Educational attainment rate, completed primary … primary urban both in India
India: Educational attainment rate, completed primary … primary urban both was 81.7% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in India, 1994–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in India stood at 81.7%. That is the highest value across all 13 years on record.
That represents a change of up 2.7% on the previous year and up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in India peaked at 81.7% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 58.7%, in 1994.
That places India 81st out of 106 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 13 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed primary … primary urban both in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 58.7% | — |
| 2000 | 63.3% | +7.9% |
| 2005 | 67.8% | +7.2% |
| 2010 | 72.3% | +6.6% |
| 2011 | 69.7% | -3.7% |
| 2012 | 72.6% | +4.3% |
| 2016 | 73.3% | +1.0% |
| 2018 | 77.2% | +5.2% |
| 2019 | 75.9% | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 77.4% | +1.9% |
| 2021 | 78.9% | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 79.5% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 81.7% | +2.7% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 81.7% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 78.2%, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 58.7% | 58.7% | 58.7% | 1 |
| 2000s | 65.6% | 63.3% | 67.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 73.5% | 69.7% | 77.2% | 6 |
| 2020s | 79.4% | 77.4% | 81.7% | 4 |
Countries ranked near India
More education data for India
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.38 (2023)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.88 (2025)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.31 million (2025)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 3.10 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 19.37 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 18.52 million (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 133.16 million (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 126.12 million (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -8.85 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in India?
- Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher in India was 81.7% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 81.7% in 2023.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 58.7% in 1994.
- How does India rank for educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher?
- India ranks 81st out of 106 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed primary education or higher, population 25+ years, urban, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 13 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release