Best Private Schools in Austin – 2025

February 3, 2025

The population of Austin, Texas has grown by 290% since the early 1980s. In that time, the number of private high school options available in the area has grown commensurately. Many of these private Austin high schools now serve as feeders into the nation’s biggest-name colleges and universities. Of course, as parents, there are a multitude of considerations guiding your decision of which private schools in Austin will be best for your child. Ultimately, your decision will need to balance your teen’s academic, emotional, and social needs with financial and logistical considerations. However, College Transitions’ list of the Best Private Schools in Austin will focus primarily on our area of expertise—college admissions. As such, we will highlight the job that each of the schools do at sending their graduates on to the region/nation’s premier 4-year schools.

Best Private Schools in Austin

Here’s a quick preview of the best private schools in Austin, TX that made our list. Detailed profiles and stats can be found when you scroll below.

Featured: Alpha High School

1) St. Stephen’s Episcopal School

2) St. Andrew’s Episcopal

3) Griffin School

4) Peace Academy

5) Regents School of Austin

6) St. Gabriel’s + St. Michael’s Catholic School

7) Headwaters School

8) Hyde Park Schools

9) Austin Waldorf School

Please note that inclusion on our Best Private Schools in Austin list is a selective and criteria-based process. However, the order in which the schools appear is not representative of any further ranking; the numbering is solely intended to enhance the ease of navigating this resource. All of the schools profiled below have a history of sending graduates to the top colleges in the country. For each of the best private high schools in Austin, TX, College Transitions will provide you with—when available—each school’s:

Location
Tuition (9-12)
Enrollment (9-12)
Average SAT Score
Average ACT Score
Senior Class Size
College Admissions Highlights
Academic Highlights

Without further ado, let’s look at the profiled high schools that are among the best private schools in Austin.

Featured - Best Private Schools in Austin

Alpha High School

Austin, TX; Miami, FL

Learn more about Alpha High School

College Admissions Highlights: Recent graduates have been accepted into colleges such as Vanderbilt University, Texas A&M, the University of Southern California, Northeastern University, Stanford University, Fashion Institute of Technology, Howard University, Babson College, the University of Texas at Austin, SCAD, and Pratt Institute.

Academic Highlights: In this accredited, mastery-based high school, students complete rigorous coursework in focused morning sessions, then spend their afternoons in hands-on workshops and ambitious Masterpiece Projects that push the boundaries of innovation. Our professional-grade facilities—including podcast studios and entrepreneurship labs—enable students to launch real ventures while maintaining top national academic performance. Students are in the top 10% academically with SAT scores of 1350+ and 4-5’s on multiple AP exams.

Tuition (9-12): $40,000
Enrollment: 150
Median SAT: 1350
Median ACT: N/A

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Featured - Also in Austin

Alpha School Austin PreK–8

Austin, TX

Alpha School’s Austin campus serves PreK–8 students using the same accredited, mastery-based model powering Alpha High. Mornings focus on AI-driven, 1:1 personalized academics in roughly two hours, and afternoons are dedicated to hands-on life-skills workshops (communication, leadership, creativity, entrepreneurship). Austin families attend at two locations: PreK–5: 1201 Spyglass Dr, 78746; 6–8: 201 Colorado St, 78701.

Tuition (k-8) $40,000
Enrollment 150

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#1 Best Private High School in Austin

St. Stephen’s Episcopal School – Austin, TX

6500 St Stephens Dr, Austin, TX 78746

College Admissions Highlights: Graduates from the last five years have gone on to study at these prestigious universities and colleges: Amherst, BC, BU, Brandeis, Brown, Bryn Mawr, Cal Tech, Carnegie Mellon, Case Western, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Duke, Emory, Georgetown, Harvard, Indiana, Johns Hopkins, Middlebury, MIT, NYU, Northeastern, Ohio State, Pomona, Princeton, Rice, Stanford, Texas A&M, UT Austin, Trinity, UC Berkeley, UChicago, Michigan, Notre Dame, USC, UVA, Vanderbilt, Washington U, and Yale.

Academic Highlights: Student to teacher ratio is 8:1 with an average class size of 17. 57% of students are boarding. 19% students are international students. 79% of faculty have advanced degrees. Almost 100 teams from middle to high school including academy level soccer programs.

