Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Germany
Germany: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 5.2% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Germany, 1870–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Germany recorded 5.2% for government spending on education as a share of gdp in 2022.
The figure is down 2.4% on the previous year and up 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Germany peaked at 5.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.3%, in 1870.
Germany ranks 54th of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Germany, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 1.3% | — |
| 1913 | 2.7% | +107.7% |
| 1960 | 2.9% | +7.4% |
| 1980 | 4.7% | +62.1% |
| 1993 | 4.4% | -6.6% |
| 1994 | 4.3% | -1.7% |
| 1995 | 4.4% | +2.4% |
| 1996 | 4.5% | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 4.4% | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 4.5% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 5.0% | +11.7% |
| 2011 | 4.9% | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 4.8% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 4.8% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 4.8% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 4.8% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 4.8% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 4.8% | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 4.9% | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 5.0% | +2.9% |
| 2020 | 5.5% | +9.7% |
| 2021 | 5.4% | -2.7% |
| 2022 | 5.2% | -2.4% |
Germany compared with similar countries
- Germany's 5.2% is above the median for high income countries, which is 4.4%, 1.2× the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Germany's 5.2% 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 Germany 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1913 | +107.7% | 1.3% | 2.7% |
| 1980 | +62.1% | 2.9% | 4.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1 |
| 1910s | 2.7% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 1960s | 2.9% | 2.9% | 2.9% | 1 |
| 1980s | 4.7% | 4.7% | 4.7% | 1 |
| 1990s | 4.4% | 4.3% | 4.5% | 5 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 4.5% | 4.5% | 1 |
| 2010s | 4.9% | 4.8% | 5.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.4% | 5.2% | 5.5% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More education data for Germany
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 618,670 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 15,242 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.35 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.27 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.97 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.31 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.83 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0396 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Germany?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Germany was 5.2% 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 Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 5.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.3% in 1870.
- How does Germany rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Germany ranks 54th out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Germany 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.