My Amman Life

I’m in the process of checking out schools for my children as I didn’t have the chance to do this before we moved to Amman. Amman has many options for primary and secondary schooling, but below I lay out the ones I personally investigated and toured. I won’t give my opinion about which schools are best in this article, because that depends too much on your personal requirements for a school for your children. This post is only informative for a side-by-side pricing comparison (tuition costs shown for 2025-26 school year). If you’re looking for pre-schools in Amman – check out this article instead.

Grade	Mashrek*	ICS	Little Academy*	Lycee Francais*	Waldorf*
EY 1 Nursery (age 3)	X	7560	3600	asking	X
EY 2 Reception / KG 1*	4047	7560	3830	asking	X
Grade 1 / KG 2*	4178	11,488	3830	4187	3190
Grade 2 / Grade 1*	5092	11,488	4200	4187	3390
Grade 3 / Grade 2*	5335	12,861	4385	4187	3790
Grade 4 / Grade 3*	5577	12,861	4580	4187	4090
Grade 5 / Grade 4*	5818	12,861	4940	4187	4190
Grade 6 / Grade 5*	6236	12,861	4940	4187	4390
Grade 7 / Grade 6*	6479	15,589	X	5283	4690
Grade 8 / Grade 7*	6840	15,589	X	5283	4890
Grade 9 / Grade 8*	7083	15,589	X	5283	5190
Grade 10 / Grade 9*	7996	17,613	X	6837	5590
Grade 11 / Grade 10*	8116	17,613	X	6837	6190
Grade 12 / Grade 11*	10,052	18,802	X	6837	X
Grade 13 / Grade 12*	10,052	18,802	X	6837	X
TOTAL	92,901	196,276	34305	68319	49590

After a year in Amman, I wanted to mention a bit more of a personal anecdote in the article about these schools based on firsthand experience for myself and friends:

1. Mashrek is an international IB school, however the community is mainly local Jordanian families with little diversity of internationals. In my opinion, this school is best for a proud “Ammani” crowd and might not be the right fit for internationals.
2. International Community School (ICS) is an international IGCSE school with over 70 different nationalities present. The school mentions it has about 20% Jordanian presence in its nationalities mix. This school is known for being the “expat” school and might be lacking in terms of teaching children Arabic fluently. Most of the teachers are also expats. Also worth noting, the school does not have a religion (Islam or Christian) class requirement.
3. The Little Academy is an IBPYP school inspired by Reggio Emelia. It goes until Grade 5 only and is popular among the foreigners community for early years education. The school teaches English, French, and Arabic, but the majority of people would be communicating heavily in English. The campus is rather small so some families might feel their child has outgrown the school before grade 5, but those I know who have sent their children there loved it for the nurturing and cozy environment.
4. Lycee Francais has a large population of French expats, but also internationals who have been part of Lycee Francais in its other locations worldwide. There are 2 campuses in Amman, one for the younger years in Deir Ghbar and one for the older years off Airport Road across from Dunes Club. As it is a French school, children may need alternative tutoring in English and Arabic.
5. Waldorf is a newer school in Amman and its focus seems to be more into nature, creativity, and alternative learning. It also has a more diverse student population. Their prices seem very affordable compared to some of the other top-tier schools and they advertise that their pricing is transparent, with even a daily hot meal being included. I’ve heard from other parents that they really enjoy the atmosphere and that it might be the only school in Amman that is screen-free.

Notes:

1. Prices are in local currency, Jordanian Dinar (JOD)
2. ICS goes until grade 13 which is the equivalent in the other schools as grade 12
3. “X” means that grade is not offered
4. Fees list does not include new student fees, bus, extracurricular activities, IT, food, etc.