Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower both in Canada
Canada: Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary … lower both was 96.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada stood at 96.4%. That is the highest value across all 40 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or in Canada peaked at 96.4% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 60.2%, in 1970.
That places Canada 19th out of 135 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 both in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 60.2% | — |
| 1972 | 63.5% | +5.4% |
| 1976 | 67.5% | +6.3% |
| 1981 | 74.3% | +10.1% |
| 1986 | 78.9% | +6.2% |
| 1990 | 83.1% | +5.4% |
| 1991 | 83.6% | +0.6% |
| 1992 | 84.5% | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 85.4% | +1.1% |
| 1994 | 85.1% | -0.3% |
| 1995 | 85.6% | +0.6% |
| 1996 | 86.1% | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 86.8% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 87.5% | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 87.9% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 88.4% | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 89.2% | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 89.6% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 90.0% | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 90.4% | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 90.8% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 91.1% | +0.4% |
| 2007 | 91.6% | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 92.0% | +0.5% |
| 2009 | 92.5% | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 92.8% | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 93.1% | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 93.5% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 93.7% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 93.9% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 94.3% | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 94.5% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 94.8% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 95.2% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 95.1% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 95.5% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 95.9% | +0.5% |
| 2022 | 96.1% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 96.3% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 96.4% | +0.1% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 96.4% 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 | 63.7% | 60.2% | 67.5% | 3 |
| 1980s | 76.6% | 74.3% | 78.9% | 2 |
| 1990s | 85.6% | 83.1% | 87.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 90.5% | 88.4% | 92.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 94.1% | 92.8% | 95.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 96.1% | 95.5% | 96.4% | 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 96.4% 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 96.4% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 60.2% in 1970.
- How does Canada rank for educational attainment rate, completed lower secondary education or?
- Canada ranks 19th out of 135 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 2.7%. 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, both sexes (%). 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