Best Early Years Schools in Paris 2026 | Bilingual, IB, EYFS

The brief

Most international Paris families pick a through-school EY at one of the anglophone anchors: ASP, ISP, Marymount, BSP or ICS Paris.
French maternelle is compulsory from age 3 and free in the state system. The private sector adds bilingual, Montessori, and full English-medium routes from age 2.
Bilingual is the default, not the exception. EIB, Lennen and the Lycée International British Section all run a French-English split from maternelle.
ISP is the only three-programme IB World School in France and runs PYP from age 3. BSP and Forest International run EYFS.
The EY fee is the entry price; primary is the commitment. Top-tier fees run roughly EUR 14,000 to EUR 22,000 in maternelle and step up sharply once primary starts.

Paris is the rare European capital where the public early years system is genuinely good. The école maternelle, free, secular, and compulsory from age 3, is where most French children start school. International families face a different choice: stay in the French maternelle and bolt on weekend English, or pay for an international or bilingual preschool that delivers English (or another language) inside the school day.

The international segment is small but coherent. Around a dozen schools take children from age 2 or 3 through a structured early years phase, and the field divides cleanly into four routes: through-school EY at the anglophone anchors, standalone bilingual preschools, Montessori, and IB PYP or EYFS-anchored programmes.

The top tier, through-school EY

These schools run early years as the bottom of a continuous pipeline to age 14 or 18. The EY teams are typically led by specialists trained in EYFS, the American Pre-K model, or the IB Primary Years Programme, and the same governance and inspection rhythm runs across the whole school.

American School of Paris

Saint-Cloud. Ages 3 to 18. Fees EUR 25,000 to 41,400. Founded 1946. MSA-CESS and CIS accredited. Around 760 pupils.

The grand old American school in Paris, founded in 1946 as the first American school in postwar Europe. The Saint-Cloud campus is four hectares, large by Paris standards, and Pre-K starts at age 3 inside a dedicated early childhood wing. The model is American: play-based Pre-K, Kindergarten at age 5, then Grade 1. ASP also runs the IB Diploma alongside AP at the senior end.

International School of Paris

16th Arrondissement. Ages 3 to 18. Fees EUR 25,500 to 39,000. Founded 1964. CIS and NEASC accredited. Around 900 pupils.

The only three-programme IB World School in France, running PYP, MYP and DP across three sites in the 16th. Early years sits inside the PYP framework: transdisciplinary inquiry, no external exams, culminating in the PYP Exhibition. IB-accredited since 1982; DP results sit consistently above the world average. Central Paris location is unusual at this fee point.

Marymount International School Paris

Neuilly-sur-Seine. Ages 2 to 14. Fees EUR 23,250 to 38,500. Founded 1923. MSA-CESS and CIS accredited. Around 360 pupils.

A Catholic American school in Neuilly-sur-Seine, part of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary Marymount network, and among the oldest international schools in France. Entry from age 2 is the earliest of any anglophone anchor, but the school runs only to age 14, so the secondary pathway is a transfer rather than a continuation.

British School of Paris

Croissy-sur-Seine. Ages 3 to 18. Fees EUR 20,684 to 34,065. Founded 1954. COBIS Patrons member. Around 650 pupils.

The British-curriculum mainstay of the Paris expat scene, on the banks of the Seine at Croissy-sur-Seine. EYFS at Reception, with a Nursery class at age 3 feeding straight into British primary. Co-educational, non-selective, and the natural choice for British corporate families who want IGCSE and A Level rather than IB. Croissy is the western suburbs; expect a school bus or a car for central-Paris families.

ICS Paris

15th Arrondissement. Ages 2 to 18. Fees EUR 20,994 to 32,976. Founded 2003. Operated by Globeducate. Around 600 pupils.

A full IB continuum school inside Paris itself, on rue de Cronstadt in the 15th, running PYP, MYP and DP in English with French woven through. One of Globeducate's premium IB sites, with a 2024 DP average above 35. Entry from age 2 is the earliest of any anglophone IB school. ICS and ISP are the two anchors that don't require a daily commute to the western suburbs.

Ermitage International School

Maisons-Laffitte. Ages 3 to 18. Fees EUR 7,500 to 28,950. Founded 1941. NEASC accredited. Around 1,500 pupils.

One of the longest-established international schools in the Paris region, founded in 1941. Full IB continuum alongside the French Bac with international option, day and boarding places. Maisons-Laffitte is a leafy western-suburbs town on the RER A. The fee floor is materially below the other anglophone anchors, which makes Ermitage one of the only premium IB routes accessible outside the top quartile.

EIB Paris

8e Arrondissement and western suburbs. Ages 3 to 18. Fees EUR 14,100 to 16,995. Founded 1954. CIS accredited. Around 3,000 pupils across the group.

