Germany vs United States: Average years of schooling
Germany
13.1 years
in 2020
United States
13.32 years
in 2020
Germany rank
5th
United States rank
4th
Average years of schooling over time
- Germany
- United States
How they compare
United States currently reports 13.32 years against 13.1 years in Germany, a difference of 0.22 years.
Across all 31 years both countries report, United States has been ahead every year.
Germany ranks 5th and United States ranks 4th of 111 countries.
United States has averaged higher in every one of the 16 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Germany | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 2.33 years | 4.42 years | 2.08 years | United States |
| 1880s | 2.78 years | 5.03 years | 2.25 years | United States |
| 1890s | 3.21 years | 5.74 years | 2.54 years | United States |
| 1900s | 3.55 years | 6.55 years | 3 years | United States |
| 1910s | 4.08 years | 6.87 years | 2.79 years | United States |
| 1920s | 5.31 years | 7.38 years | 2.07 years | United States |
| 1930s | 5.76 years | 8.12 years | 2.37 years | United States |
| 1940s | 6.4 years | 8.8 years | 2.4 years | United States |
| 1950s | 7.34 years | 8.94 years | 1.6 years | United States |
| 1960s | 7.52 years | 10.03 years | 2.51 years | United States |
| 1970s | 7.13 years | 11.41 years | 4.28 years | United States |
| 1980s | 7.54 years | 12.31 years | 4.77 years | United States |
| 1990s | 9.45 years | 12.69 years | 3.25 years | United States |
| 2000s | 11.29 years | 13.05 years | 1.77 years | United States |
| 2010s | 12.72 years | 13.27 years | 0.545 years | United States |
| 2020s | 13.1 years | 13.32 years | 0.22 years | United States |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher average years of schooling, Germany or United States?
- United States, at 13.32 years against 13.1 years in Germany as of 2020.
- What is the difference in average years of schooling between Germany and United States?
- 0.22 years, with United States ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Germany and United States?
- 31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
- How do Germany and United States rank globally for average years of schooling?
- Germany ranks 5th and United States ranks 4th of 111 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) β with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Average years of schooling. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Average years of formal education for individuals aged 15-64.