Academic results matter, but Australia's best schools in 2026 prove they are only the beginning of what exceptional education looks like.
The Educator's 5-Star Best Schools 2026 – proudly supported by the Australian Boarding Schools Association (ABSA) – is now in its second year. It continues to recognise institutions that combine strong academic outcomes with innovative approaches to student wellbeing, technology, inclusion and community.
The report assessed 33 schools against six equal pillars:
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extracurricular programs
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student support
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technology in learning
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safety and wellbeing
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holistic development
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diversity and inclusion
No single pillar was enough – every winner had to clear the bar across all six.
Why grades alone no longer define the best
"It's not what students know; it's what students can do with what they know," said Nicole Dyson, founder and CEO of award-winning education provider Future Anything. A genuinely top school in 2026, she says, treats human capabilities – critical thinking, creativity, communication and agility – as a complement, not a competitor, to content.
That philosophy runs through this year's winners. Ballina Coast High School in northern New South Wales, for example, asked its community what a graduate should look like, then rebuilt around the answer. The response: kindness, self-regulation, communication, collaboration and empathy – with no mention of NAPLAN, HSC or PISA.
Wellbeing and achievement: the evidence
The link between student wellbeing and academic performance is not anecdotal. Research cited in the 5-Star Best Schools 2026 report points to a reciprocal relationship: engagement and outcomes reinforce each other over time. Schools that invest in both, rather than treating wellbeing as separate from learning, consistently outperform those that do not.
Kildare College, whose student-centred pastoral model has driven 84% enrolment growth since 2018, is one example. Yeronga State High School in Queensland represents another – maintaining a student community spanning more than 50 nationalities and treating students as active partners in shaping the school, not just participants in it.
These are schools doing the hard work of building future-ready learners – and this year's full list reflects that breadth and ambition.
Best schools in Australia 2026: featured winners
Among the best schools in Australia recognised in this year's report are:
Matthew Flinders Anglican College
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College
Southern Cross Catholic College
Read the full report and see the complete list of winners on our Best Schools in Australia page.