The umbrella brand for the EIB Paris group, founded in 1954 by Maurice and Jeannine Manuel and operating eight bilingual French-English campuses across Paris and the western suburbs, owned by Globeducate since 2012. EIB serves families who want serious French academics with a strong English layer, full continuity from 3 to 18, and a route into the French Bac, BFI, IB Diploma or A Levels.

Best standalone bilingual preschools

Smaller schools that specialise in early years and primary, with a French-English bilingual model. Most hand off at age 11 or 14; some run only to age 11.

Lennen Bilingual School

7th Arrondissement. Ages 2 to 11. Fees EUR 10,700 to 20,700. Founded 1960. Around 200 pupils.

Paris's oldest French-American bilingual school, founded in 1960 near Les Invalides. Classes are capped near 15, with a 50-50 split between French and English across the day. Deliberately small. Fees sit materially below the bigger international anchors, a route into a strong bilingual environment without the EUR 30,000 ticket.

Forest International School Paris

Mareil-Marly, Yvelines. Ages 2 to 14. Fees EUR 12,500 to 28,500. Founded 2003.

A small English-curriculum primary and lower-secondary school on the western edge of Paris, built around the Forêt Domaniale de Marly with daily outdoor learning. The forest is treated as an extension of the classroom. English National Curriculum with the International Primary Curriculum layered in. Suits families who prioritise outdoor time and small classes over the scale of a larger anchor.

Malherbe International School

Le Vésinet, Yvelines. Ages 2 to 11. Fees EUR 14,600 to 27,000. Founded 1990. Around 160 pupils.

A small bilingual nursery and primary in Le Vésinet, 30 minutes west of Paris. Pre-primary uses a Montessori AMI approach; primary then follows the English National Curriculum with two to four weekly French sessions for French learners. The Montessori-to-British transition is unusual and works as a soft handover from EY pedagogy to formal primary.

Best Montessori

Authentic Montessori in Paris means AMI-trained leads and a prepared environment. Most credible Montessori schools cap at age 11 or 12 and feed into French or international primaries.

Esclaibes International Schools

8th, 15th and 16th arrondissements, plus Clichy and Marseille. Ages 2 to 12. Founded 2014. Over 400 pupils across the group.

A small group of bilingual Montessori schools under the Esclaibes family's Montessori brand; Sylvie d'Esclaibes opened her first school in 1991 in Bailly. The multi-site footprint makes it one of the few credible bilingual Montessori options at scale.

International School Montessori Jeunes Pousses

19th Arrondissement. Ages 2 to 12. Fees around EUR 8,450.

A small bilingual Montessori primary on rue de Joinville in the 19th, with an AMI-trained team and English-French immersion. Jeunes Pousses sits in a part of Paris with fewer Montessori options than the 7th, 16th or 17th. Fees are notably low for a bilingual Montessori in Paris.

École Montessori Bilingue de Saint-Cloud

Saint-Cloud. Ages 3 to 11. Founded 1972. Around 120 pupils.

A small bilingual French-English Montessori school in Saint-Cloud, in the same suburban cluster as ASP and the Deutsche Schule. AMI Montessori track, which distinguishes it from the wider field of schools using "Montessori" loosely.

Best IB PYP and EYFS-anchored

For families who want a named, internationally portable EY framework, the field narrows sharply.

IB PYP runs at ISP (ages 3 to 18) and ICS Paris (from age 2), the only two IB PYP routes inside the Périphérique. Ermitage International in Maisons-Laffitte also runs PYP from age 3, with the rare bonus of boarding from primary.

EYFS runs at BSP (Reception and a Nursery class, then the English National Curriculum through to A Level) and Forest International (English Foundation Stage from age 2 in Mareil-Marly, with the IPC layer in primary). Malherbe International runs Montessori pre-primary into English National Curriculum primary.

At a glance

School	Curriculum	EY entry	Ages	Fees range (EUR)	Area
American School of Paris	American, IB	Pre-K, age 3	3 to 18	25,000–41,400	Saint-Cloud
International School of Paris	IB PYP	EY, age 3	3 to 18	25,500–39,000	16th
Marymount Paris	American	Pre-K, age 2	2 to 14	23,250–38,500	Neuilly-sur-Seine
British School of Paris	British, EYFS	Nursery, age 3	3 to 18	20,684–34,065	Croissy-sur-Seine
ICS Paris	IB PYP	EY, age 2	2 to 18	20,994–32,976	15th
Ermitage International	IB, French Bac	EY, age 3	3 to 18	7,500–28,950	Maisons-Laffitte
EIB Paris	Bilingual, French + British	Maternelle, age 3	3 to 18	14,100–16,995	8th, suburbs
Forest International	British, IPC	EY, age 2	2 to 14	12,500–28,500	Yvelines
Lennen Bilingual	American + French	Nursery, age 2	2 to 11	10,700–20,700	7th
Malherbe International	Montessori + British	Maternelle, age 2	2 to 11	14,600–27,000	Le Vésinet
Esclaibes Montessori	Montessori AMI	Maternelle, age 2	2 to 12	on application	8th, 15th, 16th
Jeunes Pousses Montessori	Montessori	Maternelle, age 2	2 to 12	~8,450	19th

Fees are 2025/26 indicative annual top-of-band figures from each school's published schedule. Verify current figures with each school before applying.

