Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Germany
Germany: Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP was 5.2% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Germany, 1993–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Germany is 5.2%, measured in 2022.
That represents a change of down 4.0% on the previous year and up 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Germany peaked at 5.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 4.3%, in 1994.
That places Germany 37th out of 185 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 19 years of available data.
Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP in Germany, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 4.4% | — |
| 1994 | 4.3% | -1.7% |
| 1995 | 4.4% | +2.4% |
| 1996 | 4.5% | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 4.4% | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 4.5% | +2.4% |
| 2010 | 5.1% | +12.0% |
| 2011 | 5.0% | -2.2% |
| 2012 | 4.9% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 4.9% | +0.1% |
| 2014 | 4.9% | -0.3% |
| 2015 | 4.9% | -1.3% |
| 2016 | 4.8% | -0.3% |
| 2017 | 4.9% | +0.7% |
| 2018 | 5.0% | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 5.1% | +2.7% |
| 2020 | 5.6% | +9.3% |
| 2021 | 5.5% | -2.4% |
| 2022 | 5.2% | -4.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.4% | 4.3% | 4.5% | 5 |
| 2000s | 4.5% | 4.5% | 4.5% | 1 |
| 2010s | 5.0% | 4.8% | 5.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.4% | 5.2% | 5.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Germany
More education data for Germany
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 618,670 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 15,242 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.35 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.27 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.97 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.31 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.83 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0396 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Germany?
- Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp in Germany was 5.2% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Germany?
- The highest recorded value was 5.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp recorded in Germany?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.3% in 1994.
- How does Germany rank for initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp?
- Germany ranks 37th out of 185 countries with data for 2022.
- Is initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of gdp rising or falling in Germany?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Germany data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Initial government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 19 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release