By the time a baby born in 2017 graduates from a government school in Victoria, their parents would have spent $77,000 on their education, new figures show.
The Australian Scholarships Group's report, released on Tuesday, predicts that Victoria's public education system will be more expensive than any other state by 2034, costing parents a total of $77,371.
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Melbourne's state schools are expected be 13 per cent above the national metropolitan average of $68,613, exceeding Sydney ($75,080) and Brisbane ($60,135).
The Planning for Education Index, which includes the cost of uniforms, excursions and transport in addition to school fees, also predicts that public education in regional Victoria will be the highest in the country, costing $53,245.
Parents sending their kids to an independent school will pay $536,515, rising to $1.07 million for two children, according to the modelling based on 12,500 survey responses.
Parents preferring religious schools may have to pay up to $224,548, close to a 4.5 per cent rise on last year.
The figures are based on the estimated costs of families engaging ASG, which sells education funds.
Chief executive John Velegrinis said while computer and transport costs have fallen, extracurricular activities including excursions and uniforms have continued to rise.
Struggling families were avoiding buying houses, new cars and enrolling their kids in sporting activities in order to cover the climbing school fees, he said.
"The cost of sending a child to school is becoming more problematic. It's putting more pressure on household budgets," he said.
"In the private school world, we're having increases of 64 per cent over 10 years, but the average income has risen by about two thirds of that, at 40 per cent. In real terms, education is taking up a bigger slice of the household budget."
However, the peak national body for independent schools rejected the data, saying there was large variability in school fees within the private school sector.
The most recent figures from the Independent Schools Council of Australia show just 23 per cent of Victorian independent schools charged over $20,000 in 2015.
A third of Victorian independent schools charged up to $5000, according to the peak body.
"They're all non-for-profit so any income they get goes towards needs and services of their community ... it's not a matter of making a surplus, it's a matter of having enough money to pay their debts and provide capital infrastructure that fits the needs of the school community."
Education Minister James Merlino said the federal government's axing of the School Kids Bonus "will make things harder for many families with children returning to school this year".
Catholic Education Melbourne executive director Steven Elder said Catholic school fees were "set as low as possible" to support Catholic families.