Denmark vs Sweden: Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education
Denmark
39.6%
in 2023
Sweden
41.8%
in 2022
Denmark rank
22nd
Sweden rank
20th
Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education over time
- Denmark
- Sweden
How they compare
Sweden currently reports 41.8% against 39.6% in Denmark, a difference of 2.2%.
That makes Sweden's figure about 1.1 times Denmark's.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 27 shared years of data; in 1995 it was Sweden ahead.
Denmark ranks 22nd and Sweden ranks 20th of 102 countries.
Across the 4 decades both report, Denmark averaged higher in 1 and Sweden in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Denmark | Sweden | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 28.5% | 34.1% | 5.5% | Sweden |
| 2000s | 31.8% | 31.7% | 0.0% | Denmark |
| 2010s | 35.9% | 35.9% | 0.0% | Sweden |
| 2020s | 39.4% | 41.0% | 1.6% | Sweden |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education, Denmark or Sweden?
- Sweden, at 41.8% against 39.6% in Denmark as of 2022.
- What is the difference in educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education between Denmark and Sweden?
- 2.2%, with Sweden ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Denmark and Sweden?
- 27 years are reported by both, from 1995 to 2022.
- How do Denmark and Sweden rank globally for educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education?
- Denmark ranks 22nd and Sweden ranks 20th of 102 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as Educational attainment rate, completed short-cycle tertiary education or higher, population 25+ years, urban, male (%). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
February 2026 Data Release