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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
44
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 24,036
2 Ambassador International Academy L.L.C Good 74 (2019) 1,518 (2024) +83.0% / yr IB AED 69,353
3 Global Indian International School L.L.C Good 39 (2017) 837 (2024) +55.0% / yr Indian AED 32,070
4 The Aquila School Good 112 (2018) 1,281 (2024) +50.1% / yr UK AED 62,661
5 Ignite School L.L.C Acceptable 102 (2018) 1,152 (2024) +49.8% / yr US AED 36,992
6 The Indian High School Very good 50 (2012) 5,500 (2024) +48.0% / yr Indian AED 7,911
7 Brighton College Dubai L.L.C Very good 122 (2018) 1,194 (2024) +46.3% / yr UK AED 101,547
8 Dubai Heights Academy Very good 50 (2017) 645 (2024) +44.1% / yr UK AED 70,324
9 Lycee Francais Jean Mermoz L.L.C Very good 130 (2017) 1,494 (2024) +41.7% / yr French AED 52,031
10 Amity School L.L.C Good 131 (2017) 1,483 (2024) +41.4% / yr Indian AED 26,418
11 South View School L.L.C Good 166 (2018) 1,315 (2024) +41.2% / yr UK AED 53,498
12 Arcadia British School Very good 83 (2016) 1,173 (2024) +39.2% / yr UK AED 82,830
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 57,597
15 Fairgreen International School L.L.C Good 164 (2018) 1,042 (2024) +36.1% / yr IB AED 78,482
16 Ranches Primary School Very good 71 (2015) 1,089 (2024) +35.4% / yr UK AED 58,841
17 Repton Al Barsha Fz-Llc Very good 53 (2013) 1,489 (2024) +35.4% / yr UK AED 77,299
18 Kings School Nad Al Sheba L.L.C Very good 67 (2014) 1,160 (2024) +33.0% / yr UK AED 75,043
19 Dunecrest American School L.L.C Good 148 (2018) 773 (2024) +31.7% / yr US AED 81,537
20 North London Collegiate School Middle East L.L.C - FZ Very good 275 (2017) 1,782 (2024) +30.6% / yr IB AED 117,230
21 The Arbor School L.L.C Good 288 (2018) 1,391 (2024) +30.0% / yr UK AED 81,291
22 Swiss International Scientific School FZ-LLC Very good 252 (2015) 2,610 (2024) +29.7% / yr IB AED 102,652
23 Hartland International School - FZ Very good 205 (2015) 1,998 (2024) +28.8% / yr UK AED 73,021
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 51,960
26 Dubai International Academy Albarsha Very good 425 (2018) 1,836 (2024) +27.6% / yr IB AED 74,778
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 52,109
29 Dwight School L.L.C Good 177 (2018) 658 (2024) +24.5% / yr IB AED 91,684
30 GEMS Albarsha National School - Dubai Branch Acceptable 202 (2017) 933 (2024) +24.4% / yr UK AED 59,489
31 Bilingual French International School L.L.C-FZ Very good 51 (2013) 558 (2024) +24.3% / yr French AED 79,144
32 Dubai British School Jumeirah Park Outstanding 307 (2015) 2,142 (2024) +24.1% / yr UK AED 88,301
33 GEMS Founders School Mizhar Good 1,325 (2018) 4,739 (2024) +23.7% / yr UK AED 31,944
34 Oak Tree Primary School Acceptable 104 (2016) 556 (2024) +23.3% / yr UK AED 21,430
35 Al Salam Community School L.L.C Good 720 (2019) 1,993 (2024) +22.6% / yr UK AED 34,029
36 The Indian Academy Good 639 (2019) 1,721 (2024) +21.9% / yr Indian AED 18,045
37 Woodlem Park School L.L.C Acceptable 381 (2014) 2,665 (2024) +21.5% / yr Indian AED 18,921
38 GEMS International School Al Khail L.L.C Good 270 (2013) 2,246 (2024) +21.2% / yr IB AED 65,072
39 Kent College L.L.C - FZ Very good 307 (2016) 1,399 (2024) +20.9% / yr UK AED 85,529
40 Credence High School L.L.C Very good 348 (2014) 2,304 (2024) +20.8% / yr Indian AED 23,010
41 Jumeira Baccalaureate School Very good 121 (2010) 1,614 (2024) +20.3% / yr IB AED 81,320
42 GEMS First Point School L.L.C Very good 308 (2014) 1,954 (2024) +20.3% / yr UK AED 59,335
43 Deira Private School Acceptable 66 (2010) 875 (2024) +20.3% / yr UK AED 31,155
44 Newlands School Good 304 (2017) 1,042 (2024) +19.2% / yr UK AED 29,442
45 Kings School Al Barsha L.L.C Outstanding 546 (2014) 3,053 (2024) +18.8% / yr UK AED 82,209
46 Nord Anglia International School L.L.C Outstanding 550 (2014) 2,944 (2024) +18.3% / yr UK AED 86,762
47 The Indian International School (Dso Branch) Good 433 (2011) 3,417 (2024) +17.2% / yr Indian AED 13,059
48 GEMS New Millennium School L.L.C Very good 479 (2013) 2,654 (2024) +16.8% / yr UK AED 28,235
49 GEMS Founders School - Dubai Branch Very good 1,834 (2016) 6,231 (2024) +16.5% / yr UK AED 31,800
50 GEMS Metropole School - Dubai Branch Good 934 (2014) 4,066 (2024) +15.8% / yr UK AED 47,390
51 Clarion School L.L.C Good 83 (2016) 267 (2024) +15.7% / yr US AED 71,590
52 Sunmarke School L.L.C Very good 658 (2016) 2,085 (2024) +15.5% / yr UK AED 84,433
53 GEMS Wellington Academy Al Khail L.L.C Very good 529 (2013) 2,472 (2024) +15.0% / yr UK AED 87,788
54 Next Generation School L.L.C Good 486 (2016) 1,480 (2024) +14.9% / yr US AED 39,528
55 Springdales School L.L.C Good 352 (2013) 1,527 (2024) +14.3% / yr UK AED 26,254
56 Icademy Middle East Fz.Llc Not Yet Inspected 143 (2010) 909 (2024) +14.1% / yr US AED 22,271
57 Star International School (Branch) Good 199 (2010) 1,250 (2024) +14.0% / yr UK AED 53,034
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 53,062
60 North American International School L.L.C Acceptable 169 (2010) 909 (2024) +12.8% / yr US AED 36,971
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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%.