Literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia
Colombia: Literacy rates vs average years of schooling was 95.46 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia, 1918–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia is 95.46, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia peaked at 95.66 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 42.4, in 1918.
That places Colombia 54th out of 128 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1918 | 42.4 | — |
| 1928 | 51.6 | +21.7% |
| 1938 | 55.8 | +8.1% |
| 1950 | 52.5 | -5.9% |
| 1993 | 91.06 | +73.4% |
| 1996 | 91.21 | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 92.8 | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 92.85 | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 92.3 | -0.6% |
| 2007 | 92.65 | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 93.38 | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 93.24 | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 93.37 | +0.1% |
| 2011 | 93.58 | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 94.19 | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 94.25 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 94.65 | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 94.89 | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 95.09 | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 95.25 | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 95.64 | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 95.66 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 95.31 | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 95.46 | +0.2% |
Colombia compared with similar countries
- Colombia's 95.46 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 95.8, 100% of the median. (38 countries reporting)
- Colombia's 95.46 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 94.56, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | +73.4% | 52.5 | 91.06 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 42.4 | 42.4 | 42.4 | 1 |
| 1920s | 51.6 | 51.6 | 51.6 | 1 |
| 1930s | 55.8 | 55.8 | 55.8 | 1 |
| 1950s | 52.5 | 52.5 | 52.5 | 1 |
| 1990s | 91.13 | 91.06 | 91.21 | 2 |
| 2000s | 92.87 | 92.3 | 93.38 | 6 |
| 2010s | 94.41 | 93.37 | 95.25 | 8 |
| 2020s | 95.52 | 95.31 | 95.66 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Colombia
More education data for Colombia
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 93.21 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 92.68 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 190,940 (2022)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 234,939 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 963,182 (2022)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 937,684 (2022)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.85 million (2022)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.14 million (2022)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia?
- Literacy rates vs average years of schooling in Colombia was 95.46 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy rates vs average years of schooling recorded in Colombia?
- The highest recorded value was 95.66 in 2021.
- What is the lowest literacy rates vs average years of schooling recorded in Colombia?
- The lowest recorded value was 42.4 in 1918.
- How does Colombia rank for literacy rates vs average years of schooling?
- Colombia ranks 54th out of 128 countries with data for 2023.
- Is literacy rates vs average years of schooling rising or falling in Colombia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Colombia data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy rates vs average years of schooling. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).