Finland vs Norway: Share of the population with tertiary education

Finland
31.2%
in 2020
Norway
31.8%
in 2020
Finland rank
19th
Norway rank
16th

Share of the population with tertiary education over time

  • Finland
  • Norway
010203040187019452020

How they compare

Norway currently reports 31.8% against 31.2% in Finland, a difference of 0.6%.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 31 shared years of data; in 1870 it was Norway ahead.

Finland ranks 19th and Norway ranks 16th of 111 countries.

Across the 16 decades both report, Finland averaged higher in 8 and Norway in 8.

Head to head by decade

Decade Finland Norway Difference Ahead
1870s 0.2% 0.5% 0.3% Norway
1880s 0.2% 0.5% 0.3% Norway
1890s 0.3% 0.6% 0.3% Norway
1900s 0.6% 0.7% 0.1% Norway
1910s 1.0% 0.9% 0.0% Finland
1920s 1.5% 1.2% 0.3% Finland
1930s 2.0% 1.4% 0.7% Finland
1940s 2.7% 1.5% 1.2% Finland
1950s 3.5% 1.6% 1.9% Finland
1960s 5.0% 3.4% 1.6% Finland
1970s 8.6% 9.5% 0.9% Norway
1980s 14.3% 15.8% 1.5% Norway
1990s 20.2% 23.1% 2.9% Norway
2000s 33.0% 30.0% 3.0% Finland
2010s 34.8% 32.2% 2.6% Finland
2020s 31.2% 31.8% 0.6% Norway

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher share of the population with tertiary education, Finland or Norway?
Norway, at 31.8% against 31.2% in Finland as of 2020.
What is the difference in share of the population with tertiary education between Finland and Norway?
0.6%, with Norway ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Finland and Norway?
31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
How do Finland and Norway rank globally for share of the population with tertiary education?
Finland ranks 19th and Norway ranks 16th 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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Finland vs Norway: 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/finland/norway/

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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.