Wells’ 2026/27 standard tuition is ฿320,000–฿760,000; ISE’s is ฿357,600–฿646,000. Wells’ current pages conflict at Grades 8, 9, 10 and 12; ISE publishes an established authorised IBDP through Grade 12. Confirm Wells’ live upper-grade provision before comparing endpoints.
// Jump to → Wells Chonburi editorial ↗ · ISE editorial ↗ · American schools hub ↗ · IB Diploma hub ↗ · Where to live ↗ · Start Here primer ↗
Wells figures from the school's published 2026/27 fee sheet and the Wells Chonburi editorial. ISE figures from the school's published 2026/27 tuition schedule (ise.ac.th) cross-referenced with the ISE editorial. Both schools publish real numbers — this is one of the few pairings in the directory where the full first-year cost can be modelled on both sides.
// In this guide → Wells Chonburi editorial ↗ · ISE editorial ↗ · American schools hub ↗ · IB Diploma hub ↗ · Where to live ↗ · Start Here primer ↗ · Parent FAQ ↗ · All 120 comparisons ↗
| Dimension | Wells Chonburi | ISE |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2022 (campus) · Wells system est. 1999 in Bangkok | 1993 — 33 years on one site |
| Address | Ban Bueng, Chonburi — inland corridor, Villa Forest site | Tambon Bowin, Sriracha, Chonburi — inside Burapha Golf Club |
| Grade range | Nursery → Grade 10 (G11–12 priced; cohort TBC on this campus) | Pre-K2 → Grade 12 — full run on one campus |
| Curriculum | American (Wells system curriculum, US standards base) | American — AERO standards + NGSS science |
| Exit credential on campus | US high-school diploma track to G10 — G11+ currently means flagship transfer or TBC cohort | US diploma + IB Diploma in G11–12, running since 2004 |
| Accreditation | Wells system WASC-accredited since 2009 — confirm Chonburi campus coverage on tour | WASC since 1999 in its own right · authorised IB World School |
| Scale | New campus — enrolment building; verify current cohort sizes per grade on tour | enrolment not published · student-to-teacher ratio below 8:1 |
| Early years tuition | ฿320,000/yr (Nursery) → ฿390,000 (K3) | ฿357,600/yr (Pre-K2–K4) |
| Elementary tuition | ฿460,000–฿580,000/yr (G1–G6) | ฿514,200/yr (K–G5) |
| Middle school tuition | ฿630,000/yr (G7–8) | ฿600,500/yr (G6–8) |
| High school tuition | ฿690,000/yr (G9–10) · ฿760,000 priced for G11–12 | ฿617,000/yr (G9–10) · ฿646,000 (G11–12 IBDP) |
| One-time fees | ฿5,000 registration + ฿150K (EY) / ฿220K (G1+) campus development + ฿35,000 refundable deposit | ฿5,000 application + ฿90,000 enrolment + ฿50,000 refundable deposit |
| First-year all-in (typical G9) | ~฿950,000 (tuition + development + deposit + registration) | ~฿762,000 (tuition + all one-time fees) |
| Published support-cost label | Combined school label — “ESL Fee/Learning Support (If applicable)”: ฿30,000–฿80,000/semester where listed. | EAL only — ฿19,200–฿57,600/semester by assessed proficiency level; this is not a general learning-support tariff. |
| Transport | ฿36,000–฿80,000/semester round trip by distance | ฿70,000–฿93,700/year round trip by distance |
| Boarding | None published | None — day school |
| Catchment logic | Inland Chonburi · Amata/Pinthong estates · Ban Bueng — 45–60 min from Pattaya | Sriracha · Laem Chabang · Bowin · 30–45 min from North Pattaya |
| Live editorial | Wells → read editorial | ISE → read editorial |
The headline tuition comparison flatters Wells less than it first appears. Band for band, Wells undercuts ISE through elementary — but the ฿150K–฿220K non-refundable campus development fee front-loads the cost, so a Grade 1 entry costs roughly the same in year one at either school (~฿720K at Wells including development and deposit vs ~฿659K at ISE including deposit). From Grade 7 the schools converge on tuition, and at G9–10 Wells is actually the more expensive school (฿690K vs ฿617K) — before its sixth-form question is even answered. Model the full run to graduation, not the entry-year sticker.
ISE documents a Pre-K-to-Grade-12 route on one campus and has held IB Diploma Programme authorisation since 2004. Wells Chonburi publishes fees through Grades 11–12, while its current campus pages conflict on which upper grades are operating. Ask both schools to confirm the child's current grade, the next grades that will operate on this campus, the available senior subjects and the final credential in writing. Do not transfer AP, testing or university-counselling claims from another Wells campus to Chonburi without campus-specific evidence; if Grade 11 or 12 is not confirmed, include a later transfer in the plan and budget.
