Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile
Chile: Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling was 96.4% in 2017. ▲ Rising
Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile, 1907–2017
Source: UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Chile recorded 96.4% for literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in 2017.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.5% on the previous year and down 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile peaked at 96.9% in 2015 and was at its lowest, 50.1%, in 1907.
Chile ranks 45th of 128 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 12 years of available data.
Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1907 | 50.1% | — |
| 1920 | 63.1% | +25.9% |
| 1930 | 75.6% | +19.8% |
| 1940 | 73.6% | -2.6% |
| 1950 | 77.5% | +5.3% |
| 1982 | 91.1% | +17.6% |
| 1992 | 94.3% | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 95.7% | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 96.7% | +1.0% |
| 2013 | 96.3% | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 96.9% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 96.4% | -0.5% |
Chile compared with similar countries
- Chile's 96.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 97.7%, 99% of the median. (33 countries reporting)
- Chile's 96.4% is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 94.6%, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 50.1% | 50.1% | 50.1% | 1 |
| 1920s | 63.1% | 63.1% | 63.1% | 1 |
| 1930s | 75.6% | 75.6% | 75.6% | 1 |
| 1940s | 73.6% | 73.6% | 73.6% | 1 |
| 1950s | 77.5% | 77.5% | 77.5% | 1 |
| 1980s | 91.1% | 91.1% | 91.1% | 1 |
| 1990s | 94.3% | 94.3% | 94.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 95.7% | 95.7% | 95.7% | 1 |
| 2010s | 96.6% | 96.3% | 96.9% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Chile
More education data for Chile
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 96,048 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 21,633 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 280,113 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 264,101 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.63 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.49 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -2.36 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0754 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile?
- Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling in Chile was 96.4% in 2017, according to UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in Chile?
- The highest recorded value was 96.9% in 2015.
- What is the lowest literacy rate vs. average years of schooling recorded in Chile?
- The lowest recorded value was 50.1% in 1907.
- How does Chile rank for literacy rate vs. average years of schooling?
- Chile ranks 45th out of 128 countries with data for 2017.
- Is literacy rate vs. average years of schooling rising or falling in Chile?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Chile data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO (1957) and other sources – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy rate vs. average years of schooling. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 12 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of adults who can read and write a simple statement about their everyday life.