Which has higher average years of schooling, Costa Rica or Thailand?

Costa Rica, at 8.8 years against 8.7 years in Thailand as of 2020.

What is the difference in average years of schooling between Costa Rica and Thailand?

0.1 years, with Costa Rica ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Thailand?

20 years are reported by both, from 1913 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.

Costa Rica vs Thailand: Average years of schooling

Costa Rica

8.8 years

in 2020

Thailand

8.7 years

in 2020

Costa Rica rank

92nd

Thailand rank

95th

Average years of schooling over time

Costa Rica
Thailand

How they compare

Costa Rica currently reports 8.8 years against 8.7 years in Thailand, a difference of 0.1 years.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 20 shared years of data; in 1913 it was Costa Rica ahead.

Costa Rica ranks 92nd and Thailand ranks 95th of 162 countries.

Across the 11 decades both report, Costa Rica averaged higher in 9 and Thailand in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Costa Rica	Thailand	Difference	Ahead
1910s	2.01 years	0.36 years	1.65 years	Costa Rica
1920s	2.33 years	0.4582 years	1.87 years	Costa Rica
1930s	2.72 years	0.8748 years	1.85 years	Costa Rica
1950s	3.37 years	2.02 years	1.34 years	Costa Rica
1960s	3.85 years	2.64 years	1.21 years	Costa Rica
1970s	4.28 years	3.4 years	0.8815 years	Costa Rica
1980s	5.23 years	4.63 years	0.6042 years	Costa Rica
1990s	6.23 years	7.01 years	0.7774 years	Thailand
2000s	7.41 years	7.8 years	0.3979 years	Thailand
2010s	8.55 years	7.91 years	0.6428 years	Costa Rica
2020s	8.8 years	8.7 years	0.1069 years	Costa Rica

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher average years of schooling, Costa Rica or Thailand?: Costa Rica, at 8.8 years against 8.7 years in Thailand as of 2020.
What is the difference in average years of schooling between Costa Rica and Thailand?: 0.1 years, with Costa Rica ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and Thailand?: 20 years are reported by both, from 1913 to 2020.
How do Costa Rica and Thailand rank globally for average years of schooling?: Costa Rica ranks 92nd and Thailand ranks 95th 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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Costa Rica vs Thailand: Average years of schooling. Statizoid, drawing on Leandro Prados de la Escosura (2021) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/compare/years-of-schooling-prados-de-la-escosura/costa-rica/thailand/

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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.