Fastest-Growing Schools in Dubai 2026: Enrollment Trajectory

100 Dubai schools whose enrollment has compounded at 5%+ per year. The data behind which schools families are voting for with their feet.

100
Growing 5%+ / yr
53
Growing 15%+ / yr
54
Outstanding or Very Good
Home › Best Schools › Fastest-Growing Schools

Fee, KHDA rating, and waitlist anecdotes are how parents normally compare schools. Enrollment growth is a better signal than any of them: it's the actual revealed preference of every Dubai family that already chose. We pulled 14 years of pupil counts from KHDA returns, computed compound annual growth rates, and ranked the schools that have grown fastest. We exclude schools that started with fewer than 30 pupils (early-stage CAGR is misleading).

#SchoolKHDAThenNowCAGRCurriculumAvg Fee
1 Bright Riders School Good 40 (2018) 1,536 (2024) +83.7% / yr Indian AED 23,500
2 Ambassador International Academy L.L.C Good 74 (2019) 1,518 (2024) +83.0% / yr IB AED 80,000
3 Global Indian International School L.L.C Good 39 (2017) 837 (2024) +55.0% / yr Indian AED 32,448
4 The Aquila School Very good 112 (2018) 1,281 (2024) +50.1% / yr UK AED 46,638
5 Ignite School L.L.C Good 102 (2018) 1,152 (2024) +49.8% / yr US AED 36,846
6 The Indian High School Very good 50 (2012) 5,500 (2024) +48.0% / yr Indian AED 7,995
7 Brighton College Dubai L.L.C Very good 122 (2018) 1,194 (2024) +46.3% / yr UK AED 79,773
8 Dubai Heights Academy Very good 50 (2017) 645 (2024) +44.1% / yr UK AED 69,921
9 Lycee Francais Jean Mermoz L.L.C Very good 130 (2017) 1,494 (2024) +41.7% / yr French AED 54,157
10 Amity School L.L.C Good 131 (2017) 1,483 (2024) +41.4% / yr Indian AED 25,045
11 South View School L.L.C Good 166 (2018) 1,315 (2024) +41.2% / yr UK AED 53,713
12 Arcadia British School Very good 83 (2016) 1,173 (2024) +39.2% / yr UK AED 63,614
13 Safa Community School Outstanding 101 (2014) 2,560 (2024) +38.2% / yr UK AED 68,761
14 Smart Vision School Good 32 (2016) 387 (2024) +36.6% / yr UK AED 42,022
15 Fairgreen International School L.L.C Very good 164 (2018) 1,042 (2024) +36.1% / yr IB AED 73,153
16 Ranches Primary School Very good 71 (2015) 1,089 (2024) +35.4% / yr UK AED 58,443
17 Repton Al Barsha Fz-Llc Very good 53 (2013) 1,489 (2024) +35.4% / yr UK AED 73,480
18 Kings School Nad Al Sheba L.L.C Outstanding 67 (2014) 1,160 (2024) +33.0% / yr UK AED 60,600
19 Dunecrest American School L.L.C Good 148 (2018) 773 (2024) +31.7% / yr US AED 73,008
20 North London Collegiate School Middle East L.L.C - FZ Very good 275 (2017) 1,782 (2024) +30.6% / yr IB AED 117,708
21 The Arbor School L.L.C Very good 288 (2018) 1,391 (2024) +30.0% / yr UK AED 72,465
22 Swiss International Scientific School FZ-LLC Very good 252 (2015) 2,610 (2024) +29.7% / yr IB AED 95,635
23 Hartland International School - FZ Very good 205 (2015) 1,998 (2024) +28.8% / yr UK AED 70,792
24 Himayah School For Education Girls - Al Karama Acceptable 231 (2018) 1,047 (2024) +28.6% / yr MOE AED 8,009
25 American School of Creative Science L.L.C Good 143 (2016) 1,050 (2024) +28.3% / yr US AED 54,245
26 Dubai International Academy Albarsha Very good 425 (2018) 1,836 (2024) +27.6% / yr IB AED 74,710
27 International School of Creative Science Nad Alshiba L.L.C Good 242 (2016) 1,655 (2024) +27.2% / yr UK AED 48,719
28 Al Mawakeb School Al Khawaneej L.L.C Good 337 (2018) 1,277 (2024) +24.9% / yr US AED 52,891
29 Dwight School L.L.C Very good 177 (2018) 658 (2024) +24.5% / yr IB AED 87,936
30 GEMS Albarsha National School - Dubai Branch Acceptable 202 (2017) 933 (2024) +24.4% / yr UK AED 58,123
31 Bilingual French International School L.L.C-FZ Very good 51 (2013) 558 (2024) +24.3% / yr French AED 75,143
32 Dubai British School Jumeirah Park Outstanding 307 (2015) 2,142 (2024) +24.1% / yr UK AED 75,598
