South Korea vs United States: Share of the population with at least some formal education
South Korea
99.7%
in 2020
United States
99.6%
in 2020
South Korea rank
9th
United States rank
12th
Share of the population with at least some formal education over time
- South Korea
- United States
How they compare
South Korea currently reports 99.7% against 99.6% in United States, a difference of 0.1%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 31 shared years of data; in 1870 it was United States ahead.
South Korea ranks 9th and United States ranks 12th of 111 countries.
Across the 16 decades both report, South Korea averaged higher in 1 and United States in 15.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | South Korea | United States | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.0% | 77.5% | 77.5% | United States |
| 1880s | 0.0% | 87.5% | 87.5% | United States |
| 1890s | 0.0% | 92.4% | 92.4% | United States |
| 1900s | 8.3% | 94.7% | 86.3% | United States |
| 1910s | 20.2% | 95.3% | 75.1% | United States |
| 1920s | 36.2% | 95.6% | 59.4% | United States |
| 1930s | 50.2% | 96.6% | 46.4% | United States |
| 1940s | 62.5% | 97.7% | 35.1% | United States |
| 1950s | 76.9% | 98.4% | 21.5% | United States |
| 1960s | 66.3% | 98.8% | 32.5% | United States |
| 1970s | 82.7% | 99.0% | 16.3% | United States |
| 1980s | 91.0% | 99.2% | 8.2% | United States |
| 1990s | 96.2% | 99.3% | 3.0% | United States |
| 2000s | 98.2% | 99.7% | 1.5% | United States |
| 2010s | 99.4% | 99.7% | 0.3% | United States |
| 2020s | 99.7% | 99.6% | 0.1% | South Korea |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of the population with at least some formal education, South Korea or United States?
- South Korea, at 99.7% against 99.6% in United States as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of the population with at least some formal education between South Korea and United States?
- 0.1%, with South Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for South Korea and United States?
- 31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
- How do South Korea and United States rank globally for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- South Korea ranks 9th and United States ranks 12th of 111 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of the population with at least some formal education. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Based on the population aged 15 years and older.