Tuition (9-12): $37,700
Enrollment (9-12): 503
Mean SAT Score: 1363
Mean ACT Score: 30

#2 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

St. Andrew’s Episcopal – Austin, TX

5901 Southwest Pkwy, Austin, TX 78735

College Admissions Highlights: Graduates over the last five years from St Andrew’s Episcopal have gone onto prestigious universities and colleges: American, Baylor, BU, Brown, Carnegie Mellon, Claremont McKenna, Dartmouth, Duke, Georgetown, GaTech, Harvard, Indiana, Loyola, Middlebury, NYU, Northeastern, Ohio State, Pepperdine, Pomona, Purdue, Rice, Stanford, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Tufts, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UChicago, UGA, Michigan, UNC Chapel Hill, USC, UVA, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington U, Wesleyan, and Yale.

Academic Highlights: Average class size is 16 students. 60% of faculty have advanced degrees. 20 humanities & 16 science courses. 26 fine arts including acting, filmmaking, rock band, strings orchestra & studio art. 23 varsity & 16 JV sports teams. Most students graduate with over 40 service hours.

Tuition (9-12): $37,700
Enrollment (seniors): 101
Middle 50% SAT Score: 1210-1445
Middle 50% ACT Score: 27-33

#3 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Griffin School – Austin, TX

5001 Evans Ave, Austin, TX 78751

College Admissions Highlights: Over the years, Griffin graduates have gained acceptance to diverse colleges and universities, including: American, Bard, BU, Cal Tech, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Denison, Drexel, George Washington, Georgetown, Kenyon, Michigan State, Middlebury, NYU, Pratt, Oberlin, Rice, Stanford, Texas A&M, Trinity, Tufts, UChicago, UMass, UMiami, UNC Chapel Hill, UT Austin, UT Dallas, Vassar, Villanova, and Washington U.

Academic Highlights: Student to teacher ratio is 7:1 with an average class size of 12. 17 AP courses. Griffin students often win multiple regional art & writing awards yearly. Students graduate with at least 80 hours of community service. 5 sports teams & 8 athletic clubs for students to participate.

Tuition (9-12): $21,200
Enrollment (seniors): 40
Mean SAT Score: 1336
Mean ACT Score: 28.5

#4 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Peace Academy – Austin, TX

5110 Manor Rd, Austin, TX 78723

College Admissions Highlights: Graduates from APA have been accepted at these fine universities and colleges: American, Bard College of Berlin, Baylor, BU, Emerson, Emory, George Washington, NYU, Sarah Lawrence, SeattleU, Seton Hall, Southwestern, Spelman, Texas A&M, Trinity, Tufts, UAmsterdam, UHouston, UC Berkeley, UT Austin, UT Dallas, Williams, and Vanderbilt.

Academic Highlights: Students represent 19 countries. 9 AP courses including 5 in science. 94% earned ‘A+’ scores on AP exams. Daily classes in Islamic studies, Quran, & Quranic Arabic. APA offers Forensic Science course as a part of the STEM program.

Tuition (9-12): $10,000
Enrollment (seniors): 80
Mean SAT Score: 1350
Mean ACT Score: Not reported

#5 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Regents School of Austin – Austin, TX

3230 Travis Country Cir, Austin, TX 78735

College Admissions Highlights: Over the last four years, graduates from Regents have been accepted at these fine institutions: American, Auburn, Baylor, BC, Bucknell, Case Western, Clemson, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, DePaul, Emerson, Georgetown, Indiana U, Loyola, Marquette, NYU, Northwestern, Penn State, Pepperdine, Princeton, SMU, Stanford, Tennessee, UT Austin, Trinity, US Air Force Acad, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UF, UGA, U Mass, UNC Chapel Hill, USC, UVA, Vanderbilt, Villanova, Wake Forest, Wellesley, WashingtonU, and Yale.

Academic Highlights: Student to faculty ratio is 10:1 with an average class size of 16. 75% of faculty have advance degrees. 70% pass rate for AP exams over the past 4 years. 19k+ service hours. Academic program distinctives include physics first, molecular biology, laser optics lab, & mathematics service. 10 sports with multiple fields & facilities. Arts include band, orchestra, choral music, dance, theatre & visual arts.

Tuition (9-12): $22,731
Enrollment (seniors): 88
Mean SAT Score: 1241
Mean ACT Score: 27

#6 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

St. Gabriel’s + St. Michael’s Catholic School – Austin, TX

3000 BARTON CREEK BOULEVARD, AUSTIN, TEXAS 78735

College Admissions Highlights: Graduates St. Michael’s Prep were accepted at these colleges and universities: Berklee College of Music, BC, Brandeis, Cornell, Duke, Emory, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, LSU, MIT, NYU, Northwestern, Ohio State, SCAD, Stanford, TCU, Texas A&M, US Military Acad, UC Berkeley, UCLA, UC San Diego, U Chicago, Georgia, Michigan, Notre Dame, UT Austin, UVA, Washington, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Washington U, Wisconsin, and Wellesley.

