Expenditure on primary education in Finland
Finland: Expenditure on primary education was 20.5% in 2016. ▼ Falling
Expenditure on primary education in Finland, 1970–2016
Source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of government expenditure on education.
Analysis
Finland recorded 20.5% for expenditure on primary education in 2016.
That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and down 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, expenditure on primary education in Finland peaked at 49.5% in 1976 and was at its lowest, 18.4%, in 2012.
That places Finland 133rd out of 149 countries with data for 2016, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 43 years of available data.
Expenditure on primary education in Finland, year by year
| Year | % of government expenditure on education | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 36.6% | — |
| 1971 | 38.3% | +4.8% |
| 1972 | 45.8% | +19.5% |
| 1973 | 46.2% | +1.0% |
| 1974 | 46.7% | +1.1% |
| 1975 | 47.2% | +1.1% |
| 1976 | 49.5% | +4.9% |
| 1979 | 35.5% | -28.4% |
| 1980 | 34.1% | -3.8% |
| 1981 | 33.9% | -0.5% |
| 1982 | 32.2% | -5.2% |
| 1983 | 32.3% | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 32.3% | -0.2% |
| 1985 | 32.4% | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 33.8% | +4.3% |
| 1987 | 33.6% | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 32.9% | -2.2% |
| 1989 | 31.6% | -4.0% |
| 1990 | 30.8% | -2.5% |
| 1991 | 27.5% | -10.6% |
| 1992 | 27.2% | -1.4% |
| 1993 | 25.6% | -5.8% |
| 1994 | 25.6% | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 24.7% | -3.6% |
| 1996 | 24.9% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 21.2% | -14.9% |
| 2000 | 21.4% | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 21.6% | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 21.6% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 21.6% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 21.4% | -1.0% |
| 2005 | 20.8% | -2.9% |
| 2006 | 20.6% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 20.4% | -1.2% |
| 2008 | 20.4% | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 19.8% | -2.8% |
| 2010 | 19.9% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 20.0% | +0.5% |
| 2012 | 18.4% | -8.1% |
| 2013 | 18.6% | +1.2% |
| 2014 | 19.1% | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 20.2% | +5.9% |
| 2016 | 20.5% | +1.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 43.2% | 35.5% | 49.5% | 8 |
| 1980s | 32.9% | 31.6% | 34.1% | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.0% | 21.2% | 30.8% | 8 |
| 2000s | 21.0% | 19.8% | 21.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 19.5% | 18.4% | 20.5% | 7 |
Countries ranked near Finland
More education data for Finland
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 42,938 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 1,144 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,036 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 89,318 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 543,350 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 360,117 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.29 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0641 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is expenditure on primary education in Finland?
- Expenditure on primary education in Finland was 20.5% in 2016, according to Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest expenditure on primary education recorded in Finland?
- The highest recorded value was 49.5% in 1976.
- What is the lowest expenditure on primary education recorded in Finland?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.4% in 2012.
- How does Finland rank for expenditure on primary education?
- Finland ranks 133rd out of 149 countries with data for 2016.
- Is expenditure on primary education rising or falling in Finland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Finland data come from?
- The figures come from Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Expenditure on primary education (% of government expenditure on education). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 43 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Expenditure on primary education is expressed as a percentage of total general government expenditure on education. General government usually refers to local, regional and central governments.