Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Turkey
Turkey: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 3.1% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Turkey, 1978–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2022, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Turkey stood at 3.1%.
That represents a change of down 12.5% on the previous year and down 29.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Turkey peaked at 4.6% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 1.5%, in 1986.
Turkey ranks 146th 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 Turkey, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 4.3% | — |
| 1979 | 2.9% | -32.9% |
| 1981 | 2.2% | -24.2% |
| 1982 | 1.8% | -20.5% |
| 1983 | 2.6% | +50.9% |
| 1984 | 2.0% | -23.4% |
| 1985 | 1.7% | -14.3% |
| 1986 | 1.5% | -13.1% |
| 1993 | 3.4% | +122.9% |
| 1994 | 3.4% | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 2.3% | -34.3% |
| 2011 | 4.2% | +87.5% |
| 2012 | 4.4% | +3.9% |
| 2013 | 4.3% | -1.0% |
| 2014 | 4.4% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 4.3% | -2.4% |
| 2016 | 4.6% | +7.5% |
| 2017 | 4.3% | -6.6% |
| 2018 | 4.3% | -0.6% |
| 2019 | 4.4% | +3.5% |
| 2020 | 4.0% | -9.3% |
| 2021 | 3.5% | -12.3% |
| 2022 | 3.1% | -12.5% |
Turkey compared with similar countries
- Turkey's 3.1% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.2%, 73% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Turkey's 3.1% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.5%, 69% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Turkey 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | +122.9% | 1.5% | 3.4% |
| 2011 | +87.5% | 2.3% | 4.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3.6% | 2.9% | 4.3% | 2 |
| 1980s | 2.0% | 1.5% | 2.6% | 6 |
| 1990s | 3.0% | 2.3% | 3.4% | 3 |
| 2010s | 4.4% | 4.2% | 4.6% | 9 |
| 2020s | 3.6% | 3.1% | 4.0% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Turkey
- 143 British Virgin Islands 3.2% compare
- 144 Tanzania 3.2% compare
- 145 Antigua and Barbuda 3.1% compare
- 147 Albania 3.1% compare
- 148 Guatemala 3.1% compare
- 149 Madagascar 3.0% compare
More education data for Turkey
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 788,294 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 184,302 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.05 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 980,973 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 12.31 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 5.54 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.87 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0649 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Turkey?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Turkey was 3.1% 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 Turkey?
- The highest recorded value was 4.6% in 2016.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Turkey?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.5% in 1986.
- How does Turkey rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Turkey ranks 146th out of 199 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Turkey?
- Over the last ten years it is down 29.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Turkey 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.