Fix the comparison to the same number of weeks
Choose the same start date, course duration, room type and meal basis before entering school quotations in a table. Registration, materials, accommodation placement, transfers, deposits, insurance and optional activities can appear as one-off or weekly charges. Without separating them, two “cheap” quotations are not truly comparable.
Record whether every line is refundable, when it is due, its currency and the date checked. Extending a course by two weeks changes weekly items but usually not one-off items; this is more reliable than adding a total first and guessing why it rises.
Convert weekly classes into comparable teaching time
Do not compare only labels such as “20 lessons” or “intensive”. Ask for minutes per lesson, whether breaks count, lessons per week and whether support or self-study is included. A clock hour is 60 minutes while a lesson is school-defined, so equal lesson counts can represent different taught time.
International House Newcastle, for example, describes group lessons as 55 minutes and lists courses from 10 to 30 lessons per week. It cannot be applied to every London school, but it shows why a budget with only weeks and a course name is still missing a field that affects learning intensity.
Test the commute with school address and accommodation postcode, not “London”
Put the actual school address, three accommodation postcodes and the class-time route in one proposal. Record expected one-way time, interchanges, final walking section and evening return. The same rent difference is not the same daily experience after an extra interchange or a longer walk.
List airport-to-accommodation and accommodation-to-campus separately for first arrival. This is not merely one transport-cost line: luggage, arrival time, the accommodation's ability to receive you and phone access determine whether a transfer or backup route is needed.
Connect the accommodation type to the class calendar
For homestay, check meals, move-in and move-out dates, route to school and any placement fee. For a residence, check room type, deposit, shared facilities and minimum booking. For private rental, read the contract and move-in conditions. A “single room” name does not make those conditions equal.
Put the first class day, course end and return date on the accommodation timeline. A night before class or after the course can have a different price or permission from the main accommodation quote; finding that gap early preserves the option of a cancellable or adjustable arrangement.