Finland vs Ireland: Share of children in primary school age who are in school

Finland
98.2%
in 2024
Ireland
98.2%
in 2022
Finland rank
68th
Ireland rank
71st

Share of children in primary school age who are in school over time

  • Finland
  • Ireland
020406080100182019222024

How they compare

Finland currently reports 98.2% against 98.2% in Ireland, a difference of 0.0%.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 55 shared years of data; in 1820 it was Ireland ahead.

Finland ranks 68th and Ireland ranks 71st of 209 countries.

Across the 20 decades both report, Finland averaged higher in 7 and Ireland in 12.

Head to head by decade

Decade Finland Ireland Difference Ahead
1820s 1.3% 10.5% 9.2% Ireland
1830s 2.0% 13.6% 11.6% Ireland
1840s 3.0% 17.4% 14.4% Ireland
1850s 4.4% 21.4% 17.0% Ireland
1860s 6.6% 27.1% 20.5% Ireland
1870s 9.6% 34.0% 24.4% Ireland
1880s 18.0% 46.8% 28.9% Ireland
1890s 31.0% 58.0% 26.9% Ireland
1900s 50.7% 62.5% 11.8% Ireland
1910s 72.2% 66.3% 5.9% Finland
1920s 97.4% 71.4% 26.0% Finland
1930s 100.0% 87.0% 13.0% Finland
1940s 100.0% 81.4% 18.6% Finland
1950s 100.0% 100.0% 0.0%
1960s 94.5% 74.7% 19.8% Finland
1970s 100.0% 91.5% 8.5% Finland
1980s 96.0% 90.0% 6.0% Finland
2000s 98.9% 99.9% 1.0% Ireland
2010s 98.5% 99.9% 1.4% Ireland
2020s 98.3% 99.1% 0.8% Ireland

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher share of children in primary school age who are in school, Finland or Ireland?
Finland, at 98.2% against 98.2% in Ireland as of 2024.
What is the difference in share of children in primary school age who are in school between Finland and Ireland?
0.0%, with Finland ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and Ireland?
55 years are reported by both, from 1820 to 2022.
How do Finland and Ireland rank globally for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
Finland ranks 68th and Ireland ranks 71st of 209 countries.
Where does this data come from?
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of children in primary school age who are in school. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
Share of children in primary school age who are in school
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
209 places, 8,478 data points, 1820–2025
Last refreshed

The share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.