Duration of compulsory education (years) in Sweden
Sweden: Duration of compulsory education (years) was 10 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
10 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
86th
of 206 countries
All-time high
10 years
in 2019
All-time low
9 years
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Duration of compulsory education in Sweden, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for duration of compulsory education in Sweden is 10 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 11.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, duration of compulsory education in Sweden peaked at 10 years in 2019 and was at its lowest, 9 years, in 1998.
Sweden ranks 86th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Duration of compulsory education (years) in Sweden, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 9 years | — |
| 1999 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 9 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 2020 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 10 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 10 years | +0.0% |
Sweden compared with similar countries
- Sweden's 10 years is below the median for high income countries, which is 11 years, 91% of the median. (77 countries reporting)
- Sweden's 10 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10 years, 1.0× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 2 |
| 2000s | 9 years | 9 years | 9 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.1 years | 9 years | 10 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 10 years | 10 years | 10 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sweden
- 86 Angola 10 years compare
- 86 Andorra 10 years compare
- 86 Burkina Faso 10 years compare
- 86 Central African Republic 10 years compare
- 86 Canada 10 years compare
- 86 Cote d'Ivoire 10 years compare
- 86 Congo 10 years compare
- 86 Cape Verde 10 years compare
- 86 Cyprus 10 years compare
- 86 Czechia 10 years compare
- 86 Djibouti 10 years compare
- 86 Denmark 10 years compare
- 86 Algeria 10 years compare
- 86 Spain 10 years compare
- 86 Gabon 10 years compare
- 86 Greece 10 years compare
- 86 Ireland 10 years compare
- 86 Iceland 10 years compare
- 86 Jordan 10 years compare
- 86 Kyrgyzstan 10 years compare
- 86 Lebanon 10 years compare
- 86 Saint Lucia 10 years compare
- 86 Macao 10 years compare
- 86 Moldova 10 years compare
- 86 Norway 10 years compare
- 86 New Zealand 10 years compare
- 86 Oman 10 years compare
- 86 Palestine 10 years compare
- 86 Romania 10 years compare
- 86 San Marino 10 years compare
- 86 Chad 10 years compare
- 86 Togo 10 years compare
- 86 Vietnam 10 years compare
More education data for Sweden
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.43 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.43 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 77,813 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,302 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 235,975 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 222,360 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 987,895 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 859,847 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8572 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is duration of compulsory education in Sweden?
- Duration of compulsory education in Sweden was 10 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest duration of compulsory education recorded in Sweden?
- The highest recorded value was 10 years in 2019.
- What is the lowest duration of compulsory education recorded in Sweden?
- The lowest recorded value was 9 years in 1998.
- How does Sweden rank for duration of compulsory education?
- Sweden ranks 86th out of 206 countries with data for 2025.
- Is duration of compulsory education rising or falling in Sweden?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sweden 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