Trust + transparency

How we make money

Running a directory site costs money. Hosting, research, fact-checking, design and editorial all take real time and real cash. Here is exactly how Compare Private Schools pays for itself, in the order of how much each source contributes.

Family help & enquiry referrals — read this first

This is the honest bit, because choosing a school is a big decision and you deserve to know exactly how it works.

When you ask us for help — a personalised shortlist, fee guidance, or hands-on support — a real person on our team answers you, free. Where the help you've asked for calls for it, we may also introduce you to one matched partner: the school your enquiry relates to (so their admissions team can answer you directly), a vetted school-selection consultant if you've asked for one-on-one help, or a relevant provider for fee-finance or scholarship-prep questions. That partner may pay us a referral fee for the introduction. The fee never comes out of your pocket, and it never changes which schools we rank or recommend.

  • It's free for families. You're never charged for our shortlists, calculators, guides or introductions.
  • You're never obligated. Take the introduction or don't; enrol or don't. No commitment, no pressure.
  • We don't spam you or sell your details. We share what you tell us only with the matched partner answering your enquiry. We never sell your details to a list or hand them to a dozen schools that then cold-call you.
  • Rankings are editorial and unpaid. Schools are ordered on verified fees, ICSEA and Year 12 outcomes data — never on whether they (or a consultant) pay us. No school can buy a spot on a shortlist.

1. Display advertising

We run display ads (currently via Google AdSense, eventually direct ad sales) on most of our pages. Ads are clearly distinguished from editorial content and never affect ranking. We do not target ads using personal-information you may have shared in a profile claim or newsletter signup.

Ads are placed for usefulness and pageview economics, not to maximise clicks at the expense of reading experience. If you find ad placement on a particular page disruptive, email editorial@compareprivateschools.com.au.

2. Premium provider profiles

Listed providers may upgrade to a premium profile (annual subscription) for richer features such as photo galleries, pricing-transparency blocks, video, and a direct (do-follow) link to their website. Premium is an annual subscription, not a per-lead or per-click fee. Premium does not affect ranking. A premium plumber and a free plumber compete on the same scoring criteria; premium adds presentation, not position.

See claim your profile for what's included.

3. Disclosed affiliate links

On a small number of pages we link to third-party services (industry-specific tools, regulator look-ups, comparison engines we don't compete with) where we may earn a referral fee if you click through and sign up. These links are always disclosed inline next to the link itself, and they are never used to determine which provider we rank first.

Where an affiliate relationship exists, the words "affiliate link" or a small disclosure tag will appear next to the link.

4. We do not

  • Sell your details to a list, or hand your enquiry to a dozen schools that then cold-call you. When you ask for help we make one matched introduction, as described above.
  • Take payment to rank a provider higher.
  • Allow providers to remove negative reviews, factual errors notwithstanding.
  • Use AI to fabricate reviews or testimonials.
  • Sell your email or browsing data to third parties.

In short

Compare Private Schools earns money the way a magazine earns money: from advertisers and from providers who pay to make their listing richer (not higher). Editorial and rankings are walled off from revenue. If we ever change this, we will say so on this page in the largest font we know how to make.

Last reviewed 11 June 2026.