Duration of compulsory education (years) in France
France: Duration of compulsory education (years) was 13 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
13 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
17th
of 206 countries
All-time high
13 years
in 2020
All-time low
10 years
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Duration of compulsory education in France, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2025, duration of compulsory education in France stood at 13 years. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 30.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, duration of compulsory education in France peaked at 13 years in 2020 and was at its lowest, 10 years, in 1998.
France ranks 17th of 206 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Duration of compulsory education (years) in France, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 10 years | — |
| 1999 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 13 years | +30.0% |
| 2021 | 13 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 13 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 13 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 13 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 13 years | +0.0% |
France compared with similar countries
- France's 13 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 11 years, 1.2× the median. (77 countries reporting)
- France's 13 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10 years, 1.3× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 2 |
| 2000s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 13 years | 13 years | 13 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near France
- 17 Aruba 13 years compare
- 17 Austria 13 years compare
- 17 Belgium 13 years compare
- 17 Bermuda 13 years compare
- 17 Costa Rica 13 years compare
- 17 Germany 13 years compare
- 17 Gibraltar 13 years compare
- 17 Hungary 13 years compare
- 17 Marshall Islands 13 years compare
- 17 North Macedonia 13 years compare
- 17 Netherlands 13 years compare
- 17 Philippines 13 years compare
- 17 Puerto Rico 13 years compare
- 17 Paraguay 13 years compare
- 17 Turks and Caicos Islands 13 years compare
More education data for France
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.97 (2016)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.8 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 457,956 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 43,533 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.19 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.14 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.13 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is duration of compulsory education in France?
- Duration of compulsory education in France was 13 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest duration of compulsory education recorded in France?
- The highest recorded value was 13 years in 2020.
- What is the lowest duration of compulsory education recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 10 years in 1998.
- How does France rank for duration of compulsory education?
- France ranks 17th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is duration of compulsory education rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is up 30.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Duration of compulsory education (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release