Best Boys Schools in Adelaide | 2025 Rankings & Insights
South Australia has a relatively small number of boys-only private schools compared with other states. As a result, the category is tightly concentrated, with a small group of established schools carrying much of the state’s single-sex boys education offering. Schools360’s 2025 Boys Schools Rankings provide an independent, data-driven assessment of how these schools perform across academic outcomes, student wellbeing, learning environment quality, program depth and long-term institutional capability.
Use the table below to explore the leaders in Melbourne’s private boys education for 2025.
Updated December 2025 · Independent analysis by Schools360
2025 Rankings | Adelaide’s Private Boys Schools
This table shows the full list of private boys schools in South Australia for 2025.
Top 10 Boys Schools in Adelaide (2025)
Image credit: St Peters College, St Peters
1. St Peter’s College
Location: St Peters
Type: Independent Anglican boys school
Strengths: The leading boys school in South Australia with an 86.5 percent score. Strong academic outcomes, extensive co-curricular programs and high institutional capability. Long-established with deep resources and a broad leadership and sporting tradition.
2. Prince Alfred College
Location: Kent Town
Type: Independent boys school
Strengths: Scores 78.2 percent with solid academic performance and a supportive learning environment. Known for balanced development across academics, sport and the arts.
3. Blackfriars Priory School
Location: Prospect
Type: Independent Catholic boys school
Strengths: A 76.6 percent score supported by strong wellbeing systems and values-based education. Stable learning environment and positive school culture.
4. Rostrevor College
Location: Woodforde
Type: Independent Catholic boys school
Strengths: Scores 74.4 percent with solid pastoral care and consistent academic outcomes. Well-regarded for community engagement and supportive culture.
5. Christian Brothers College Adelaide
Location: Adelaide
Type: Independent Catholic boys school
Strengths: A 71.6 percent score reflecting strong wellbeing focus and values-driven education, with stable teaching and student support systems.
Key Insights
South Australia’s boys-only school category is structurally small, with just a handful of single-sex institutions operating at scale. This creates a clear hierarchy, led decisively by St Peter’s College, which stands apart on academic outcomes, program breadth and institutional capability.
Academic performance drops sharply after the top school. While Prince Alfred College and Blackfriars deliver solid results, the gap between first and second place is wider than seen in the girls or co-educational categories, reflecting differences in scale, resources and program depth.
Learning Environment performance is generally stable across the category, with most schools providing supportive and structured classrooms. However, fewer boys schools offer the same breadth of facilities and specialist programs seen in larger interstate counterparts.
Program offerings are more concentrated. Sport and leadership programs are strong across the category, but subject breadth, specialist pathways and large-scale co-curricular infrastructure are more limited than in larger co-educational schools.
Wellbeing systems are a consistent strength, particularly in Catholic boys schools, where pastoral care and community values play a central role in student experience.
Institutional Excellence varies meaningfully, with the strongest results seen in long-established schools with deep alumni networks, financial stability and governance maturity.
Overall, South Australia’s boys schools deliver solid educational outcomes within a constrained market, with clear differentiation driven by scale, history and institutional depth.
Snapshot for 2025
The boys-only category is structurally small, with fewer than six major private boys schools operating statewide.
Single-school dominance is evident, with St Peter’s College clearly separated from the rest of the field.
Choice is limited for families seeking boys-only education, particularly outside Adelaide’s inner suburbs.
Co-educational schools increasingly absorb enrolment demand, reducing the relative scale and expansion of boys-only institutions.
Program depth is constrained by size, with fewer boys schools able to offer the same subject and co-curricular breadth as large co-educational campuses.
Wellbeing and culture compensate for scale, with strong pastoral systems playing a stabilising role across the category.
Geographic concentration is high, with most boys schools located in Adelaide’s inner and eastern suburbs.
Frequently Asked Questions
These questions help explain how Schools360 evaluates and updates private school rankings across Australia.
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Schools360 uses a 60-Element Scoring Framework that assesses academic results, learning environment, student wellbeing, culture, co-curricular depth and institutional excellence. The framework focuses on balanced, holistic school performance rather than a single academic metric.
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Rankings are based on publicly available data, school-reported information and independent Schools360 research. Each school’s profile reflects the most reliable and current data available at the time of the annual update.
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Rankings are updated annually, with the current page reflecting the latest 2025 update. Additional refinements may be made when schools provide new information or when verified updates become available.
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Yes. Each school’s profile includes an option for corrections or feedback. Schools360 reviews all submissions and updates school profiles when verified changes are received.
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