🇪🇸 Barcelona · Schools
Schooling and childcare in Barcelona
Free state schools taught in Catalan, subsidised concertadas in between, and an international sector that is mostly out of town.
The thing people get wrongState and concertada places are allocated in a single spring application round called the preinscripció, scored on catchment and siblings. Turn up in September without having applied and you take whatever is left, which is rarely nearby.
Indicative figures
- State schoolFreeMaterials, meals and outings are not.
- Concertada contribution€100 – €400/month
- International school fees€9,000 – €27,000/year2026/27; Benjamin Franklin about €13,000 – €21,700, the American School's high school about €27,000.
- PreinscripcióMarch4 – 18 March for infantil and primària in 2026.
- Private nursery€400 – €800/month
Checked . Ranges, not quotes — your Insider confirms the current numbers in Barcelona before you commit to anything.
Three kinds of school
Public schools (escoles públiques) are free and run by the Generalitat; concertadas are privately run but state-funded, charge a monthly “voluntary” contribution and are often religious; private schools charge full fees. All three, apart from the international sector, teach principally in Catalan under the language immersion model, with Spanish taught as a subject. Younger children absorb Catalan quickly and there is support for newcomers; a teenager arriving mid-secondary has a harder time.
- Preinscripció runs in March for the following September: for 2026/27 it ran from 4 to 18 March for infantil and primària and from 6 to 18 March for ESO.
- The 2026/27 calendar then ran: ordered list of applications 29 April, places assigned 10 June, enrolment 22 to 30 June.
- Places are scored: proximity to the address, siblings already enrolled, and other criteria.
- The registered address on the padrón is what determines the catchment score.
Structure and stages
Infantil covers three to six, primària six to twelve, ESO twelve to sixteen and is compulsory, then batxillerat or vocational training (formació professional) to eighteen. University entry runs through the selectivitat examinations. Vocational routes are well developed and not the second-class option they are in some countries.
International schools
Barcelona has British, American, French, German, Swiss and IB schools, and most sit outside the city in Sant Cugat, Esplugues, Castelldefels or along the coast. That geography drives family housing decisions more than anything else, since the school bus route effectively defines where you can live, and it is why Sant Gervasi and Sarrià are the usual compromise inside the city. Apply in the winter for the following September, and expect assessments, past school reports and a registration fee on top of tuition.
- Apply from January for the following September; popular year groups fill first.
- School bus provision, and its route, is worth checking before you sign a lease.
- Registration fees and annual capital levies sit on top of the published tuition.
Before school
Escoles bressol are the 0–3 nurseries, with municipal ones cheaper and heavily oversubscribed and private ones available at short notice for more money. Municipal places are allocated in their own application round, from 8 to 22 May in 2026, separate from the March school preinscripció. Private nurseries fill the gap and vary widely in price and approach across districts.