Which has higher average years of schooling, Canada or Germany?

Germany, at 14.09 years against 13.83 years in Canada as of 2020.

What is the difference in average years of schooling between Canada and Germany?

0.26 years, with Germany ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and Germany?

24 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.

Where does this data come from?

Leandro Prados de la Escosura (2021) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Average years of schooling. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Canada vs Germany: Average years of schooling

Canada

13.83 years

in 2020

Germany

14.09 years

in 2020

Canada rank

3rd

Germany rank

1st

Average years of schooling over time

Canada
Germany

How they compare

Germany currently reports 14.09 years against 13.83 years in Canada, a difference of 0.26 years.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 24 shared years of data; in 1870 it was Canada ahead.

Canada ranks 3rd and Germany ranks 1st of 162 countries.

Across the 15 decades both report, Canada averaged higher in 10 and Germany in 5.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Canada	Germany	Difference	Ahead
1870s	5.71 years	5.44 years	0.27 years	Canada
1880s	6.2 years	5.7 years	0.5 years	Canada
1890s	6.68 years	6.1 years	0.58 years	Canada
1900s	7.1 years	6.47 years	0.63 years	Canada
1910s	7.63 years	6.99 years	0.64 years	Canada
1920s	8.39 years	7.55 years	0.8366 years	Canada
1930s	8.79 years	8.12 years	0.6749 years	Canada
1950s	9.22 years	8.79 years	0.4326 years	Canada
1960s	9.58 years	10.05 years	0.4719 years	Germany
1970s	10.26 years	11.41 years	1.15 years	Germany
1980s	11.29 years	12.52 years	1.24 years	Germany
1990s	12.4 years	13.06 years	0.6611 years	Germany
2000s	13.12 years	12.91 years	0.2075 years	Canada
2010s	13.09 years	13.08 years	0.0087 years	Canada
2020s	13.83 years	14.09 years	0.2566 years	Germany

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher average years of schooling, Canada or Germany?: Germany, at 14.09 years against 13.83 years in Canada as of 2020.
What is the difference in average years of schooling between Canada and Germany?: 0.26 years, with Germany ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Canada and Germany?: 24 years are reported by both, from 1870 to 2020.
How do Canada and Germany rank globally for average years of schooling?: Canada ranks 3rd and Germany ranks 1st of 162 countries.
Where does this data come from?: Leandro Prados de la Escosura (2021) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Average years of schooling. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Canada vs Germany: Average years of schooling. Statizoid, drawing on Leandro Prados de la Escosura (2021) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 06 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/years-of-schooling-prados-de-la-escosura/canada/germany/

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About this data

Indicator: Average years of schooling
Unit: years
Source: Leandro Prados de la Escosura (2021) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 163 places, 3,421 data points, 1870–2020
Last refreshed: 28 August 2026

Average number of years of total schooling (primary, secondary, and tertiary) for the population aged 15 and over.