American School of Madrid vs International College Spain
🇪🇸 Madrid · Side-by-side comparison on verifiable public data.
Neither American School of Madrid nor International College Spain sits in a market with a public inspectorate, so both are assessed on verifiable accreditation, curriculum authorisation, and published data rather than an official quality rating. Both are day schools with fees in the same market band — see the table below for the figures, and verify against each school's own published fees.
Key Facts
| American School of Madrid | International College Spain | |
|---|---|---|
| Curriculum | American / IB | IB |
| Ages | 3-18 | 3-18 |
| Languages of instruction | English | English |
| Annual fees | EUR 11,593-23,878/year (2026-2027, private rate; corporate rates higher) | EUR 12,957-27,258/yr (2026/27) |
| Enrollment | 974 | 1,000 |
| Boarding | Day only | Day only |
| Accreditations | Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools (MSA), Spanish Ministry of Education, International Baccalaureate Organization | IBO, CIS, NEASC, Nord Anglia Education |
Strengths
- ✓Triple-credential pathway: graduates can earn a US High School Diploma, the IB Diploma, and the Spanish Bachillerato.
- ✓Three independent accreditations (MSA, IBO, Spanish Ministry of Education) with active multi-year re-accreditation cycles.
- ✓Strong reported IB outcomes - the top 30 percent of the Class of 2024 averaged 37.9 IB points.
- ✓Long institutional track record, operating continuously since 1961 as a not-for-profit school.
- ✓Genuinely tri-national community (roughly one third American, one third Spanish, one third from ~60 countries) with English as the language of instruction.
- ✓Exceptional IB pedigree - the 13th school worldwide to offer the IB Diploma, teaching it since 1980
- ✓Only school in Madrid delivering the full IB continuum (PYP, MYP, DP) in English from age 3 to 18
- ✓Dual international accreditation from CIS and NEASC plus IB World School authorisation across all three programmes
- ✓IB results above the global average - 2022 cohort averaged 36 points with three perfect 45 scores
- ✓Highly international community of roughly 1,000 students from more than 70 nationalities, backed by the Nord Anglia network
Trade-offs
- !Learning support is capped in upper grades - applicants to Grades 6-12 needing substantial program modification are not accepted.
- !Premium fees, rising to roughly EUR 23,878/year at the top grades on the private rate (higher at corporate rates).
- !Single suburban campus in Pozuelo de Alarcon, less convenient for families based in central Madrid.
- !No graded external inspection exists in Spain, so prospective families cannot benchmark against a published inspection rating.
- !Premium fee structure rising to over EUR 27,000 per year at Diploma level
- !Single-campus, non-selective international school without the scale of a multi-site selective system
- !No published, independently verified recent (post-2022) IB average located in public sources
- !No graded state inspection band exists in Spain, so external rating relies solely on accreditation cycles
Best Fit For
- • Internationally mobile families who want a recognized US diploma plus the IB Diploma in one school.
- • Spanish and dual-national families wanting access to both Spanish universities (via the Bachillerato pathway) and US/international universities.
- • Students aiming for high IB outcomes in an English-medium environment.
- • Families valuing long-standing, multiply-accredited institutional stability.
- • Internationally mobile families wanting an English-medium IB pathway from early years to university
- • Students aiming for the IB Diploma at a school with one of the longest IB track records in the world
- • Expatriate families based in or near the La Moraleja and northern Madrid corridor
- • Families who value rolling admissions and the ability to join mid-year
University Placement
School-reported · not independently verified
School-reported, unverified: the average IB score of the top 30 percent of the Class of 2024 was 37.9 points, and graduates pursue the US diploma, IB Diploma and Spanish Bachillerato giving access to US, international and Spanish universities.
School-reported, unverified: ICS cites IB outcomes above the global average with more than 20 percent of students achieving 40+ points, supporting progression to selective universities; no independent university-destination breakdown was located in public sources.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Should I choose American School of Madrid or International College Spain?
American School of Madrid is best for: Internationally mobile families who want a recognized US diploma plus the IB Diploma in one school.. International College Spain is best for: Internationally mobile families wanting an English-medium IB pathway from early years to university. The right choice depends on target curriculum, budget, and family priorities — the two are not linearly comparable.
How do fees compare between American School of Madrid and International College Spain?
American School of Madrid: EUR 11,593-23,878/year (2026-2027, private rate; corporate rates higher). International College Spain: EUR 12,957-27,258/yr (2026/27). Verify against each school's own published fees; some figures are sourced from third-party aggregators.
What curricula do American School of Madrid and International College Spain offer?
American School of Madrid: American, IB. International College Spain: IB.
Do American School of Madrid or International College Spain offer boarding?
American School of Madrid: day school only. International College Spain: day school only.
Questions parents ask
This comparison is BrightKey's independent assessment using verifiable public data only. University-placement figures are school-reported and not independently verified. BrightKey takes no payments from schools. Our method →