If you are searching for international schools in Kanazawa, you have probably noticed something odd: the same handful of names keeps appearing, and the lists never quite say how many schools the city actually has. Kanazawa is the largest city on Japan’s Hokuriku coast, and since the Hokuriku Shinkansen reached it the flow of overseas visitors, researchers and transferred staff has grown steadily. But it is not Tokyo or Osaka. There is no long menu of campuses to choose from. This guide names every international school and English-medium programme that genuinely sits inside Kanazawa city, without padding the list to reach a round number. It then maps what you can realistically reach from Kanazawa — Uchinada, Komatsu, Hakusan and Toyama — with published fees where schools publish them, the new campus arriving in 2027, and one option that does not require a commute at all.
Quick Answer: Your Options in Kanazawa
- Aoba-Japan International School, Kanazawa Campus | Age 3 to Grade 3 in year one | fees published on the school’s own fee schedule — confirm directly | Opening August 2027, pursuing IB PYP, MYP and DP authorisation, on the Hokuriku Gakuin University international exchange centre site in Kanazawa
- Kanazawa International School | ages 2-5 | ¥26,250/month (1 day a week) to ¥105,000/month (5 days) | a small English-medium preschool in Shoemachi, Kanazawa, running three-hour morning or afternoon sessions
- Weskii Lab | preschool through elementary age | fees on enquiry | three sites in Kanazawa offering an all-English bilingual nursery and an English-medium after-school programme
- Ishikawa Hope International School | kindergarten through high school | fees on enquiry | in Uchinada, just north-west of Kanazawa; English-medium, project-based and STEAM learning, fully opened in April 2024
- Hakusan International School | ages 5-15 | fees on enquiry | in Komatsu, founded 2005 and one of the longest-running English-medium schools in Hokuriku, with full-time and Saturday programmes
- International College of Technology (ICT), Kanazawa | from age 15 | Years 1-2: ¥1,824,000 tuition plus ¥546,000 dormitory and ¥630,000 meals per year | boarding at the Hakusanroku campus, Year 3 in New Zealand, Years 4-5 at the Kanazawa campus
- Trinity International School, Toyama | elementary through high school | ¥1,090,000 for the first year (¥150,000 entrance + ¥70,000/month tuition + ¥100,000 facilities) | about 20 minutes from Kanazawa by Shinkansen, and the most affordable full-time English-medium option in the region
- NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY (online, opening September 2027, ages 6-18, aiming at roughly one-fifth of on-campus international school fees, with Japanese-language support) | a small-group, dialogue-centred online international school; not yet open, currently taking registrations for opening updates
International schools in Kanazawa: the real landscape and what fees look like
Here is the honest picture. As of September 2026, the number of places in Kanazawa city where a child can attend full-time in English is very small. What exists inside the city is mainly early-years: English-medium preschools and after-school programmes. No school with a Kanazawa city address currently takes elementary-age children full-time in English. That is not a quirk of Kanazawa. In Japan, international schools are not classified as schools under Article 1 of the School Education Act, so outside the largest metropolitan areas the number that can take primary and secondary students stays low. We unpack that system in our guide to what an international school actually is in Japan.
One development is about to change the map. Aoba-Japan International School opens a Kanazawa campus in August 2027, using the international exchange and training centre at Hokuriku Gakuin University. The school has stated it will pursue IB PYP, MYP and DP authorisation, that the first year takes children from age three through Grade 3, and that it plans to grow on-site provision to Grade 10, with Grades 11-12 continuing through its online DP programme. So Kanazawa families are living through an unusual moment: the choice is narrow today, and noticeably wider within a few years.
On fees, two bands are worth holding in your head. Preschool places in Kanazawa are charged monthly according to how many days a week your child attends — roughly ¥26,000 a month for one day, up to around ¥105,000 for five. Full-time options in the wider region vary far more: Trinity in Toyama publishes a first-year total of about ¥1.09 million, while the boarding-based International College of Technology charges around ¥1.82 million a year in tuition alone for Years 1-2, before dormitory and meals. Compared with the roughly ¥3 million a year typical of large Tokyo international schools, Hokuriku is more affordable — but it is still a different order of magnitude from public school. That is why the question that matters is not whether your child can get in, but whether the family can sustain it for six or twelve years. Our breakdown of what international school really costs walks through the line items, and our guide to international schools across Ishikawa Prefecture covers the wider prefecture.
Every international school inside Kanazawa city: all three, with fees
Below are the three that are genuinely based in Kanazawa, including the one still to open. We are not padding this to seven. The fact that the list is short is itself information you need.
1. Aoba-Japan International School, Kanazawa Campus (opening August 2027)
Aoba-Japan International School, a long-established IB school in Tokyo, is opening a Kanazawa campus at the Hokuriku Gakuin University international exchange and training centre. The inaugural 2027-28 year takes students from Kindergarten (age 3) through Grade 3, expanding on campus to Grades 4-10 as the school grows, with Grades 11-12 available through its online Diploma Programme. For Kanazawa, this is the first credible path to full-time, English-medium primary schooling inside the city itself.
