Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower female in Canada
Canada: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower female was 96.3% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada is 96.3%, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 40 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 2.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada peaked at 96.3% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 61.6%, in 1970.
That places Canada 21st out of 132 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower female in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 61.6% | — |
| 1972 | 64.7% | +5.0% |
| 1976 | 67.9% | +5.0% |
| 1981 | 74.3% | +9.4% |
| 1986 | 79.2% | +6.7% |
| 1990 | 82.8% | +4.5% |
| 1991 | 83.3% | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 84.1% | +0.9% |
| 1993 | 85.1% | +1.2% |
| 1994 | 84.7% | -0.4% |
| 1995 | 85.1% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 85.6% | +0.7% |
| 1997 | 86.1% | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 86.9% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 87.4% | +0.6% |
| 2000 | 87.9% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 88.7% | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 89.1% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 89.4% | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 89.8% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 90.2% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 90.5% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 91.1% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 91.5% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 92.0% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 92.5% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 92.8% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 93.1% | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 93.4% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 93.6% | +0.3% |
| 2015 | 93.8% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 94.3% | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 94.6% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 94.9% | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 94.9% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 95.2% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 95.6% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 96.0% | +0.4% |
| 2023 | 96.1% | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 96.3% | +0.2% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 96.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 91.6%, 1.1× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 64.7% | 61.6% | 67.9% | 3 |
| 1980s | 76.7% | 74.3% | 79.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 85.1% | 82.8% | 87.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 90.0% | 87.9% | 92.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 93.8% | 92.5% | 94.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 95.8% | 95.2% | 96.3% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More education data for Canada
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 95.11 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 95.01 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 133,275 (1996)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2011)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 291,075 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 273,465 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.70 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.43 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.83 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada?
- Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada was 96.3% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 96.3% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 61.6% in 1970.
- How does Canada rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- Canada ranks 21st out of 132 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 40 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release