Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Austria
Austria: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 5.3% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Austria, 1937–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2022, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Austria stood at 5.3%.
The figure is down 3.7% on the previous year and down 4.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Austria peaked at 6.1% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 2.5%, in 1937.
That places Austria 51st out of 199 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 53 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Austria, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1937 | 2.5% | — |
| 1960 | 2.9% | +16.0% |
| 1970 | 4.2% | +43.6% |
| 1971 | 4.3% | +3.3% |
| 1972 | 4.5% | +3.9% |
| 1973 | 4.5% | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 4.7% | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 5.1% | +10.1% |
| 1976 | 5.3% | +2.1% |
| 1977 | 5.0% | -5.4% |
| 1978 | 5.2% | +4.2% |
| 1979 | 5.1% | -2.4% |
| 1980 | 5.0% | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 5.4% | +7.2% |
| 1982 | 5.4% | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 5.3% | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 5.3% | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 5.3% | +0.1% |
| 1986 | 5.5% | +3.8% |
| 1987 | 5.4% | -2.3% |
| 1988 | 5.2% | -3.4% |
| 1989 | 5.0% | -3.3% |
| 1990 | 5.0% | -1.2% |
| 1991 | 5.1% | +2.9% |
| 1992 | 5.3% | +3.8% |
| 1993 | 5.3% | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 5.4% | +3.4% |
| 1996 | 5.3% | -3.0% |
| 1998 | 6.1% | +16.0% |
| 1999 | 6.1% | -0.0% |
| 2000 | 5.6% | -8.4% |
| 2001 | 5.6% | -0.3% |
| 2002 | 5.6% | -0.8% |
| 2003 | 5.4% | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 5.3% | -0.9% |
| 2005 | 5.3% | -1.1% |
| 2006 | 5.3% | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 5.2% | -1.6% |
| 2008 | 5.3% | +2.3% |
| 2009 | 5.8% | +8.8% |
| 2010 | 5.7% | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 5.6% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 5.5% | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 5.6% | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 5.5% | -1.7% |
| 2015 | 5.5% | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 5.5% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 5.4% | -2.0% |
| 2018 | 5.3% | -2.7% |
| 2019 | 5.2% | -0.3% |
| 2020 | 5.6% | +6.5% |
| 2021 | 5.5% | -1.8% |
| 2022 | 5.3% | -3.7% |
Austria compared with similar countries
- Austria's 5.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.4%, 1.2× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Austria's 5.3% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5%, 1.2× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Austria changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | +43.6% | 2.9% | 4.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 2.5% | 2.5% | 2.5% | 1 |
| 1960s | 2.9% | 2.9% | 2.9% | 1 |
| 1970s | 4.8% | 4.2% | 5.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 5.3% | 5.0% | 5.5% | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.5% | 5.0% | 6.1% | 8 |
| 2000s | 5.4% | 5.2% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.5% | 5.2% | 5.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.4% | 5.3% | 5.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Austria
More education data for Austria
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 75,436 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 13,699 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 141,883 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 134,270 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 706,802 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 368,502 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.46 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0402 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Austria?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Austria was 5.3% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Austria?
- The highest recorded value was 6.1% in 1998.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Austria?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.5% in 1937.
- How does Austria rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Austria ranks 51st out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Austria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Austria data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.