Arizona Private Schools: Costs, Admission, How to Apply

Private schools in Arizona set their own tuition, admission rules and calendars, and no state agency licenses or inspects them. For 2026-27 the average tuition is about $11,237, and more than half of students receive some aid. Two state programs, the Empowerment Scholarship Account and tax-credit scholarships from School Tuition Organizations, can pay a large share of the bill, though not both in the same year.

The landscape

Private School Review counts 515 private schools serving 78,600 students in Arizona for 2026-27, about 7% of the state's K-12 students; roughly half are religiously affiliated. (The federal Private School Universe Survey, which uses a narrower definition, found 408 schools and 66,948 students in 2021-22.) The schools fall into a few broad groups:

Religious schools: Catholic diocesan and independent Catholic schools, Lutheran, Seventh-day Adventist, evangelical Christian, Jewish and others. Most admit students of any faith; ask.
Independent (nonsectarian) schools: usually college-preparatory, usually the most expensive, often accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Southwest.
Special-education private schools: the one group the Arizona Department of Education approves, and only for students placed there by a public school.
Boarding schools: a handful of schools that house students; see Boarding schools.
Microschools and online private schools, covered on the homeschool and online schools pages.

What it costs

Average tuition, 2026-27: $11,237 overall, $10,506 for elementary schools and $14,464 for high schools; 58% of students receive financial aid (Private School Review, as of October 2026).
Published examples for 2026-27: $14,230 for day students at Thunderbird Adventist Academy in Scottsdale; $26,400 for grades 9-12 at Rancho Solano Preparatory School in Scottsdale. Independent college-preparatory schools in the Phoenix area and the boarding schools charge more; each school's tuition page is the only reliable source.
Extras vary: application fees (Phoenix Country Day School charges $75), uniforms, books, technology, trips and testing.

Three ways to pay, all covered in Paying for school:

ESA: every Arizona resident eligible for public school qualifies. For 2025-26 the award for grades 1-12 without a disability was $7,105 to $10,540, kindergarten $4,718 to $6,205, with higher amounts for a documented disability. ADE had not published 2026-27 amounts as of October 11, 2026. See ESA.
School Tuition Organization scholarships, funded by state tax credits and applied for through each STO. Students who moved from out of state are among those eligible for the "switcher" scholarships. See Tax-credit scholarships.
The school's own financial aid, usually need-based and applied for alongside admission. See Financial aid.

You cannot receive an STO scholarship and ESA funds for the same student in the same contract year, and a student switching to an ESA must repay the STO first.

Regulation and accreditation

A.R.S. 15-161 gives the State Board of Education and school districts no "control or supervision over private schools." The U.S. Department of Education's summary for Arizona reads: accreditation, registration, licensing and approval, "no requirements." AZ School Report Cards shows a private school's address and contact only, never performance data. ADE's one role is approving private special-education schools that serve publicly placed students.

Accreditation is therefore voluntary, and worth asking about:

Cognia (formerly AdvancED/NCA CASI) accredits public and non-public schools on a six-year cycle; about 35 Arizona private schools are Cognia members.
Independent Schools Association of the Southwest (ISAS), founded 1955, accredits independent member schools in Arizona and five other states.
An "Arizona Association of Independent Schools" is sometimes mentioned; its website no longer works and it is not an accreditor. Rely on ISAS and Cognia instead.
The Arizona Interscholastic Association reportedly requires accreditation for athletic membership; confirm with the school if sports matter.

Two legal duties do apply. Within 30 days of your child starting at a private school, you must file an affidavit with the county school superintendent (A.R.S. 15-802(B)(2)); many schools handle this with you. And the school must collect proof of your child's identity and age and request prior records, as public schools do (A.R.S. 15-828).

How admission works

Each school sets its own process. Across the selective schools the components are the same: an application, transcripts, teacher recommendations, an interview or shadow day, and a test, usually the ISEE at independent K-12 schools and the HSPT at Catholic high schools. Published deadlines as of October 2026:

School	Cycle	Key dates
Brophy College Preparatory	Class of 2031	HSPT December 5, 2026; checklist due January 15, 2027; decisions February 12, 2027
Phoenix Country Day School	2027-28	Applications due February 1; ISEE January 23 and 30 (grades 2-11); decisions February 26
Rancho Solano Preparatory School	2027-28	K-12 deadline January 29; ISEE for grades 3-12; applications considered in order received
Salpointe Catholic High School	2027-28	Application opened September 1, 2026; transfer applications from January 15, 2027
Xavier College Preparatory	2027-28	Freshman applications opened August 2026; HSPT December 5 or 12

Mid-year entry is not common at selective schools. Phoenix Country Day, Brophy and Salpointe all state that they do not admit students mid-year. Other schools, including most religious and smaller independent schools, admit on a rolling basis when a seat is open. If you arrive in spring, call anyway, and use a public school as the bridge if the answer is "next August." See Mid-year enrollment.

Example schools of different types

Listed alphabetically, in the same format, to show the range. This is not a ranking and not a recommendation; every one of them and hundreds of others deserve the questions below.