Academic Highlights: St Michaels’ & St Gabriel’s Catholic schools merged in 2022. Student to teacher ration is 10:1 with an average class size of 16. There are 21 AP courses. 30% students of color. Seniors graduate with at least 80 hours of community service. Winter term is a 3 week study in January for opportunities to deep dive in subject matters with travel opportunities. Over 83% of the school participates in athletics, with 70% participating in more than 1.

Tuition (9-12): $29,885
Enrollment (9-12): 415
Mean SAT Score: 1250
Mean ACT Score: 25

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#7 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Headwaters School – Austin, TX

807 Rio Grande St., Austin, TX 78701

College Admissions Highlights: Graduates from Headwaters have gone onto to be accepted at these fine universities and colleges: American, Barnard, Baylor, BU, Bryn Mawr, Bucknell, Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, DePaul, Duke, Emory, George Washington, Harvard, Johns Hopkins, NYU, Northeastern, Oberlin, Pitzer, Rice, Stanford, Texas A&M, TCU, Tufts, UCLA, UGA, UMichigan, USC, UT Austin, Vanderbilt, Vassar, VaTech, WashingtonU, and Willamette.

Academic Highlights: Student to teacher ratio is 13:1. Students from Bangladesh, Canada, & Germany. 70% of high school faculty have advanced degrees. International Baccalaureate Program. Students & staff spend several days each year in the Texas Hill Country. Award winning Model UN team. 4 sports. 5+ student led clubs. Arts include film, studio art, photography, music, & theatre.

Tuition (9-12): $22,900
Enrollment (9-12): 107
Mean SAT Score: 1110-1305
Mean ACT Score: 20-32

#8 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Hyde Park Schools – Austin, TX

11400 N. Mopac Expwy Austin, Texas 78759

College Admissions Highlights: Hyde Park graduates from a two year sample have been accepted to the following colleges and universities: Arizona State, Auburn, Baylor, Belmont, Brown, Clemson, Columbia, Dartmouth, Denison, Duke, Harvard, Hofstra, Loyola, MIT, NYU, Pepperdine, Pomona, Skidmore, SMU, Stanford, Texas A&M, TCU, Trinity, Ohio State, Tennessee, UT Austin, UC Davis, UGA, Vanderbilt, Washington U, and Yale.

Academic Highlights: Hyde Park offers learning through STEM, LEAP & fine arts. 30+ advanced, AP, & Dual credit courses. Average class size of 16. Seniors graduate with at least 180 hours of community service. 32 extracurricular offerings including Med & Vet Club. 18 athletic teams. Fine arts is pinnacle part of the Hyde Park experience; HP is an All-Steinway School, has extensive visual arts offerings, performing programs, & an award winning competitive dance team.

Tuition (9-12): $27,700
Enrollment (seniors): 78
Middle 50% SAT Score: 1160-1210
Mean ACT Score: 24.1

#9 Best Private High School in Austin, TX

Austin Waldorf School – Austin, TX

8700 S View Rd, Austin, TX 78737

College Admissions Highlights: College matriculations from a recent 9 year period include: American, Bard, Barnard, Baylor, Bowdoin, Bucknell, Carnegie Mellon, Columbia, Davidson, Denison, Drexel, FSU, GaTech, Grinnell, Kenyon, Middlebury, NYU, Oberlin, Purdue, Rice, SCAD, Swarthmore, Texas A&M, Trinity, Tufts, US Naval Acad, UC Berkeley, UMiami, USC, UT Austin, Wake Forest, and WashingtonU.

Academic Highlights: Austin Waldorf offers a traditional Waldorf education with appropriate, experimental, and academically rigorous education. Arts include blacksmithing, Navajo weaving, stained glass, painting, & sculpture. Curriculum includes eurythmy, work experience & community service. 8 athletic teams & the flag football team won 3 championships. Foreign exchange program places students with a counterpart in another country based on the the language being studied.

Tuition (9-12): $26,471
Enrollment (seniors): 21
Mean SAT Score: Not reported
Mean ACT Score: Not reported

We hope you found our blog on private schools in Austin to be helpful. All high school students and families may wish to explore further information regarding the college search and admissions process at our Dataverse, Blog, and List-Building Tool.

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High School Success

Dave Bergman

Dave has over a decade of professional experience that includes work as a teacher, high school administrator, college professor, and independent educational consultant. He is a co-author of the books The Enlightened College Applicant (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016) and Colleges Worth Your Money (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).