Education spending in South Africa
South Africa: Education spending was 6.02 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
6.02
Change on year
down 1.7%
World rank
28th
of 199 countries
All-time high
6.56
in 2021
All-time low
4.35
in 2003
Years of data
34
1987–2024
Education spending in South Africa, 1987–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2024, education spending in South Africa stood at 6.02.
That represents a change of down 1.7% on the previous year and up 9.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, education spending in South Africa peaked at 6.56 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 4.35, in 2003.
That places South Africa 28th out of 199 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Education spending in South Africa, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | 4.75 | — |
| 1988 | 4.85 | +2.1% |
| 1989 | 4.44 | -8.5% |
| 1990 | 4.7 | +5.8% |
| 1991 | 5.26 | +12.0% |
| 1993 | 5.39 | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 5.3 | -1.7% |
| 1996 | 5.05 | -4.7% |
| 1999 | 5.29 | +4.8% |
| 2000 | 4.91 | -7.2% |
| 2001 | 4.64 | -5.6% |
| 2002 | 4.55 | -2.0% |
| 2003 | 4.35 | -4.3% |
| 2004 | 4.51 | +3.6% |
| 2005 | 4.52 | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 4.53 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 4.45 | -1.8% |
| 2008 | 4.37 | -1.6% |
| 2009 | 4.76 | +8.8% |
| 2010 | 5.13 | +7.9% |
| 2011 | 5.29 | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 5.52 | +4.4% |
| 2013 | 5.35 | -3.1% |
| 2014 | 5.49 | +2.6% |
| 2015 | 5.48 | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 5.44 | -0.7% |
| 2017 | 5.6 | +2.8% |
| 2018 | 5.64 | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 5.91 | +4.7% |
| 2020 | 6.17 | +4.4% |
| 2021 | 6.56 | +6.2% |
| 2022 | 6.16 | -6.1% |
| 2023 | 6.12 | -0.5% |
| 2024 | 6.02 | -1.7% |
South Africa compared with similar countries
- South Africa's 6.02 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.25, 1.4× the median. (54 countries reporting)
- South Africa's 6.02 is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 3.2, 1.9× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4.68 | 4.44 | 4.85 | 3 |
| 1990s | 5.16 | 4.7 | 5.39 | 6 |
| 2000s | 4.56 | 4.35 | 4.91 | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.49 | 5.13 | 5.91 | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.21 | 6.02 | 6.56 | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More education data for South Africa
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 94.05 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 93.94 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 181,739 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 339,638 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 410,708 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 407,696 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.50 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 7.52 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.44 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is education spending in South Africa?
- Education spending in South Africa was 6.02 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest education spending recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 6.56 in 2021.
- What is the lowest education spending recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.35 in 2003.
- How does South Africa rank for education spending?
- South Africa ranks 28th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is education spending rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Africa 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 — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).