Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Italy
Italy: Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP was 0.9% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Italy, 1970–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Italy recorded 0.9% for government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in 2022.
The figure is up 2.9% on the previous year and up 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Italy peaked at 0.9% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 1970.
That places Italy 68th out of 173 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 41 years of available data.
Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP in Italy, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 0.3% | — |
| 1971 | 0.3% | +0.8% |
| 1974 | 0.4% | +15.7% |
| 1975 | 0.5% | +26.1% |
| 1976 | 0.5% | -5.6% |
| 1978 | 0.4% | -16.5% |
| 1979 | 0.4% | -4.5% |
| 1983 | 0.5% | +44.6% |
| 1984 | 0.6% | +17.4% |
| 1985 | 0.7% | +7.8% |
| 1986 | 0.7% | +2.3% |
| 1988 | 0.7% | +5.2% |
| 1993 | 0.8% | +8.6% |
| 1994 | 0.7% | -10.9% |
| 1995 | 0.7% | -4.6% |
| 1996 | 0.7% | +4.5% |
| 1998 | 0.7% | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 0.8% | +15.1% |
| 2000 | 0.8% | -4.9% |
| 2001 | 0.8% | -4.3% |
| 2002 | 0.8% | +7.8% |
| 2003 | 0.7% | -9.0% |
| 2004 | 0.7% | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 0.7% | -1.5% |
| 2006 | 0.8% | +5.1% |
| 2007 | 0.7% | -5.6% |
| 2008 | 0.8% | +10.9% |
| 2009 | 0.8% | +2.7% |
| 2010 | 0.8% | -1.6% |
| 2011 | 0.8% | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 0.8% | -1.9% |
| 2013 | 0.8% | +3.8% |
| 2014 | 0.8% | -1.9% |
| 2015 | 0.8% | -4.7% |
| 2016 | 0.7% | -3.8% |
| 2017 | 0.7% | +3.1% |
| 2018 | 0.8% | +3.1% |
| 2019 | 0.8% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 0.9% | +12.6% |
| 2021 | 0.8% | -3.2% |
| 2022 | 0.9% | +2.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 7 |
| 1980s | 0.7% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 5 |
| 1990s | 0.7% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 6 |
| 2000s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.9% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Italy
More education data for Italy
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 423,797 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 6,592 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 667,641 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 620,157 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.61 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.63 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.167 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0445 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Italy?
- Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp in Italy was 0.9% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Italy?
- The highest recorded value was 0.9% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Italy?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 1970.
- How does Italy rank for government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp?
- Italy ranks 68th out of 173 countries with data for 2022.
- Is government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Italy?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Italy data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Government expenditure on tertiary education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release