Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany
Germany: Share of children who are not in pre-primary school was 1.6% in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany, 2001–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany stood at 1.6%. That is the lowest value across all 24 years on record.
The figure is down 13.1% on the previous year and down 16.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany peaked at 13.3% in 2004 and was at its lowest, 1.6%, in 2024.
That places Germany 155th out of 179 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 8.9% | 3.6% | 13.3% | 9 |
| 2010s | 2.5% | 1.8% | 3.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.0% | 1.6% | 4.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Germany
- 153 Netherlands 1.7% compare
- 154 Turks and Caicos Islands 1.6% compare
- 156 Mongolia 1.6% compare
- 157 Spain 1.4% compare
- 158 Moldova 1.4% compare
More education data for Germany
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 62.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 13.9% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 10 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 102.6% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 283,851 (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 1.45 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 103.0% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany?
- Share of children who are not in pre-primary school in Germany was 1.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are not in pre-primary school recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 13.3% in 2004.
- What is the lowest share of children who are not in pre-primary school recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.6% in 2024.
- How does Germany rank for share of children who are not in pre-primary school?
- Germany ranks 155th out of 179 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children who are not in pre-primary school rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are not in pre-primary school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Children one year before the official primary entry age (typically age 5) not enrolled in pre-primary education, expressed as a percentage of all children in that age group.