Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in United States
United States: Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both was 91.6% in 2024. ▬ Flat
Latest (2024)
91.6%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
9th
of 142 countries
All-time high
94.7%
in 2019
All-time low
85.2%
in 2005
Years of data
31
1994–2024
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in United States, 1994–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in United States stood at 91.6%.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 3.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in United States peaked at 94.7% in 2019 and was at its lowest, 85.2%, in 2005.
That places United States 9th out of 142 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary … upper both in United States, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 89.0% | — |
| 1995 | 89.4% | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 89.6% | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 90.0% | +0.4% |
| 1998 | 90.4% | +0.4% |
| 1999 | 90.8% | +0.5% |
| 2000 | 90.8% | -0.0% |
| 2001 | 91.2% | +0.4% |
| 2002 | 91.4% | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 91.5% | +0.1% |
| 2004 | 86.0% | -6.0% |
| 2005 | 85.2% | -0.9% |
| 2006 | 85.8% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 92.4% | +7.8% |
| 2008 | 86.6% | -6.3% |
| 2009 | 86.7% | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 87.1% | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 87.6% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 87.7% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 88.2% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 88.3% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 88.4% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 89.1% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 89.8% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 89.8% | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 94.7% | +5.4% |
| 2020 | 90.9% | -4.0% |
| 2021 | 91.3% | +0.4% |
| 2022 | 91.2% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 91.5% | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 91.6% | +0.2% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 91.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 79.5%, 1.2× the median. (58 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 89.9% | 89.0% | 90.8% | 6 |
| 2000s | 88.7% | 85.2% | 92.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 89.1% | 87.1% | 94.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 91.3% | 90.9% | 91.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States
More education data for United States
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 96.21 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 96.02 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in United States?
- Educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or in United States was 91.6% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 94.7% in 2019.
- What is the lowest educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 85.2% in 2005.
- How does United States rank for educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or?
- United States ranks 9th out of 142 countries with data for 2024.
- Is educational attainment rate, completed upper secondary education or rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this United States 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 — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release