Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Russia
Russia: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 4.2% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Russia, 2000–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Russia stood at 4.2%.
The figure is up 2.7% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Russia peaked at 4.7% in 2017 and was at its lowest, 2.9%, in 2000.
That places Russia 100th out of 199 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Russia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2.9% | — |
| 2001 | 3.1% | +5.7% |
| 2002 | 3.8% | +23.5% |
| 2003 | 3.7% | -4.1% |
| 2004 | 3.5% | -3.6% |
| 2005 | 3.8% | +6.3% |
| 2006 | 3.9% | +2.5% |
| 2008 | 4.1% | +6.1% |
| 2010 | 4.1% | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 3.7% | -9.2% |
| 2012 | 3.8% | +2.2% |
| 2013 | 3.8% | -0.8% |
| 2014 | 4.0% | +6.6% |
| 2015 | 3.8% | -4.5% |
| 2016 | 3.8% | -1.9% |
| 2017 | 4.7% | +24.7% |
| 2018 | 4.7% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 3.7% | -21.0% |
| 2020 | 4.0% | +8.7% |
| 2021 | 4.0% | -0.5% |
| 2022 | 4.1% | +1.5% |
| 2023 | 4.2% | +2.7% |
Russia compared with similar countries
- Russia's 4.2% is below the median for high income countries, which is 4.4%, 95% of the median. (72 countries reporting)
- Russia's 4.2% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5%, 93% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.6% | 2.9% | 4.1% | 8 |
| 2010s | 4.0% | 3.7% | 4.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.1% | 4.0% | 4.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Russia
More education data for Russia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.34 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 21,277 (2019)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 3.36 million (2019)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 3.14 million (2019)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 10.80 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.55 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.6461 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0525 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Russia?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Russia was 4.2% in 2023, 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 Russia?
- The highest recorded value was 4.7% in 2017.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Russia?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.9% in 2000.
- How does Russia rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Russia ranks 100th out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Russia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Russia 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.