Bulgaria vs Poland: Share of the population with tertiary education

Bulgaria
23.9%
in 2020
Poland
24.9%
in 2020
Bulgaria rank
35th
Poland rank
33rd

Share of the population with tertiary education over time

  • Bulgaria
  • Poland
0102030187019452020

How they compare

Poland currently reports 24.9% against 23.9% in Bulgaria, a difference of 1.0%.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 31 shared years of data; in 1870 it was Poland ahead.

Bulgaria ranks 35th and Poland ranks 33rd of 111 countries.

Across the 16 decades both report, Bulgaria averaged higher in 12 and Poland in 4.

Head to head by decade

Decade Bulgaria Poland Difference Ahead
1870s 0.0% 0.1% 0.1% Poland
1880s 0.0% 0.1% 0.1% Poland
1890s 0.1% 0.2% 0.1% Poland
1900s 0.3% 0.2% 0.1% Bulgaria
1910s 0.8% 0.6% 0.2% Bulgaria
1920s 1.2% 1.0% 0.2% Bulgaria
1930s 1.7% 1.5% 0.2% Bulgaria
1940s 2.4% 2.1% 0.2% Bulgaria
1950s 3.3% 2.8% 0.5% Bulgaria
1960s 4.8% 4.0% 0.9% Bulgaria
1970s 8.8% 6.2% 2.6% Bulgaria
1980s 14.3% 6.8% 7.5% Bulgaria
1990s 17.7% 9.7% 8.0% Bulgaria
2000s 21.5% 15.4% 6.1% Bulgaria
2010s 25.8% 23.8% 2.0% Bulgaria
2020s 23.9% 24.9% 1.0% Poland

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher share of the population with tertiary education, Bulgaria or Poland?
Poland, at 24.9% against 23.9% in Bulgaria as of 2020.
What is the difference in share of the population with tertiary education between Bulgaria and Poland?
1.0%, with Poland ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Bulgaria and Poland?
31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
How do Bulgaria and Poland rank globally for share of the population with tertiary education?
Bulgaria ranks 35th and Poland ranks 33rd 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 tertiary education. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Bulgaria vs Poland: Share of the population with tertiary education. Statizoid, drawing on Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 30 August 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/share-of-the-population-with-completed-tertiary-education/bulgaria/poland/

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About this data

Indicator
Share of the population with tertiary education
Unit
%
Source
Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
111 places, 3,441 data points, 1870–2020
Last refreshed

Percentage of the population aged 25 to 65 years who have either completed or partially completed tertiary education.