Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female in Portugal
Portugal: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female was 50.0% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Portugal, 1970–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Portugal stood at 50.0%. That is the highest value across all 35 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.4% on the previous year and up 39.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Portugal peaked at 50.0% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.9%, in 1970.
Portugal ranks 80th of 141 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female in Portugal, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.9% | — |
| 1981 | 2.2% | +135.0% |
| 1991 | 7.2% | +224.1% |
| 1993 | 16.0% | +121.9% |
| 1994 | 17.0% | +6.4% |
| 1995 | 17.9% | +5.0% |
| 1996 | 17.6% | -1.5% |
| 1997 | 17.2% | -2.2% |
| 1998 | 14.6% | -15.1% |
| 1999 | 15.2% | +3.9% |
| 2000 | 15.8% | +3.8% |
| 2001 | 16.5% | +4.9% |
| 2002 | 17.2% | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 19.1% | +10.9% |
| 2004 | 20.9% | +9.4% |
| 2005 | 22.1% | +5.9% |
| 2006 | 23.2% | +5.0% |
| 2007 | 23.3% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 23.8% | +2.0% |
| 2009 | 25.0% | +5.4% |
| 2010 | 27.0% | +7.9% |
| 2011 | 29.1% | +7.8% |
| 2012 | 31.4% | +7.9% |
| 2013 | 33.5% | +6.6% |
| 2014 | 36.0% | +7.4% |
| 2015 | 36.7% | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 38.1% | +3.7% |
| 2017 | 39.4% | +3.4% |
| 2018 | 39.1% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 42.2% | +7.9% |
| 2020 | 44.4% | +5.2% |
| 2021 | 43.6% | -1.7% |
| 2022 | 47.1% | +7.8% |
| 2023 | 47.9% | +1.9% |
| 2024 | 50.0% | +4.4% |
Portugal compared with similar countries
- Portugal's 50.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 78.7%, 64% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Portugal's 50.0% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 79.0%, 63% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper female in Portugal 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +224.1% | 2.2% | 7.2% |
| 1981 | +135.0% | 0.9% | 2.2% |
| 1993 | +121.9% | 7.2% | 16.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 1980s | 2.2% | 2.2% | 2.2% | 1 |
| 1990s | 15.3% | 7.2% | 17.9% | 8 |
| 2000s | 20.7% | 15.8% | 25.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 35.2% | 27.0% | 42.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 46.6% | 43.6% | 50.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More education data for Portugal
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.73 (2019)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.49 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 82,664 (2018)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 11,380 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 136,282 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 128,743 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 741,752 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 598,661 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.89 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Portugal?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Portugal was 50.0% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 50.0% in 2024.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.9% in 1970.
- How does Portugal rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- Portugal ranks 80th out of 141 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 39.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Portugal data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or higher, population 25+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release