Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain

Spain: Literacy rate of young men vs. women was 99.7% in 2021. ▬ Flat

Latest (2021)
99.7%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
16th
of 95 countries
All-time high
99.8%
in 2014
All-time low
98.6%
in 1981
Years of data
18
1981–2021

Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain, 1981–2021

0204060801001981200120211981: 98.6 %1991: 99.5 %2004: 99.6 %2005: 99.6 %2006: 99.7 %2007: 99.6 %2008: 99.5 %2009: 99.6 %2010: 99.5 %2011: 99.7 %2012: 99.6 %2013: 99.7 %2014: 99.8 %2015: 99.6 %2016: 99.6 %2018: 99.7 %2020: 99.5 %2021: 99.7 %

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.

Analysis

In 2021, literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain stood at 99.7%.

That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 0.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain peaked at 99.8% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 98.6%, in 1981.

That places Spain 16th out of 95 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.

Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain, year by year

Annual values for Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain, 1981 to 2021.
Year % Change
1981 98.6%
1991 99.5% +0.9%
2004 99.6% +0.0%
2005 99.6% -0.0%
2006 99.7% +0.1%
2007 99.6% -0.1%
2008 99.5% -0.1%
2009 99.6% +0.1%
2010 99.5% -0.1%
2011 99.7% +0.1%
2012 99.6% -0.0%
2013 99.7% +0.1%
2014 99.8% +0.1%
2015 99.6% -0.1%
2016 99.6% +0.0%
2018 99.7% +0.1%
2020 99.5% -0.2%
2021 99.7% +0.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 98.6% 98.6% 98.6% 1
1990s 99.5% 99.5% 99.5% 1
2000s 99.6% 99.5% 99.7% 6
2010s 99.7% 99.5% 99.8% 8
2020s 99.6% 99.5% 99.7% 2

Countries ranked near Spain

  1. 13 China 99.8% compare
  2. 14 Macao 99.7% compare
  3. 15 Serbia 99.7% compare
  4. 17 Mongolia 99.7% compare
  5. 17 Qatar 99.7% compare
  6. 19 Oman 99.7% compare

See the full ranking of 95 places →

More education data for Spain

All data for Spain →

Frequently asked questions

What is literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain?
Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain was 99.7% in 2021, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest literacy rate of young men vs. women recorded in Spain?
The highest recorded value was 99.8% in 2014.
What is the lowest literacy rate of young men vs. women recorded in Spain?
The lowest recorded value was 98.6% in 1981.
How does Spain rank for literacy rate of young men vs. women?
Spain ranks 16th out of 95 countries with data for 2021.
Is literacy rate of young men vs. women rising or falling in Spain?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Spain data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy rate of young men vs. women. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Literacy rate of young men vs. women in Spain. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Retrieved 01 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/literacy-rate-of-young-men-and-women/spain/

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About this data

Indicator
Literacy rate of young men vs. women
Unit
%
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
95 places, 1,078 data points, 1975–2024
Last refreshed

Share of men aged 15 to 24 years who can read and write.