33 GEMS Founders School Mizhar Very good 1,325 (2018) 4,739 (2024) +23.7% / yr UK AED 30,999
34 Oak Tree Primary School Acceptable 104 (2016) 556 (2024) +23.3% / yr UK AED 21,633
35 Al Salam Community School L.L.C Good 720 (2019) 1,993 (2024) +22.6% / yr UK AED 32,665
36 The Indian Academy Very good 639 (2019) 1,721 (2024) +21.9% / yr Indian AED 17,901
37 Woodlem Park School L.L.C Weak 381 (2014) 2,665 (2024) +21.5% / yr Indian AED 18,599
38 GEMS International School Al Khail L.L.C Good 270 (2013) 2,246 (2024) +21.2% / yr IB AED 65,951
39 Kent College L.L.C - FZ Very good 307 (2016) 1,399 (2024) +20.9% / yr UK AED 83,765
40 Credence High School L.L.C Very good 348 (2014) 2,304 (2024) +20.8% / yr Indian AED 22,829
41 Jumeira Baccalaureate School Outstanding 121 (2010) 1,614 (2024) +20.3% / yr IB AED 80,250
42 GEMS First Point School L.L.C Very good 308 (2014) 1,954 (2024) +20.3% / yr UK AED 60,022
43 Deira Private School Acceptable 66 (2010) 875 (2024) +20.3% / yr UK AED 27,667
44 Newlands School Good 304 (2017) 1,042 (2024) +19.2% / yr UK AED 28,880
45 Kings School Al Barsha L.L.C Outstanding 546 (2014) 3,053 (2024) +18.8% / yr UK AED 80,670
46 Nord Anglia International School L.L.C Outstanding 550 (2014) 2,944 (2024) +18.3% / yr UK AED 81,315
47 The Indian International School (Dso Branch) Good 433 (2011) 3,417 (2024) +17.2% / yr Indian AED 15,339
48 GEMS New Millennium School L.L.C Very good 479 (2013) 2,654 (2024) +16.8% / yr UK AED 28,350
49 GEMS Founders School - Dubai Branch Outstanding 1,834 (2016) 6,231 (2024) +16.5% / yr UK AED 31,800
50 GEMS Metropole School - Dubai Branch Very good 934 (2014) 4,066 (2024) +15.8% / yr UK AED 43,827
51 Clarion School L.L.C Good 83 (2016) 267 (2024) +15.7% / yr US AED 68,380
52 Sunmarke School L.L.C Very good 658 (2016) 2,085 (2024) +15.5% / yr UK AED 73,986
53 GEMS Wellington Academy Al Khail L.L.C Very good 529 (2013) 2,472 (2024) +15.0% / yr UK AED 72,524
54 Next Generation School L.L.C Good 486 (2016) 1,480 (2024) +14.9% / yr US AED 37,226
55 Springdales School L.L.C Very good 352 (2013) 1,527 (2024) +14.3% / yr UK AED 32,864
56 Icademy Middle East Fz.Llc Not Yet Inspected 143 (2010) 909 (2024) +14.1% / yr US AED 23,797
57 Star International School (Branch) Good 199 (2010) 1,250 (2024) +14.0% / yr UK AED 53,843
58 GEMS Winchester School Good 771 (2011) 4,182 (2024) +13.9% / yr UK AED 28,652
59 Capital School L.L.C Good 264 (2014) 910 (2024) +13.2% / yr UK AED 36,967
60 North American International School L.L.C Acceptable 169 (2010) 909 (2024) +12.8% / yr US AED 39,862
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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is enrollment growth a better signal than KHDA rating?

It's not better — it's complementary. KHDA tells you what inspectors think; enrollment trajectory tells you what parents are actually doing. A school growing 20% per year for three years has earned demand the hard way: every additional family is a family that compared options and chose this school. Combine both.

Doesn't a new school always grow fast?

Yes — that's why we exclude schools that started with fewer than 30 pupils in the earliest year. We also use the longest available window (typically 6+ years) so the CAGR reflects sustained growth, not a one-year founding boom.

What about shrinking schools?

Several Dubai schools have shrunk meaningfully — usually older, lower-fee schools that have lost ground to newer competitors. Each school's individual page shows its full enrollment history. Shrinking is not automatically bad (some schools are deliberately trimming intake), but combined with a static or falling KHDA rating it's a yellow flag.

How is CAGR calculated?

Compound Annual Growth Rate: (end / start) ^ (1 / years) − 1. So a school that went from 200 students to 800 students over 6 years has a CAGR of (800/200)^(1/6) − 1 = 26%.