and Boarding page says day pupils report to their House before or after breakfast and the school day usually ends after supper, though pupils can stay later for prep in their House study or for evening activities, with flexible collection times. Each day pupil shares a study room in House with a pupil from the same year, so day pupils are part of House life rather than visitors to it. Saturdays include sport: no pupil may leave on a Saturday until their commitments are complete. Boarders can go home after Saturday fixtures and normally return on Sunday evening; Sixth Form boarders must be back by 9pm on Sunday or 8am on Monday.

The 2026/27 term dates on the calendar page run from 1 September to 11 December 2026 (Oration Quarter), 11 January to 25 March 2027 (Long Quarter) and 20 April to 3 July 2027 (Cricket Quarter), with half-term exeats in mid-October and mid-February. That is roughly 34 weeks in school. For families abroad, the International Families page states that every pupil must have a guardian at all times, so budget for a guardianship service and for where your child will go at exeats and half-terms. If you are weighing a Surrey boarding school against learning from home in another country, our explainer on how an online international school day works shows the other side of that trade-off.

Charterhouse admissions: entry points at 13+, 14+ and 16+

Charterhouse has more entry routes than most boarding schools, and the deadlines are easy to confuse because the official tables list several entry years at once. The summary below is from the Year 9 admissions, Year 10 admissions and Sixth Form admissions pages, checked 30 October 2026; confirm your own dates with the Admissions Team (admissions@charterhouse.org.uk) before relying on them.

13+ entry (Year 9, the Fourth Form)

1. Choose a pathway. UK pupils can apply through the Year 6, Year 7 or Year 8 routes; the school strongly recommends the Year 6 pathway and says the Year 7 pathway is the recommended route for families whose first language is not English. There is also an 11+ route: a combined £420 registration for Charterhouse and one of three partner prep schools (Edgeborough, Windlesham House or Amesbury), with Years 7 and 8 at the prep school followed by entry to Charterhouse in Year 9.
2. Register and pay £420. Year 6 route: by 30 September of the year your child is in Year 6 (so 30 September 2026 for September 2029 entry; the September 2028 round is closed). Year 7 route: 30 September 2026 for September 2028 entry. Year 8 route: 19 October 2026 for September 2027 entry, and mid-to-late October 2027 for 2028 entry.
3. Tests. Year 6 candidates sit the ISEB Common Pre-test, reviewed together with a reference from the current school. Later-route candidates complete a series of tests on a digital platform; for the current cycle the window was 24 September to 6 October 2026, with a further date of 17 November 2026 for those who registered between 1 September and 19 October. Overseas candidates can take the tests remotely.
4. Assessment day. Shortlisted candidates are invited to Charterhouse for an observed seminar, a short written exercise and a one-to-one interview (13 November 2026 in the current cycle). Overseas families can request virtual interviews; applicants from Hong Kong and mainland China apply through the school’s partner Academic Asia and are interviewed in Hong Kong each September, with offers in December.
5. Offers. Made in the Spring Term of the assessment day, usually by the end of March (for the Year 6 route, in March of Year 6). Families accept by signing the acceptance form and paying the deposit within 8 weeks. The school says successful candidates sign only one contract and pay only one deposit, however many schools they applied through.

14+ entry (Year 10, the Removes)

Charterhouse admits around 20 new Year 10 pupils each year. The route is open to children at school in the UK or internationally who are aged 13 or 14 (Year 9) when they begin the application. Registration is online with the same £420 fee; the final date for September 2027 entry was 19 October 2026. The testing window, assessment format and offer timing for Year 10 are not set out separately on the pages we checked.

16+ entry (Sixth Form, the Specialists)

Candidates are expected to be 16 by 1 September of the year of entry. Registration is online and costs £420. For September 2027 entry the final registration date was 23 September 2026, and the window had closed when we checked; the window for September 2028 entry is due to open in Spring 2027. The school says it looks for “real academic ability and ambition” at 16+, and Sixth Form scholarship candidates are assessed on exceptional GCSE results, but the pages we checked do not state a minimum GCSE profile for an ordinary 16+ place, nor the 16+ assessment dates — ask Admissions. Charterhouse notes that Higher Level IB and A Level subject choices depend on grades achieved at (I)GCSE or equivalent, although offers themselves are unconditional. Applicants from Hong Kong and mainland China should contact Academic Asia by late August of the year before entry.

Charterhouse vs Harrow vs Winchester vs NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY (official data)

Harrow School and Winchester College are the two full-boarding schools families most often weigh against Charterhouse, and both now publish 2026/27 fees including VAT. The obvious difference is that Charterhouse is fully co-educational, while Harrow admits boys only and Winchester admits boys at 13+ with girls joining at 16+. NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY (NGA) is a different kind of school altogether — online, for ages 6–18, and not yet open. For the full cost breakdowns, see our Harrow School fees review and Winchester College fees review.

Sources: Charterhouse fees, Charterhouse Year 9 admissions, Charterhouse Assistance with Fees, ISI: Charterhouse, Harrow School fees and deposits, Winchester College fees — checked 30 October 2026.

Is Charterhouse worth it? Reviews and common concerns, answered honestly

“Worth it” depends on your child and your circumstances, not on a league table. These are the questions parents raise most often about Charterhouse, with what the official pages and the ISI report say.

“Why can’t I see the full cost on the website?”

Because the school publishes only the two headline termly fees and the £420 registration fee; the detailed schedule — deposit, inclusions, extras, payment terms — is sent by the Admissions Office on request. That is less transparent than Harrow or Winchester, whose fees pages list deposits, visa charges and sample extras. The practical answer is to ask for the schedule early and to read the parent contract before paying a deposit.

“Is a day place a second-class place?”