- Curriculum: inquiry-based learning, pursuing IB PYP, MYP and DP authorisation
- Ages: K3 to Grade 3 in the first year, expanding towards Grade 10
- Fees: a fee schedule is published on the school’s site, but as a pre-opening school these are subject to revision — confirm at an information session or with admissions
- Best for: families who want a continuous IB pathway in Kanazawa, and who are planning a few years ahead
2. Kanazawa International School
A small English-medium preschool in Shoemachi, Kanazawa, for children aged two to five. Its website describes a curriculum built around five developmental strands — language, creativity, discovery, physical and social development — taught through music, nature, food, movement and art, with phonics introduced alongside. Sessions run three hours in the morning or afternoon, one to five days a week, which is why many local families use it alongside a Japanese kindergarten or nursery.
- Curriculum: play- and experience-based preschool taught in English, with phonics
- Ages: 2-5; sessions 8:30-11:30 or 13:00-16:00
- Fees: ¥26,250/month for one day a week rising to ¥105,000 for five days, plus a ¥5,250 enrolment fee per family and ¥800 operational cost; materials and snacks included (school’s published rates — the page carries no date, so confirm the current figures)
- Best for: building an ear for English before school age, or easing in gradually alongside a Japanese kindergarten
3. Weskii Lab
Weskii Lab runs three sites in Kanazawa — the main school in Osakamachi, plus Ekinishi (Nagata) and Izumino — combining an all-English bilingual nursery with an English-medium after-school programme. Its website describes an approach that starts with listening and speaking before reading and writing, and folds in design thinking and project work rather than textbook drilling. Because the after-school programme doubles as childcare, dual-income families can effectively convert the after-school hours into an English environment. There is also a Toyama site.
- Curriculum: all-English bilingual nursery plus project-based after-school learning
- Ages: preschool through elementary, depending on the course
- Fees: not published; enquire directly or attend an information session
- Best for: working parents who want the after-school hours to count, when full-time international school is not realistic
Four more international schools within reach of Kanazawa: Uchinada, Komatsu, Hakusan and Toyama
If you want a full-time English-medium school from elementary age, you will need to look beyond the city limits. These four are the realistic candidates from a Kanazawa base.
4. Ishikawa Hope International School (Uchinada)
Located in Chidoridai, Uchinada — the town immediately north-west of Kanazawa — this school held a preliminary opening in 2023 and fully opened in April 2024, serving kindergarten through high school. Its website describes English-medium learning through hands-on projects, arts, STEM and inquiry, grounded in a Christian worldview. Elementary and middle school students remain registered with their local public school while attending daily; high school students are registered through a partner institution for their diploma. It is a straightforward drive from northern Kanazawa.
- Curriculum: English-medium inquiry, project work and STEAM, with a Christian ethos
- Ages: kindergarten through high school
- Fees: not published; the school handles tuition enquiries directly
- Best for: families wanting small-group attention while keeping a place in the Japanese school system
5. Hakusan International School (Komatsu)
Founded in April 2005 in Sonomachi, Komatsu, this is one of the earliest full English-medium schools in the Hokuriku region. It has served students aged 5 to 15 through a mix of full-time study, a Saturday programme and weekday sessions, with small classes and an experiential, inquiry-led style. Komatsu is roughly 30 minutes from Kanazawa Station by train. Note, however, that the school’s own website was not reachable as of September 2026, so please confirm current operations, ages served and fees directly with the school before planning around it.
- Curriculum: English-medium, small-class experiential and inquiry learning
- Ages: 5-15, varying by programme
- Fees: on enquiry — the official site is currently unavailable, so contact the school directly
- Best for: families in the Komatsu and Kaga area looking for an established small school
6. International College of Technology (ICT), Kanazawa
Run by the same institution as Kanazawa Institute of Technology, ICT is a five-year college taking students from age 15 — the Japanese kosen model rather than an international school, but the most substantial English-medium academic route in the Kanazawa area. According to its official site, Years 1 and 2 are spent boarding at the Hakusanroku campus, Year 3 is spent studying at Otago Polytechnic in New Zealand, and Years 4 and 5 are at the Kanazawa campus. Most classes are taught in English, integrating science, technology and mathematics.
