Spain vs United Kingdom: Share of the population with tertiary education
Spain
31.3%
in 2020
United Kingdom
31.1%
in 2020
Spain rank
18th
United Kingdom rank
20th
Share of the population with tertiary education over time
- Spain
- United Kingdom
How they compare
Spain currently reports 31.3% against 31.1% in United Kingdom, a difference of 0.2%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 31 shared years of data; in 1870 it was United Kingdom ahead.
Spain ranks 18th and United Kingdom ranks 20th of 111 countries.
Across the 16 decades both report, Spain averaged higher in 3 and United Kingdom in 12.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Spain | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.0% | — |
| 1880s | 0.2% | 0.3% | 0.0% | United Kingdom |
| 1890s | 0.3% | 0.5% | 0.1% | United Kingdom |
| 1900s | 0.4% | 0.5% | 0.1% | United Kingdom |
| 1910s | 0.5% | 0.8% | 0.2% | United Kingdom |
| 1920s | 0.6% | 1.1% | 0.5% | United Kingdom |
| 1930s | 0.8% | 1.2% | 0.4% | United Kingdom |
| 1940s | 1.1% | 1.4% | 0.3% | United Kingdom |
| 1950s | 1.5% | 1.6% | 0.1% | United Kingdom |
| 1960s | 2.0% | 3.2% | 1.2% | United Kingdom |
| 1970s | 4.1% | 9.5% | 5.4% | United Kingdom |
| 1980s | 8.5% | 11.6% | 3.1% | United Kingdom |
| 1990s | 12.4% | 18.8% | 6.4% | United Kingdom |
| 2000s | 26.0% | 25.7% | 0.2% | Spain |
| 2010s | 30.7% | 30.5% | 0.2% | Spain |
| 2020s | 31.3% | 31.1% | 0.2% | Spain |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of the population with tertiary education, Spain or United Kingdom?
- Spain, at 31.3% against 31.1% in United Kingdom as of 2020.
- What is the difference in share of the population with tertiary education between Spain and United Kingdom?
- 0.2%, with Spain ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Spain and United Kingdom?
- 31 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
- How do Spain and United Kingdom rank globally for share of the population with tertiary education?
- Spain ranks 18th and United Kingdom ranks 20th 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.
Individual pages
About this data
Percentage of the population aged 25 to 65 years who have either completed or partially completed tertiary education.