Literacy rate in Panama
Panama: Literacy rate was 96.2% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate in Panama, 1950–2024
Source: UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for literacy rate in Panama is 96.2%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 10 years on record.
The figure is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate in Panama peaked at 96.2% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 67.5%, in 1950.
Panama ranks 47th of 128 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 10 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 67.5% | 67.5% | 67.5% | 1 |
| 1980s | 88.1% | 88.1% | 88.1% | 1 |
| 1990s | 88.8% | 88.8% | 88.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 91.9% | 91.9% | 91.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 95.1% | 94.1% | 95.7% | 3 |
| 2020s | 96.2% | 96.1% | 96.2% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Panama
More education data for Panama
- Duration of pre-primary education 2 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 4 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.8% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 24.5% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 96.9% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 19,072 (2017)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 2.11 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 97.3% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate in Panama?
- Literacy rate in Panama was 96.2% in 2024, according to UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy rate recorded in Panama?
- The highest recorded value was 96.2% in 2024.
- What is the lowest literacy rate recorded in Panama?
- The lowest recorded value was 67.5% in 1950.
- How does Panama rank for literacy rate?
- Panama ranks 47th out of 128 countries with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rate rising or falling in Panama?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Panama data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 10 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of adults who can read and write a simple statement about their everyday life.