Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in Germany
Germany: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both was 81.9% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
81.9%
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
30th
of 142 countries
All-time high
84.3%
in 2019
All-time low
73.3%
in 1996
Years of data
30
1992–2023
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Germany, 1992–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Germany is 81.9%, measured in 2023.
The figure is up 0.6% on the previous year and down 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Germany peaked at 84.3% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 73.3%, in 1996.
That places Germany 30th out of 142 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 30 years of available data.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in Germany, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 75.2% | — |
| 1993 | 74.5% | -1.0% |
| 1995 | 76.3% | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 73.3% | -4.0% |
| 1997 | 75.3% | +2.8% |
| 1999 | 74.8% | -0.7% |
| 2000 | 76.2% | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 77.6% | +1.8% |
| 2002 | 78.1% | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 78.5% | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 78.5% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 77.6% | -1.1% |
| 2006 | 77.8% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 79.1% | +1.6% |
| 2008 | 80.2% | +1.3% |
| 2009 | 80.6% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 81.1% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 81.7% | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 82.0% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 82.3% | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 83.0% | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 83.1% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 83.0% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 83.7% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 83.5% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 84.3% | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 83.7% | -0.7% |
| 2021 | 81.7% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 81.4% | -0.3% |
| 2023 | 81.9% | +0.6% |
Germany compared with similar countries
- Germany's 81.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 79.5%, 1.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Germany's 81.9% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 81.4%, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 74.9% | 73.3% | 76.3% | 6 |
| 2000s | 78.4% | 76.2% | 80.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.8% | 81.1% | 84.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 82.2% | 81.4% | 83.7% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Germany
- 27 Finland 82.1% compare
- 28 Montenegro 81.9% compare
- 29 Norway 81.9% compare
- 31 Puerto Rico 81.8% compare
- 32 South Korea 81.5% compare
- 33 Croatia 81.4% compare
More education data for Germany
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.48 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.73 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 618,670 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 15,242 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.35 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.27 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.97 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.31 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.83 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Germany?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in Germany was 81.9% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 84.3% in 2019.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 73.3% in 1996.
- How does Germany rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- Germany ranks 30th out of 142 countries with data for 2023.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Germany 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, both sexes (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 30 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release