The age labels and routes

The French maternelle. The state école maternelle is free, secular, and compulsory from age 3. Petite section (PS) at 3, moyenne section (MS) at 4, grande section (GS) at 5. Pedagogy is play-based and language-rich, with phonics, early numeracy and motor skills sequenced across the three years. Maternelle is the default for most French children and for many bilingual international families who want their child fluent in French before primary.

Crèche. State and associative crèche covers ages 0 to 3, heavily subsidised by Caisse d'Allocations Familiales (CAF). Demand outstrips supply in central arrondissements; the alternatives are private crèche (around EUR 1,500 to 2,500 a month) or an in-home assistante maternelle.

Bilingual private maternelle. EIB, Lennen and the Lycée International British Section run from maternelle through to lycée; their EY programmes follow the French maternelle structure with the second language built in. Fees run roughly EUR 10,000 to 17,000 a year.

Full English-medium EY. The anglophone anchors run English-medium EY using EYFS (British), Pre-K (American) or PYP (IB). French is a daily subject rather than the medium. Fees run EUR 20,000 to 25,000 at entry and climb across the school.

Most French private schools are sous contrat, partly state-funded, and teach the French national curriculum in French. They are local-stream schools and not designed for English-pathway families. The schools listed above are either fully international, fully bilingual, or hors contrat private French schools with a serious international layer.

How to choose between them

Five inputs decide the EY school, in order of weight.

The pathway after EY. Moving a child between schools at CP (age 6) or Year 1 means re-application, a new social setting, and often a different curriculum. Most families stay at the school they enter for maternelle. The EY choice is a ten-year commitment in disguise; choose the school that fits the next decade, not the cheapest preschool.

How long the family will be in Paris. A three-year posting and a permanent move look different. Short-stay families pick English-medium so the next country's school accepts the pathway cleanly. Long-stay families more often pick bilingual or French maternelle so the child grows up genuinely bilingual.

Framework fit. EYFS feels more structured than PYP at age 3, less structured than American Pre-K. The differences are small at maternelle and widen at age 5.

The EY team and ratio. Lead practitioner experience and adult-to-child ratio drive day-one quality more than brand or fee. The premium international schools cluster at one adult per six or seven children in EY; Montessori schools often go tighter.

Location and commute. Most anglophone anchors sit in the western suburbs (Saint-Cloud, Croissy, Neuilly, Maisons-Laffitte). ISP and ICS Paris are the two anchors inside the Périphérique; everything else is a school-bus or car morning.

FAQs

Is the French maternelle good enough on its own? For many international families, yes. Maternelle is free, compulsory from age 3, and pedagogically serious, with a national framework and trained teachers. The medium is French; a non-French-speaking child will need a settling-in term. Long-stay families often use maternelle and add English at home.

Our child does not speak French. Will maternelle work? At age 3 or 4, yes, usually within a term. The harder transitions come at CP (age 6) and beyond, when reading and writing in French become formal.

EYFS, PYP or American Pre-K, which is best for a 3-year-old? All three are play-based and developmentally structured. EYFS is the most codified, PYP the most open, American Pre-K the least prescriptive. Pick by destination: if the senior school is British, EYFS gives an unbroken pathway; if it is IB, PYP does the same; if it is American, Pre-K does.

When should we apply for international EY in Paris? For ASP, ISP, BSP and Marymount, 12 months ahead of the September start is the working norm. Sibling priority and continuing enrolment fill most EY places before the open-application window. Ermitage and ICS Paris hold places longer.

Are the western-suburb anchors a problem if we live in central Paris? The school bus networks at ASP, BSP and Ermitage cover most of central Paris and the western arrondissements. A morning commute of 45 to 60 minutes is normal at this fee point. Families who cannot tolerate that commute typically choose ISP or ICS Paris, both inside the Périphérique.

Sources: Ministère de l'Éducation Nationale (école maternelle framework and compulsory schooling age 3), school fee schedules and admissions pages, IB Organisation programme listings, Council of International Schools and NEASC accreditation records, MSA Commissions on Elementary and Secondary Schools, COBIS Patrons membership directory.