Italy vs Sri Lanka: Share of the population with tertiary education

Italy
15.9%
in 2020
Sri Lanka
15.7%
in 2020
Italy rank
51st
Sri Lanka rank
53rd

Share of the population with tertiary education over time

  • Italy
  • Sri Lanka
051015187019452020

How they compare

Italy currently reports 15.9% against 15.7% in Sri Lanka, a difference of 0.2%.

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

Italy ranks 51st and Sri Lanka ranks 53rd of 111 countries.

Across the 16 decades both report, Italy averaged higher in 14 and Sri Lanka in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade Italy Sri Lanka Difference Ahead
1870s 0.2% 0.0% 0.2% Italy
1880s 0.2% 0.0% 0.2% Italy
1890s 0.3% 0.0% 0.3% Italy
1900s 0.6% 0.0% 0.6% Italy
1910s 0.8% 0.1% 0.7% Italy
1920s 0.9% 0.1% 0.8% Italy
1930s 1.1% 0.2% 0.9% Italy
1940s 1.4% 0.2% 1.1% Italy
1950s 1.7% 0.3% 1.4% Italy
1960s 2.3% 0.5% 1.9% Italy
1970s 3.1% 1.4% 1.8% Italy
1980s 5.1% 1.9% 3.2% Italy
1990s 7.8% 7.0% 0.8% Italy
2000s 11.6% 15.0% 3.4% Sri Lanka
2010s 14.5% 16.0% 1.5% Sri Lanka
2020s 15.9% 15.7% 0.2% Italy

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher share of the population with tertiary education, Italy or Sri Lanka?
Italy, at 15.9% against 15.7% in Sri Lanka as of 2020.
What is the difference in share of the population with tertiary education between Italy and Sri Lanka?
0.2%, with Italy ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Italy and Sri Lanka?
31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
How do Italy and Sri Lanka rank globally for share of the population with tertiary education?
Italy ranks 51st and Sri Lanka ranks 53rd 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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Italy vs Sri Lanka: 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 02 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/share-of-the-population-with-completed-tertiary-education/italy/sri-lanka/

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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.