School	Location	Grades	Type and affiliation	Published costs	Accreditation and programmes	Independent notes	Facts last updated
Arizona Lutheran Academy	Phoenix	9-12	Lutheran, co-educational high school	see the school's site		Listed by Niche as boarding, but no dormitory was found as of October 2026	Oct 11, 2026
Brophy College Preparatory	Phoenix	9-12	Catholic (Jesuit), boys	see the school's site		Does not accept mid-year transfers (school site, October 2026)	Oct 11, 2026
Phoenix Country Day School	Paradise Valley	Pre-K-12	Independent, co-educational, nonsectarian	see the school's site	Independent Schools Association of the Southwest (ISAS)	Does not admit students mid-year (school site, October 2026)	Oct 11, 2026
Rancho Solano Preparatory School	Scottsdale	K-12 day; boarding for grades 6-12	Independent, co-educational school (part of International Schools Partnership)	Boarding tuition, room and board $60,000 (2026-27); Day tuition, grades 9-12 $26,400 (2026-27)	Cognia, International Baccalaureate and NIPSA listed on its site; IB Diploma Programme	Niche 2027: A+, #2 on Best Boarding High Schools in Arizona	Oct 11, 2026
Salpointe Catholic High School	Tucson	9-12	Catholic (Carmelite), co-educational	see the school's site			Oct 11, 2026
The Gregory School	Tucson	5-12	Independent, co-educational, nonsectarian	see the school's site	Independent Schools Association of the Southwest (ISAS)		Oct 11, 2026
Thunderbird Adventist Academy	Scottsdale	9-12	Seventh-day Adventist, co-educational high school	Day $14,230 (2026-27); 5-day dorm $20,860 (2026-27); Full-time dorm $23,400 (2026-27); International day / dorm $16,230 / $25,400 (2026-27)	Not stated on the school's site; ask the school	Niche 2027: A-, listed but unranked on Best Boarding High Schools in Arizona	Oct 11, 2026
Verde Valley School	Sedona	9-12	Independent, co-educational, nonsectarian school; International Baccalaureate World School	Day $33,000 (2026-27); Domestic boarding $60,000 (2026-27); International boarding $63,000 (2026-27)	Cognia; International Baccalaureate; IB Diploma Programme	Niche 2027: A+, #1 on Best Boarding High Schools in Arizona. The site author works here; see /about.	Oct 11, 2026
Xavier College Preparatory	Phoenix	9-12	Catholic, girls	see the school's site			Oct 11, 2026

Facts in this table come from each school's own published pages and carry the date they were last checked; "by the school" means the school updated its own row through this site's listing update service.

Finding private schools

Private School Review and Niche list schools with tuition, size and reviews; treat rankings with the caution described on How to evaluate schools.
The ISAS and Cognia member lists identify accredited schools.
AZ School Report Cards gives addresses and contacts for private schools, nothing more.
The by-region pages name private schools near each major area.

Questions to ask any private school

Is the school accredited, and by whom?
What is the total cost for a year, including fees, and what did the median aid award cover last year?
Does the school accept ESA funds and STO scholarships, and which STOs does it work with?
Does it admit mid-year, and what happens to a child who arrives in spring?
What support exists for a child with an IEP, a 504 plan or an English-learner background? Private schools are not required to provide any, so the answer varies widely.
How does the school report progress, and what outside measures (IB, AP, standardized tests) does it use?

Sources and where to verify

Represent a school listed on this page? You can keep your own facts current: see how schools update their listing, by web form, by a scoped API key, or by connecting your AI assistant to this site's MCP server. Corrections by email are welcome too. Every change is logged and shown with its date, as the editorial policy explains.

Frequently asked questions

How much does private school cost in Arizona?

The 2026-27 average is about $11,237 a year, with elementary schools averaging $10,506 and high schools $14,464. Selective independent schools in the Phoenix area charge two to three times the average; many religious schools charge less.

Can the ESA cover all of it?

Often most of it. A 2025-26 ESA for grades 1-12 without a disability was $7,105 to $10,540, which exceeds the average tuition at many religious schools and covers a third to a half at the most expensive independent schools.

Are Arizona private schools accredited?

Only if they choose to be. The state requires no accreditation, registration or licence. Ask whether the school holds Cognia or ISAS accreditation, and if not, why.

Can my child start a private school mid-year?

At many schools, yes, if a seat is open. Several selective schools, including Phoenix Country Day, Brophy and Salpointe, do not admit mid-year, so check before you plan around one.

Do private schools have to accept my child's IEP?

No. Private schools are not required to provide special-education services. Some have strong learning-support programs and some have none; ask for specifics and the cost.

Do I have to tell the state my child is in private school?

Yes. File an affidavit with your county school superintendent within 30 days of the child starting. The school can usually tell you how.

Most admit students of any faith, but policies on worship attendance and religion classes vary. Ask directly.

Last reviewed October 11, 2026. Figures change; the sources above are where to check.