The school’s own description suggests not: day pupils belong to a House, share a study with a year-group peer, eat supper and can stay for prep and evening activities, and the ISI report describes a single House-based community. The trade-off is time: with Saturday commitments and a day that normally ends after supper, a day pupil’s week looks much more like a boarder’s than at a typical day school.

“How settled is co-education?”

Girls first joined Year 9 and 10 in September 2021 and the school became fully co-educational in September 2022, so by 2026/27 every year group has been mixed for several years and boarding is organised in 13 single-sex and 2 mixed houses. If the balance of girls and boys in your child’s year matters to you, ask Admissions for the current numbers — they are not published on the pages we checked.

“Will my child’s English be good enough?”

Charterhouse runs an EAL programme and the ISI report says EAL pupils “access specialist support as required”, while noting that most of the 114 EAL pupils were already fluent. The school recommends its Year 7 registration pathway for families whose first language is not English, which gives more time before the Year 9 assessments. No minimum English test score is published on the official site, so ask what evidence the school expects from an overseas applicant.

“Can we get a bursary from overseas?”

The official pages do not say overseas families are excluded, but they do say funds are limited, that bursaries are means-tested annually with full financial documentation and a possible home visit, and that Sixth Form bursaries are designed for local children. International families should plan to pay the full boarding fee, plus guardianship and travel, and treat any bursary as a bonus.

“What did the inspectors criticise?”

Two things, both modest: a delay in reflecting new statutory guidance on the website, and teaching that was “not always sufficiently focused on individual pupils’ needs”, leading to “some uneven progress”. Every Standard was met. If consistency of teaching matters to you, ask at an open day what has changed since September 2024.

Alternatives to Charterhouse worth comparing

Harrow School suits boys who want full boarding close to London, at £21,990 per term including VAT, with a published schedule of deposits and extras; Winchester College suits families who want a boys’ 13+ entry with a co-educational Sixth Form, slightly lower boarding fees (£20,700) and a day option (£15,318); for the other famous boys’ boarding school, see our Eton College fees review. Among co-educational boarding schools in the South East, families also compare our Wellington College fees and Brighton College fees pages. If you are open to a British curriculum studied online instead, see our overview of online British curriculum school fees.

NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY (NGA) is a different kind of option. It is an online international school for ages 6–18 focused on Asia and Oceania, opening in September 2027 (planned), with free trial classes monthly from September 2026 and pre-opening trial classes in April–May 2027. Its first cohort is 100 students, and it is operated by NIJIN Inc. in Japan, whose alternative school NIJIN Academy has more than 1,000 students. NGA does not rank children by test scores: lessons are small-group live dialogue (classes of about 8), subjects are learned in English with a bilingual English–Japanese mentor, English levels follow the CEFR, and students join social co-creation projects with companies and governments plus international exchange. An optional Cambridge IGCSE / A-Level pathway is listed on the curriculum and timetable page. There is no academic entrance exam and no English requirement; it can run alongside a local school or as the main school, and it travels with the family if they relocate. Tuition is not yet published; NGA says it will be far more affordable than a typical international school, with no enrolment, facility or uniform fees, materials included and sibling discounts.

Be clear about the trade-offs: NGA is not yet open, is not yet accredited and has no graduates or track record. It is not a boarding school and offers nothing like Charterhouse’s House life, its 250-acre campus, its sport and drama or its IB and A Level results. Its timetable is built for Asia–Oceania daytime, so for families in the UK, Europe or the Americas live classes may fall outside their day — check the timetable against your local time. If your child wants to board, and you can plan from Year 6, Charterhouse, Harrow and Winchester are the schools to compare.

For a wider view, see our online international schools compared guide.

See how NGA admissions work →

FAQ

How much does Charterhouse School cost per year?

For 2026/27, Charterhouse charges £21,015 per term for boarders and £16,369 per term for day pupils, including VAT. Over the three terms of the school year that is £63,045 for a boarder and £49,107 for a day pupil, plus a £420 registration fee and a deposit whose amount is not published (official site, checked 30 October 2026).

What are Charterhouse fees per term?

£21,015 per term for boarding and £16,369 per term for day places in 2026/27, both inclusive of VAT. The previous year’s published fees were £20,016 and £15,591, so the rise was about 5%.

Is Charterhouse co-educational?

Yes. Girls joined Year 9 and 10 from September 2021 and the school became fully co-educational in September 2022. It now educates girls and boys aged 13 to 18, with 13 single-sex and 2 mixed boarding houses.

Can international students apply to Charterhouse?

Yes. Entrance tests can be taken remotely and virtual interviews can be requested; applicants from Hong Kong and mainland China apply through the school’s partner Academic Asia. Every international pupil must have a UK guardian at all times, and the school offers dedicated support with student visas. Any additional overseas deposit or visa charge is not published on the official site.

Is Charterhouse worth it, and what are the alternatives?

For a child who wants full boarding, strong sport and arts, and a real choice between A Levels and the IB, many families decide it is; the fee is comparable to Harrow and Winchester, and bursaries can reach 100% for families who qualify. Families often also compare Harrow School, Winchester College, Wellington College and Brighton College. NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY is a very different, online option for ages 6–18 focused on Asia and Oceania, with no academic entrance exam and no English requirement; it opens in September 2027 and is not yet accredited.

Choosing calmly

Charterhouse is a well-regarded school with a long history, and applying is a big step for any family — academically, financially and emotionally. The most useful things you can do now are to pick the registration route that fits your child’s current year, ask the Admissions Office for the full fee schedule so you can budget the real total, and check guardianship, English support and bursary rules before you commit. Whichever school you choose, the right one is the place where your child will be known, stretched and happy.

Tuition and admissions details were checked on the official websites on 30 October 2026. Schools revise fees every year — always confirm on the official site before applying.

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