There are a number of international schools in the cities of Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, and increasing numbers of accredited small international schools being opened in other cities. Some schools are run specifically for the education of particular nationalities, such as the Japanese and German schools in Beijing, while others take all nationalities. With increasing numbers of expatriates entering China, it has been reported that there is a higher demand for places in international schools than there are places available. The cost of an international school education is very high in China compared to other countries, with typical fees in excess of US$25,000 per year. Many expatriates have their children's education fees paid by their employers.

Under recent changes in legislation, foreigners are now allowed to send their children to local Chinese schools. In the main cities some of these have sections of the school allocated specifically to foreigners. However, class sizes are usually very large (50 or more) and relatively few expatriates take up this option.