Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America
United States of America: Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary was 96.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America, 1970–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in cumulative.
Analysis
United States of America recorded 96.7% for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in 2024.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 1.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America peaked at 97.7% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 66.8%, in 1970.
United States of America ranks 17th of 131 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 36 years of available data.
Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America, year by year
| Year | cumulative | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 66.8% | — |
| 1975 | 92.4% | +38.3% |
| 1979 | 93.1% | +0.8% |
| 1980 | 93.0% | -0.1% |
| 1981 | 93.3% | +0.3% |
| 1994 | 91.4% | -2.1% |
| 1995 | 96.3% | +5.4% |
| 1996 | 96.3% | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 96.4% | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 96.4% | -0.0% |
| 1999 | 96.5% | +0.1% |
| 2000 | 96.5% | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 96.6% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 96.6% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 96.7% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 94.3% | -2.5% |
| 2005 | 93.9% | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 94.5% | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 97.0% | +2.7% |
| 2008 | 94.7% | -2.3% |
| 2009 | 94.7% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 94.9% | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 95.0% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 95.1% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 95.4% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 95.4% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 95.5% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 95.7% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 95.0% | -0.7% |
| 2018 | 96.1% | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 97.7% | +1.6% |
| 2020 | 96.5% | -1.1% |
| 2021 | 95.4% | -1.2% |
| 2022 | 96.7% | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 96.6% | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 96.7% | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 84.1% | 66.8% | 93.1% | 3 |
| 1980s | 93.1% | 93.0% | 93.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 95.5% | 91.4% | 96.5% | 6 |
| 2000s | 95.5% | 93.9% | 97.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 95.6% | 94.9% | 97.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 96.4% | 95.4% | 96.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
- 14 Azerbaijan 98.0% compare
- 15 Switzerland 97.9% compare
- 16 Lithuania 97.5% compare
- 18 Bulgaria 96.5% compare
- 19 Cayman Islands 96.3% compare
- 20 Bahamas 96.3% compare
More education data for United States of America
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Enrolment in primary education, both sexes (number), annual growth 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America?
- Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary in United States of America was 96.7% in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 97.7% in 2019.
- What is the lowest educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 66.8% in 1970.
- How does United States of America rank for educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary?
- United States of America ranks 17th out of 131 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Educational attainment, at least completed lower secondary, population 25+, female (%) (cumulative). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The percentage of population ages 25 and over that attained or completed lower secondary education.