A whopping 91 per cent of secondary school students in Ascot and Hawthorne go to independent schools.

The data showed that while high proportions of high school students from those suburbs attend independent schools, in primary school the percentage is much lower.

In St Lucia, for example, only 10 per cent of students in primary school go to Catholic or independent schools, but in high school that number jumps to 61 per cent.

The data is based on a Fairfax Media analysis of the 2016 census and shows the educational sector people in particular suburbs are choosing for their children. It does not show enrolments at schools within suburbs and also does not assume that children attend schools near their home.

Independent Schools Queensland executive director David Robertson said many parents would rather have their children's primary school within walking distance, whereas they were willing to let their children travel a longer distance for high school.

"For primary schools, their catchment areas are generally much smaller, so they're very localised, and that's because parents obviously look for a very local school in primary," he said.

"When the kids get a bit older, they're happy to allow them to travel a bit further so I think that's a very strong factor."

Mr Robertson said parents were also opting for a private secondary education to give their children because they believed it would give their children the best head-start after school.

In inner Brisbane there are many independent high schools, including Anglican Church Grammar, Brisbane Boys Grammar and Brisbane Girls Grammar. In West End, in the catchment of the popular Brisbane State High School, a large percentage (83 per cent) of high school students attend public schools.

Regional suburbs in Charters Towers, Townsville and Rockhampton have some of the state's highest independent school enrolment rates, and Mr Roberston said boarding schools could be a factor in those cases.

"Independent schools provide boarding, we do have about 4000 (boarding) students at independent schools, and they would be 99 per cent secondary," he said.

The suburbs with the highest percentage of public school students were also mostly in regional areas. Moranbah had the highest, with 99 per cent of primary school students and 96 per cent of high school students receiving a public education.

In Tannum Sands, a coastal town near Gladstone, 91 per cent of high school students went to a public school. In the Western Downs town of Chinchilla, that percentage rose to 93 per cent.

In the south-east, Browns Plains had the highest percentage of public secondary school students (87 per cent) followed by Oakey at 86 per cent, Durak at 83 per cent and Beenleigh at 77 per cent.