Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes was 79.0% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh, 1981–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh stood at 79.0%. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 10.6% on the previous year and up 56.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh peaked at 79.0% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 25.5%, in 1981.
Bangladesh ranks 33rd of 53 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 25.5% | — |
| 1991 | 30.1% | +18.3% |
| 2001 | 41.9% | +39.0% |
| 2011 | 51.7% | +23.4% |
| 2012 | 50.4% | -2.5% |
| 2013 | 57.0% | +13.2% |
| 2014 | 57.0% | -0.0% |
| 2015 | 57.8% | +1.3% |
| 2016 | 65.9% | +14.0% |
| 2017 | 66.2% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 67.3% | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 68.4% | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 68.8% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 71.4% | +3.8% |
| 2022 | 79.0% | +10.6% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 79.0% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 69.1%, 1.1× the median. (16 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +39.0% | 30.1% | 41.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 25.5% | 25.5% | 25.5% | 1 |
| 1990s | 30.1% | 30.1% | 30.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 41.9% | 41.9% | 41.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 60.2% | 50.4% | 68.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 73.1% | 68.8% | 79.0% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More education data for Bangladesh
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 571,690 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 387,056 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.73 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.77 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.07 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 16.69 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.67 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0961 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh?
- Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes in Bangladesh was 79.0% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes recorded in Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 79.0% in 2022.
- What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.5% in 1981.
- How does Bangladesh rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes?
- Bangladesh ranks 33rd out of 53 countries with data for 2022.
- Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is up 56.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Bangladesh data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, rural, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release