Duration of compulsory education in New Zealand
New Zealand: Duration of compulsory education was 10 in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
10
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
86th
of 205 countries
All-time high
10
in 1998
All-time low
10
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Duration of compulsory education in New Zealand, 1998–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, duration of compulsory education in New Zealand stood at 10. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, duration of compulsory education in New Zealand peaked at 10 in 1998 and was at its lowest, 10, in 1998.
That places New Zealand 86th out of 205 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
Duration of compulsory education in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 10 | — |
| 1999 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 10 | +0.0% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 10 is below the median for high income countries, which is 11, 91% of the median. (77 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 10 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9, 1.1× the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 2 |
| 2000s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| 2010s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| 2020s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
- 86 Algeria 10 compare
- 86 Andorra 10 compare
- 86 Angola 10 compare
- 86 Burkina Faso 10 compare
- 86 Canada 10 compare
- 86 Cape Verde 10 compare
- 86 Central African Republic 10 compare
- 86 Chad 10 compare
- 86 Congo 10 compare
- 86 Cote d'Ivoire 10 compare
- 86 Cyprus 10 compare
- 86 Czechia 10 compare
- 86 Denmark 10 compare
- 86 Djibouti 10 compare
- 86 Gabon 10 compare
- 86 Greece 10 compare
- 86 Iceland 10 compare
- 86 Ireland 10 compare
- 86 Jordan 10 compare
- 86 Kyrgyzstan 10 compare
- 86 Lebanon 10 compare
- 86 Macao 10 compare
- 86 Moldova 10 compare
- 86 Norway 10 compare
- 86 Oman 10 compare
- 86 Palestine 10 compare
- 86 Romania 10 compare
- 86 Saint Lucia 10 compare
- 86 San Marino 10 compare
- 86 Spain 10 compare
- 86 Sweden 10 compare
- 86 Togo 10 compare
- 86 Vietnam 10 compare
More education data for New Zealand
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 97.48 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 97.38 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 36,426 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 12,020 (1992)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 56,552 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 53,804 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 562,417 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 383,018 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.15 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is duration of compulsory education in New Zealand?
- Duration of compulsory education in New Zealand was 10 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest duration of compulsory education recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 10 in 1998.
- What is the lowest duration of compulsory education recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 10 in 1998.
- How does New Zealand rank for duration of compulsory education?
- New Zealand ranks 86th out of 205 countries with data for 2025.
- Is duration of compulsory education rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Duration of compulsory education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).