Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Japan
Japan: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 3.3% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Japan, 1870–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Japan recorded 3.3% for government spending on education as a share of gdp in 2021.
The figure is up 0.9% on the previous year and down 7.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Japan peaked at 5.5% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 1870.
Japan ranks 133rd of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 46 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1.0% | 1 |
| 1910s | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1.6% | 1 |
| 1930s | 2.1% | 2.1% | 2.1% | 1 |
| 1960s | 4.1% | 4.1% | 4.1% | 1 |
| 1970s | 4.4% | 3.6% | 5.0% | 9 |
| 1980s | 5.1% | 4.7% | 5.5% | 7 |
| 1990s | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.6% | 5 |
| 2000s | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.5% | 9 |
| 2010s | 3.3% | 3.1% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.3% | 3.3% | 3.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More education data for Japan
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 58.8% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 11.2% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 101.1% (2023)
- Primary education, teachers 440,864 (2023)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 1.22 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 101.1% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Japan?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Japan was 3.3% in 2021, 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 Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 5.5% in 1987.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 1870.
- How does Japan rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Japan ranks 133rd out of 199 countries with data for 2021.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 7.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Japan 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.