Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant PPP$ in Ireland
Ireland: Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant PPP$ was 4,882 millions in 2021. ▲ Rising
Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant PPP$ in Ireland, 1990–2021
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in millions.
Analysis
The most recent figure for government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ in Ireland is 4,882 millions, measured in 2021. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
That represents a change of up 6.7% on the previous year and up 31.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ in Ireland peaked at 4,882 millions in 2021 and was at its lowest, 1,118 millions, in 1990.
That places Ireland 39th out of 146 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant PPP$ in Ireland, year by year
| Year | millions | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1,118 millions | — |
| 1991 | 1,172 millions | +4.8% |
| 1992 | 1,323 millions | +12.8% |
| 1993 | 1,398 millions | +5.7% |
| 1994 | 1,533 millions | +9.7% |
| 1995 | 1,599 millions | +4.3% |
| 1996 | 1,781 millions | +11.4% |
| 1998 | 1,998 millions | +12.2% |
| 1999 | 2,268 millions | +13.5% |
| 2000 | 2,767 millions | +22.0% |
| 2001 | 2,719 millions | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 2,798 millions | +2.9% |
| 2003 | 2,655 millions | -5.1% |
| 2004 | 2,853 millions | +7.5% |
| 2005 | 3,021 millions | +5.9% |
| 2006 | 3,280 millions | +8.6% |
| 2007 | 3,492 millions | +6.5% |
| 2008 | 3,846 millions | +10.1% |
| 2009 | 4,203 millions | +9.3% |
| 2010 | 3,929 millions | -6.5% |
| 2011 | 3,727 millions | -5.2% |
| 2012 | 3,614 millions | -3.0% |
| 2013 | 3,404 millions | -5.8% |
| 2014 | 3,265 millions | -4.1% |
| 2015 | 3,487 millions | +6.8% |
| 2016 | 2,989 millions | -14.3% |
| 2017 | 4,302 millions | +44.0% |
| 2018 | 4,397 millions | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 4,363 millions | -0.8% |
| 2020 | 4,577 millions | +4.9% |
| 2021 | 4,882 millions | +6.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1,577 millions | 1,118 millions | 2,268 millions | 9 |
| 2000s | 3,163 millions | 2,655 millions | 4,203 millions | 10 |
| 2010s | 3,748 millions | 2,989 millions | 4,397 millions | 10 |
| 2020s | 4,730 millions | 4,577 millions | 4,882 millions | 2 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More education data for Ireland
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,021 tertiary education (2022)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2022)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 42,162 (2023)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.7% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 18.1% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ in Ireland?
- Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ in Ireland was 4,882 millions in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 4,882 millions in 2021.
- What is the lowest government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 1,118 millions in 1990.
- How does Ireland rank for government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$?
- Ireland ranks 39th out of 146 countries with data for 2021.
- Is government expenditure on tertiary education, constant ppp$ rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 31.0%. 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 Government expenditure on tertiary education, constant PPP$ (millions). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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