Education spending in Ireland
Ireland: Education spending was 2.9 in 2021. ▼ Falling
Education spending in Ireland, 1937–2021
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2021, education spending in Ireland stood at 2.9. That is the lowest value across all 51 years on record.
That represents a change of down 9.0% on the previous year and down 49.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, education spending in Ireland peaked at 6.16 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 2.9, in 2021.
Ireland ranks 152nd of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.
Education spending in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1937 | 3.3 | — |
| 1960 | 3.2 | -3.0% |
| 1971 | 4.49 | +40.2% |
| 1972 | 4.62 | +2.9% |
| 1973 | 4.61 | -0.2% |
| 1974 | 4.69 | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 4.3 | -8.3% |
| 1977 | 5.09 | +18.4% |
| 1978 | 5.07 | -0.3% |
| 1979 | 5.29 | +4.4% |
| 1980 | 5.32 | +0.6% |
| 1981 | 5.73 | +7.7% |
| 1982 | 5.39 | -6.0% |
| 1983 | 5.45 | +1.1% |
| 1984 | 5.28 | -3.0% |
| 1985 | 5.25 | -0.6% |
| 1986 | 5.3 | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 5.53 | +4.3% |
| 1988 | 5.02 | -9.3% |
| 1989 | 4.71 | -6.0% |
| 1990 | 4.6 | -2.4% |
| 1991 | 4.78 | +4.0% |
| 1992 | 5.01 | +4.7% |
| 1993 | 5.12 | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 5.19 | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 4.87 | -6.1% |
| 1996 | 4.75 | -2.4% |
| 1998 | 4.29 | -9.8% |
| 1999 | 4.13 | -3.6% |
| 2000 | 4.13 | -0.0% |
| 2001 | 4.09 | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 4.1 | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 4.2 | +2.4% |
| 2004 | 4.48 | +6.6% |
| 2005 | 4.52 | +0.8% |
| 2006 | 4.55 | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 4.72 | +3.7% |
| 2008 | 5.46 | +15.8% |
| 2009 | 6.16 | +12.8% |
| 2010 | 6.05 | -1.8% |
| 2011 | 5.77 | -4.6% |
| 2012 | 5.71 | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 5.23 | -8.3% |
| 2014 | 4.74 | -9.5% |
| 2015 | 3.62 | -23.5% |
| 2016 | 3.66 | +0.9% |
| 2017 | 3.38 | -7.7% |
| 2018 | 3.3 | -2.2% |
| 2019 | 3.23 | -2.2% |
| 2020 | 3.19 | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 2.9 | -9.0% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 2.9 is below the median for high income countries, which is 4.4, 66% of the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 2.9 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5, 65% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Education spending in Ireland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | +40.2% | 3.2 | 4.49 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 3.3 | 3.3 | 3.3 | 1 |
| 1960s | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 1 |
| 1970s | 4.77 | 4.3 | 5.29 | 8 |
| 1980s | 5.3 | 4.71 | 5.73 | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.75 | 4.13 | 5.19 | 9 |
| 2000s | 4.64 | 4.09 | 6.16 | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.47 | 3.23 | 6.05 | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.05 | 2.9 | 3.19 | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
- 149 Madagascar 3.05 compare
- 150 Turks and Caicos Islands 2.95 compare
- 151 Ghana 2.91 compare
- 153 San Marino 2.9 compare
- 154 Vietnam 2.89 compare
- 155 Nicaragua 2.87 compare
More education data for Ireland
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.47 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 98.19 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 32,531 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,942 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,745 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 49,975 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 456,625 (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.49 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is education spending in Ireland?
- Education spending in Ireland was 2.9 in 2021, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest education spending recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 6.16 in 2009.
- What is the lowest education spending recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.9 in 2021.
- How does Ireland rank for education spending?
- Ireland ranks 152nd out of 199 countries with data for 2021.
- Is education spending rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 49.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Education spending. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 51 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).