Adelaide punches above its size for private schooling, with several schools founded in the 1840s and a strong tradition of both SACE and IB pathways. Fees, ICSEA, sector, gender model, boarding and program strengths all matter, and the right answer depends on your child and your budget. Below are the Adelaide schools in our register, with their published 2026 fees and ICSEA scores. Every school links to its full profile, and the complete city ranking lives at best private schools in Adelaide on our site.
Adelaide private schools at a glance (2026 fees and ICSEA)
Fees shown are indicative Year 12 day tuition for 2026. Boarding, where offered, is charged separately. ICSEA has a national average of 1,000; a blank means no current value was surfaced for that school.
| School | Suburb | Sector / gender | Year 12 fee 2026 | ICSEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Peter's College | Hackney | Anglican, boys | $34,760 | — |
| Scotch College Adelaide | Torrens Park | Uniting, co-ed | $34,040 | — |
| Pulteney Grammar School | Adelaide CBD | Anglican, co-ed | $33,074 | 1,158 |
| Pembroke School | Kensington Park | Independent, co-ed | $32,601 | 1,182 |
| Prince Alfred College | Kent Town | Uniting, boys | $32,640 | 1,144 |
| Seymour College | Glen Osmond | Uniting, girls | $29,370 | — |
| Walford Anglican School for Girls | Hyde Park | Anglican, girls | $29,000 | 1,173 |
| St Peter's Girls' School | Stonyfell | Anglican, girls | $28,600 | — |
| Wilderness School | Medindie | Independent, girls | $28,515 | 1,178 |
| Westminster School | Marion | Uniting, co-ed | $21,680 | 1,152 |
| Concordia College Adelaide | Highgate | Lutheran, co-ed | $18,420 | 1,118 |
| Mercedes College Adelaide | Springfield | Catholic, co-ed | $13,280 | 1,138 |
Fees are sourced from each school's published 2026 schedule or the Good Schools Guide listing; ICSEA values are from the ACARA MySchool register where available. Always confirm current figures with the school before deciding.
The elite independents
Pembroke School in Kensington Park has the highest ICSEA in our Adelaide set (1,182). It is a non-denominational co-ed school offering the IB Diploma alongside SACE, with a dedicated Hearing Unit and boarding for up to 125 students in Years 7 to 12. Wilderness School in Medindie (ICSEA 1,178) is a Round Square girls' school known for its distinctive Year 13 gap-year style program.
St Peter's College in Hackney is one of Australia's oldest boys' schools (founded 1847), with a strong rowing and rugby tradition, the IB Diploma and eight Nobel Laureate alumni. Westminster School in Marion (ICSEA 1,152, Year 12 tuition around $21,680 for 2026) is a co-ed Uniting Church day and boarding school on a 23-hectare campus originally opened by Prime Minister Robert Menzies.
Strong co-ed and single-sex options
Prince Alfred College in Kent Town is a Uniting Church boys' school with a deep cricket and AFL heritage, the Da Vinci Decathlon and a Round Square international program, accepting boarders from Year 5. Scotch College Adelaide in Torrens Park is a co-ed IB World School (PYP and Diploma) with a strong outdoor education focus, and Pulteney Grammar runs a city-edge campus on South Terrace plus the Kurrajong outdoor centre at Mount Compass.
For girls, Walford Anglican (ICSEA 1,173, IB PYP), Seymour College (IB World School) and St Peter's Girls' School (IB PYP and Diploma, strong STEM and performing arts) all sit in the high-$20,000s for Year 12.
Strong value: Catholic and Lutheran schools
If the elite tier is out of budget, Adelaide has excellent value options. Mercedes College in Springfield (Mercy Sisters, ICSEA 1,138) offers the IB Diploma alongside SACE for around $13,280 a year, the lowest Year 12 fee in our Adelaide set. Concordia College, a Lutheran co-ed school in Highgate, sits around $18,420 and offers boarding for regional SA and Pacific families.
How to use ICSEA and fees together
- ICSEA is a community measure, not a quality score. A score above 1,000 means the student community is, on average, more socio-educationally advantaged. It does not directly measure teaching or results.
- Fees buy facilities and co-curricular breadth, not guaranteed outcomes. Mercedes College posts a competitive ICSEA at roughly a third of the elite fee.
- Decide on SACE vs IB early. If your child suits the IB Diploma, focus on Pembroke, St Peter's, Scotch, Seymour or St Peter's Girls'.
- Factor in the extras. Uniforms, IT, camps, music tuition and boarding can add $5,000-$32,000 a year on top of headline tuition.
Boarding in Adelaide
Adelaide schools draw boarders from regional SA, the Riverland, the Eyre Peninsula and interstate. Pembroke, Walford Anglican, Wilderness, Prince Alfred, St Peter's College, Scotch College Adelaide, Westminster, Seymour and Concordia all run boarding houses. Prince Alfred accepts boarders from Year 5. Boarding fees are charged on top of tuition, so budget for the combined figure. For the wider picture, read our guide to boarding school costs and what is included in the fees.