Grammar school savings calculator
Put the cost of preparing for the 11+ next to the independent school fees a grammar school place would replace.
Read this first
Every number is editable, the link carries your inputs, and the assumptions are listed below the sum.
11+ preparation
How long you would prepare, and what it would cost each year.
Pre-filled with Core at £14.99 a month for one child. Change it to compare another app or plan.
Optional. Practice books, mock exams, printing and travel.
Independent school fees
The fees a grammar school place would replace, at the schools you are actually considering.
The default is the January 2026 level: the ISC Census 2026 average day fee of £6,226 per term excluding VAT, about £7,471 with VAT at 20%. Schools have set fees since, and regional day fees ranged from £4,473 to £7,580 per term before VAT, so enter the current fee from the school's own website. Boarding is far higher.
Applied from today: once for each preparation year, once for Year 6, then once for each further year of secondary. ISC reported an underlying rise of 4.4% for 2026 and 1.8% for 2025; 4% is a round figure between them.
Difference, if a place is offered
Results
£198,769
7 years of fees, less 2 years of preparation.
- Independent school fees7 years from £25,212 at entry, rising 4% a year
- £199,128
- Trace Learn plan£14.99 a month for 24 months
- £360
- Total preparation
- £360
In plain English
Independent school fees of £22,413 a year today, rising 4% a year for 3 years until entry and then each year, would come to about £199,128 over 7 years. Preparing for 2 years with a £14.99-a-month plan would cost about £360, or 0.2% of those fees. If a grammar school place is offered, the difference is about £198,769.
Rows are rounded to the pound; each total is rounded once from the exact sum, so a total can differ from its rows by £1.
Fees year by year
| Year | Fee | Running total |
|---|---|---|
| Year 7 | £25,212 | £25,212 |
| Year 8 | £26,220 | £51,432 |
| Year 9 | £27,269 | £78,700 |
| Year 10 | £28,360 | £107,060 |
| Year 11 | £29,494 | £136,554 |
| Year 12 | £30,674 | £167,228 |
| Year 13 | £31,901 | £199,128 |
Today's fee of £22,413 a year is compounded 3 times before entry (2 preparation years plus Year 6, between the test and the Year 7 start) and then once more for each further year of secondary. Rows are rounded; the total is rounded once from the exact sum.
What the sum assumes
- The fee you enter is today's fee. It is compounded by the inflation rate once for each preparation year, once more for Year 6 (which sits between the 11+ test and the Year 7 start), and then once for each further year of secondary school. A longer preparation period therefore also moves the fees further into the future.
- Per-term fees are multiplied by three terms a year. Extras such as lunches, trips, uniform, transport and exam fees are not included, so real bills are usually higher.
- Preparation charges every month of the plan for the whole preparation period and ignores free trials, sibling arrangements, and price changes.
- A tutor is priced as hours per week, multiplied by the hourly rate and the number of teaching weeks in a year.
- The default fee is the January 2026 level from the ISC Census 2026, the latest census figure verified for this page. Schools have set fees since, so enter the current fee from the school's own website.
- Nothing here is adjusted for the value of money over time, tax, bursaries, scholarships, or the cost of a state school place. It is a comparison of two bills, not a financial plan.
Sources
- ISC Census and Annual Report 2026 Accessed 1 October 2026Average day fee at day schools of £6,226 per term excluding VAT in January 2026, an annual rise of 4.4% among schools completing both censuses (excluding VAT and nursery fees). Regional day fees ranged from £4,473 per term in the North West to £7,580 in London, excluding VAT. This is the latest census figure verified for this page; schools have set fees again since.
- ISC Census and Annual Report 2025 Accessed 1 October 2026Typical day fee of £6,152 per term excluding VAT in January 2025, an underlying rise of 1.8%.
- HM Revenue and Customs: applying VAT to private school fees Accessed 28 August 2026VAT at the standard 20% rate has applied to education and boarding services supplied by private schools since 1 January 2025.
- Trace Learn pricingAccessed 28 August 2026Core is £14.99 a month for one child if you choose to subscribe after a 7-day card-free trial. The calculator charges every month of preparation and ignores the trial.
- Trace Learn: 11+ tutor or self-study?Accessed 28 August 2026Live tutoring marketplace rates in 2026 clustered between about £45 and £65 an hour. The default tutor line uses one hour a week for 40 weeks at £45.
Read before you decide
- 11+ tutor or self-study?Realistic annual costs for apps, tutors, centres and mixed plans, with live marketplace rates.Read the guide
- Grammar school demand and private school costsWhat the official data says about VAT, fee changes and whether grammar applications are surging.Read the guide
- What grammar schools select forHow places are actually decided, and why preparation spend is not the deciding factor.Read the guide
Frequently asked questions
Where does the default independent school fee come from?
The ISC Census 2026 reports an average day fee of £6,226 per term excluding VAT in January 2026. With VAT at 20%, which has applied to private school fees since 1 January 2025, that is about £7,471 per term. That is the January 2026 level and schools have set fees since; fees also vary widely by school and region, so replace the default with the current fees of the schools you are actually considering.
How is fee inflation applied?
The fee you enter is treated as today's fee. It is compounded by the inflation rate you set once for each preparation year, once more for Year 6 between the 11+ test and the Year 7 start, and then once for each further year of secondary school; the year-by-year table shows the result. The default of 4% a year sits between the 4.4% underlying rise ISC reported for 2026 and the 1.8% rise it reported for 2025.
Does the calculator predict whether my child will get a grammar school place?
No. The saving only applies if a grammar school place is offered, and places are decided by each school's admission arrangements and test results, not by preparation spend. The calculator makes no claim about any child's chances or about Trace Learn's results.
What counts as preparation cost?
A monthly learning plan, an optional private tutor priced by hours per week, hourly rate and weeks per year, and an optional line for books, mock exams and other costs, each multiplied by the number of preparation years you choose.
Prices and fee figures checked 1 October 2026. This page is general information for illustration only, not financial advice. Trace Learn wrote it and sells one of the preparation options in the sum.
See where your child stands before you spend anything
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