Wells is in Ban Bueng, serving an inland map that can include Amata City, Pinthong, Chonburi city and Ban Bueng. ISE is in Bowin, closer to the Sriracha, Laem Chabang and northern-Pattaya corridor. Actual travel time depends on the home address, traffic and bus route. Test both journeys at normal arrival and collection times and obtain a written transport route and price before treating either location as an advantage.
ISE is the known quantity: 33 years on one site, WASC-accredited in its own right since 1999, current enrolment not published with an 8:1 ratio — deliberately small, with the trade-offs smallness brings (thin sports fixtures, narrow electives, small peer groups per grade). Wells Chonburi is three years old but borrows 26 years of institutional muscle from Bangkok: a WASC-accredited system, an audited flagship to compare standards against, and a leadership bench a true startup lacks. The honest framing: ISE sells you a track record you can inspect; Wells sells you a franchise promise you must verify on tour — ask which flagship systems (assessment, reporting, staff development) actually operate in Ban Bueng.
Both schools publish real numbers, so do the arithmetic for your actual entry year. Wells is cheaper per year through lower elementary (Wells ฿460K in G1–2 vs ISE's ฿514K K–G5 band) but charges ฿150K–฿220K non-refundable campus development on entry — money you lose if the family relocates after two years. ISE charges higher headline tuition with ฿145K in entry cash outlay (฿50K refundable) — easier to exit, easier for employer packages to audit. Short expected stay or relocation risk favours ISE's structure; a committed 10-year inland family amortises the Wells development fee to noise. At G9–10 the price advantage flips to ISE outright.
ISE documents an American-curriculum route with an authorised IB Diploma Programme; the official IB directory records its DP authorisation from 2004. The other authorised DP schools in this directory are Garden, Regents and St Andrew's Green Valley; see the IB Diploma hub. Wells Chonburi's current upper-grade operation and senior-subject offer remain unresolved. Ask each intended university or course to confirm its entry, testing, English-language and subject requirements, and ask Wells for Chonburi-specific evidence of any AP or application support rather than relying on another campus's offer.
You want British curriculum at comparable fees — see MIS vs TPIS or the British schools hub. You need boarding — see Rugby vs St Andrews. You want premium IB with a bigger campus — see ISE vs Regents. Budget is the constraint — see the budget schools hub.
Wells International School — Chonburi Campus source ↗ · International School Eastern Seaboard source ↗. Read each school editorial for claim-specific source links, document dates, fee inclusions and unresolved evidence conflicts.
Wells Chonburi and ISE should each confirm the child’s exact year, start date, class availability and next curriculum stages. Wells families need particular clarity on the grades currently operating at the Chonburi campus and which later stages require another campus or school; ISE families should verify the subject-level American and IB route for the relevant cohort.
Request complete dated invoices using identical rows for tuition, application, registration, deposits, meals, transport, books, uniforms, trips, examinations, clubs and support. Compare standard fees before payment discounts and separate acceptance-stage cash, the full first year and recurring costs.
Observe the offered classroom, current pupil work, teacher feedback and language-support routine. Ask who delivers any additional provision, its frequency, review date and price. Drive both routes at normal school times and obtain exact bus timing where relevant.
Save one decision record containing confirmed grade availability, classroom evidence, complete costs, support, commute and the next transfer or pathway checkpoint. Any future Wells phase or ISE subject option remains provisional until the school confirms it for the child in writing.
ISE is an authorised IB World School and the official IB directory records its Diploma Programme authorisation from 2004. Wells Chonburi publishes upper-grade prices, but its current campus pages do not consistently establish which senior grades and subjects are operating; obtain written campus-specific confirmation.
Wells starts at ฿320K in Nursery but reaches ฿690K in G9–10 and ฿760K in the priced G11–12 band; ISE runs from ฿357,600 to ฿646,000. ISE is lower from the middle/senior comparison onward. Wells' one-time campus-development fee is ฿150K–฿220K; ISE charges ฿90K enrolment plus a ฿50K refundable deposit.
The Wells system holds WASC accreditation (since 2009) through its Bangkok schools — confirm on tour exactly how the Chonburi campus is covered. ISE has been WASC-accredited in its own right since 1999 and is also an authorised IB World School.
ISE is in Tambon Bowin, Sriracha; Wells Chonburi is in Ban Bueng. Which is closer depends on the exact home address, traffic and school-bus route. Test both journeys at normal school times and ask each school for a current route and price.
Neither publishes a boarding programme. Both are day schools — families needing boarding on the Eastern Seaboard look at Rugby School Thailand or St Andrews Green Valley instead. See the boarding schools hub.
29 school records listed. Twenty-nine full editorials live. Record dates show the latest completed check.