Government expenditure on education, total in United States of America
United States of America: Government expenditure on education, total was 5.4% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on education, total in United States of America, 2015–2021
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government expenditure on education, total in United States of America is 5.4%, measured in 2021. That is the highest value across all 7 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 9.9% over ten years.
That places United States of America 42nd out of 196 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
Government expenditure on education, total in United States of America, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 4.9% | — |
| 2016 | 4.8% | -3.0% |
| 2017 | 5.1% | +6.5% |
| 2018 | 4.9% | -3.9% |
| 2019 | 5.0% | +1.3% |
| 2020 | 5.4% | +8.8% |
| 2021 | 5.4% | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 4.9% | 4.8% | 5.1% | 5 |
| 2020s | 5.4% | 5.4% | 5.4% | 2 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
- 39 Tajikistan 5.4% compare
- 40 Palestine, State of 5.4% compare
- 41 Norway 5.4% compare
- 43 Korea 5.4% compare
- 44 Dominica 5.4% compare
- 45 Burkina Faso 5.3% compare
More education data for United States of America
- 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)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on education, total in United States of America?
- Government expenditure on education, total in United States of America was 5.4% in 2021, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest government expenditure on education, total recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 5.4% in 2021.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on education, total recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.8% in 2016.
- How does United States of America rank for government expenditure on education, total?
- United States of America ranks 42nd out of 196 countries with data for 2021.
- Is government expenditure on education, total rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 9.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Government expenditure on education, total (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 7 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
General government expenditure on education (current, capital, and transfers) is expressed as a percentage of GDP. It includes expenditure funded by transfers from international sources to government. General government usually refers to local, regional and central governments.