Schools
Schools in Thiruvananthapuram are classified as aided, unaided and Government schools. The government schools are run directly by the Kerala State Education Board and follow the syllabus prescribed by the state government. The aided schools also follow the state syllabus. Malayalam and English are the primary languages of instruction; Tamil and Hindi are also used. The schools are affiliated with The State Council of Educational Research and Training (SCERT), Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE), International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS). In the National Achievement Survey conducted by National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), Thiruvananthapuram is ranked as best in Kerala.

The notable schools in the city include St. Mary's Higher Secondary School, which is considered as one of the largest schools in Asia, with the total number of students exceeding 12,000, Government Model Boys Higher Secondary School, Government Higher Secondary School for Girls, Holy Angel's Convent Trivandrum, SMV School, Trivandrum International School, Chinmaya Vidyalayas, Kendriya Vidyalaya, Loyola School, Christ Nagar School, Thiruvananthapuram, Sarvodaya Vidyalaya, Nirmala Bhavan Higher Secondary School, Arya Central School, Jyothi Nilayam School, St. Joseph's Higher Secondary School, St. Thomas Residential School, The Oxford School and VSSC Central School.

Colleges
Thiruvananthapuram is a major educational and research hub with various institutions in the fields of space science, information technology, physical science, biotechnology, engineering and medicine. There are three universities in Thiruvananthapuram: two state universities and one deemed university. The state universities are the University of Kerala and APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University. Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST), is a government-aided institute and deemed university. IIST is the first of its kind in the country, to offer graduate courses and research in space sciences, space technology and space applications. The city also houses two Institutes of National Importance; Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER). Thiruvananthapuram is one of the regional headquarters of Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU).

The Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram is the first and a premier medical school in Kerala, founded in 1951. Other notable medical schools apart from SCTIMST (which provides super-specialty courses in cardiac and neuroscience) and Regional Cancer Centre, Thiruvananthapuram (which provides PG courses in radiotherapy and pathology, and super-specialty courses) includes SUT Academy of Medical Sciences, Sree Gokulam Medical College and Government Ayurveda College.

The city houses several prominent legal education institutions. The Government Law College, formed in 1875, is one of the oldest legal education institutions in India.  The Kerala Law Academy is another major legal education institution. The major Business schools include Asian School of Business, CET School of Management and Institute of Management in Kerala (IMK). There are over 23 engineering education institutions in Thiruvananthapuram.  Apart from IIST and IISER, the other major engineering education institutions include College of Engineering, Trivandrum (CET), which is the first engineering college in Kerala, Government Engineering College BartonHill (GEC), Sree Chitra Thirunal College of Engineering (SCT), ER & DCI Institute of Technology, University College of Engineering, Mohandas college of Engineering and Technology and Mar Baselios College of Engineering and Technology. The University College Thiruvananthapuram established in 1866 and H.H. The Maharaja's College for Women established in 1864 are two of the oldest institutions of higher education in India.

Other prominent undergraduate and postgraduate colleges include the Government Arts College, Mahatma Gandhi College, Mar Ivanios College, Government Sanskrit College, Loyola College of Social Sciences, St. Xavier's College and All Saints College. Major fine arts colleges are Swathi Thirunal College of Music, which is the first music academy in Kerala and College of Fine Arts Trivandrum. The Lakshmibai National College of Physical Education is one of the two physical education academic institutes of the Sports Authority of India (SAI).

The premier research institutes in Thiruvananthapuram includes, Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Kerala (IIITMK), National Institute of Speech and Hearing (NISH), Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Centre for Development of Imaging Technology (C-Dit), Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute, National Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS),[226] Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC} and Oriental Research Institute & Manuscripts Library.

Kerala University is ranked as the best university in Kerala according to the MHRD's National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF). Kerala University also ranked top in overall institution rankings in Kerala. In engineering, Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) is ranked as the best in Kerala and College of Engineering, Trivandrum (CET) is ranked third in Kerala. College of Engineering Trivandrum is also ranked fourth in India and first in Kerala in architecture institution rankings. The University College is listed as the best college in Kerala.