- Curriculum: English-medium STEM across a five-year integrated course, with a year in New Zealand
- Ages: from 15 (equivalent to high school entry)
- Fees: Years 1-2 tuition ¥1,824,000/year plus ¥546,000 dormitory and ¥630,000 meals; Year 3 ¥250,000 tuition plus overseas costs; Years 4-5 ¥1,600,000/year (from the school’s published fee page)
- Best for: students set on English-medium STEM after junior high, and families comfortable with boarding
7. Trinity International School (Toyama)
Opened in April 2024 in Nakatomii, Toyama City, Trinity covers elementary through high school with instruction in English, and its published curriculum includes Bible study, financial literacy and history from an international perspective. Its fees stand out: the school’s own schedule lists a ¥150,000 entrance fee, ¥70,000 monthly tuition and a ¥100,000 facilities fee, for a first-year total of ¥1,090,000, with a reduced rate for students who already have strong English (¥50,000 entrance, ¥30,000 monthly). Toyama is about 20 minutes from Kanazawa by Shinkansen — whether that is a daily commute depends on your family, but on cost it is a serious option.
- Curriculum: English-medium Christian school (stated ACSI membership), elementary through high school
- Ages: elementary through high school
- Fees: ¥1,090,000 first-year total, plus ¥5,000/month materials; reduced rates available (2025 published schedule)
- Best for: families who need a full-time English environment at a manageable cost, and can consider Toyama
Comparing the options: how to find the one that fits your family
Having seen all seven, the practical question is what to decide on. In Kanazawa, three factors do most of the work: your child’s age, how far you can realistically travel every day, and how many years you can sustain the cost. For preschool, the city itself gives you workable choices. The fork arrives at elementary entry, when you either widen the map to Uchinada, Komatsu or Toyama, or keep your child in local schooling and add English hours around it. Families who face that fork a month before enrolment find their options have already narrowed.
As the table shows, every route asks something of you. Full-time campuses offer face-to-face relationships and facilities that nothing replaces, at the price of fees and daily travel. Preschools and after-school programmes are easy to start but run out of pathway once your child reaches elementary age. Online removes the cost and distance barriers but is not the same experience as being in a building with other children. The useful move is to decide, before you compare schools, which constraint your family can genuinely live with. See how learning works online →
When fees or the commute are the barrier: an eighth option, online
Some readers will finish the list above thinking: nothing inside Kanazawa works for us, Toyama is too far to do every day, and the numbers are higher than we expected. That is where an option without a commute becomes worth considering.
NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY is an online international school opening in September 2027, operated by NIJIN Inc. in Japan. Our alternative school in Japan, NIJIN Academy, has more than 1,000 students enrolled. We are built around what we call datsu-hensachi — not ranking children by test scores — with small-group, dialogue-centred classes and a simple aim: that children come to like themselves and the world. We serve ages 6 to 18 across Asia and Oceania, so it makes no difference whether you live in central Kanazawa, in Uchinada, or out on the Noto peninsula. We are working towards fees at roughly one-fifth of on-campus international schools, and the design assumes Japanese-language support so children can move into English gradually rather than all at once.
The honest caveats: we have not opened yet, so we have no graduating classes to point to. And an online school does not replace the playground, the shared classroom, or the everyday closeness of being in the same room. Online is not a substitute for a campus — it is another road, for families for whom the campus road does not work. What we do believe is that the number of schools within driving distance should not decide how wide a child’s world can be.
Frequently asked questions
Q. Is there a school in Kanazawa where my child can study full-time in English from elementary age?
As of September 2026, no school with a Kanazawa city address takes elementary-age students full-time in English. The realistic candidates are Ishikawa Hope International School in Uchinada, Hakusan International School in Komatsu, and Trinity International School in Toyama. That said, Aoba-Japan International School’s Kanazawa campus opens in August 2027 with provision through Grade 3, and has published plans to expand towards Grade 10. If you are planning more than a year ahead, that is the development to watch.
Q. Can a child with no English get in, and is there Japanese-language support?
It varies considerably. Preschools generally assume no prior English at all. Schools taking elementary-age students and above may set an English benchmark or require an interview, and the amount of Japanese-language support differs from school to school. At a trial day or information session, ask two concrete questions: which class would my child be placed in at their current English level, and what support exists in Japanese. At NIJIN GLOBAL ACADEMY, Japanese-language support is built into the design so children can meet English step by step.
Q. Can we transfer mid-year, and when should we start looking?
Most schools will discuss a mid-year transfer if a place is open, though a particular year group may have a waiting list. In a region like Kanazawa, where the number of schools is limited, when you start looking effectively determines how much choice you have. A useful rule of thumb is to attend information sessions and tours a full year before your intended entry, and to line up fees, travel and admission requirements side by side. Newly opening schools change their application timelines most, so make sure you are on the mailing list of any school you are seriously considering.
Note: fees and details reflect publicly available information as of July 2026. Please confirm the current figures on each school’s official website.
A short list is not the same as no choice
Measured purely by the number of schools, Kanazawa is not a generous city. But a short list is not the same thing as no choice. What matters is the order of your priorities — hours of English, face-to-face relationships, fees you can carry for a decade, or simply the look on your child’s face at the end of the day. Once that order is settled, three options can be enough to choose well. The fact that you have read this far is already time spent thinking about who your child will be in a few years. There is no need to rush. Just make sure the information reaches you a little earlier than the deadline does.
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