Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland
Ireland: Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government was 12.3% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland, 1981–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in UIS calculation.
Analysis
Ireland recorded 12.3% for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in 2021.
That represents a change of up 3.1% on the previous year and down 0.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland peaked at 14.8% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 9.3%, in 2010.
That places Ireland 105th out of 197 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 40 years of available data.
Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland, year by year
| Year | UIS calculation | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 14.8% | — |
| 1982 | 13.1% | -11.6% |
| 1983 | 11.6% | -11.1% |
| 1984 | 11.3% | -2.8% |
| 1985 | 11.2% | -0.5% |
| 1986 | 9.8% | -12.5% |
| 1987 | 10.6% | +7.9% |
| 1988 | 10.5% | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 10.9% | +3.7% |
| 1990 | 11.7% | +7.1% |
| 1991 | 11.4% | -2.4% |
| 1992 | 11.8% | +3.3% |
| 1993 | 12.0% | +2.0% |
| 1994 | 12.8% | +6.3% |
| 1995 | 12.7% | -0.5% |
| 1996 | 12.9% | +1.6% |
| 1998 | 12.5% | -3.1% |
| 1999 | 12.7% | +1.4% |
| 2000 | 13.5% | +6.3% |
| 2001 | 12.7% | -6.0% |
| 2002 | 12.5% | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 12.9% | +3.1% |
| 2004 | 13.7% | +6.1% |
| 2005 | 13.7% | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 13.5% | -1.0% |
| 2007 | 13.2% | -2.3% |
| 2008 | 13.1% | -0.7% |
| 2009 | 13.1% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 9.3% | -29.0% |
| 2011 | 12.3% | +32.3% |
| 2012 | 13.5% | +9.6% |
| 2013 | 13.2% | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 13.0% | -1.4% |
| 2015 | 12.9% | -0.4% |
| 2016 | 13.3% | +3.0% |
| 2017 | 13.4% | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 13.3% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 13.5% | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 12.0% | -11.5% |
| 2021 | 12.3% | +3.1% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 12.3% is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.8%, 1.0× the median. (70 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 12.3% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 11.9%, 1.0× the median. (50 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | +32.3% | 9.3% | 12.3% |
| 2010 | -29.0% | 13.1% | 9.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 11.5% | 9.8% | 14.8% | 9 |
| 1990s | 12.3% | 11.4% | 12.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 13.2% | 12.5% | 13.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.8% | 9.3% | 13.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 12.2% | 12.0% | 12.3% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 32,531 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,942 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 52,745 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 49,975 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 456,625 (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 548,873 (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.49 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1053 units per person (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland?
- Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government in Ireland was 12.3% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 14.8% in 1981.
- What is the lowest expenditure on education as a percentage of total government recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 9.3% in 2010.
- How does Ireland rank for expenditure on education as a percentage of total government?
- Ireland ranks 105th out of 197 countries with data for 2021.
- Is expenditure on education as a percentage of total government rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure (%) (UIS calculation). 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