Literacy rates among adults in Peru
Peru: Literacy rates among adults was 93.7% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Literacy rates among adults in Peru, 1981–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for literacy rates among adults in Peru is 93.7%, measured in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy rates among adults in Peru peaked at 94.5% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 81.9%, in 1981.
That places Peru 41st out of 89 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 14 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 81.9% | 81.9% | 81.9% | 1 |
| 1990s | 87.2% | 87.2% | 87.2% | 1 |
| 2000s | 88.5% | 87.7% | 89.6% | 4 |
| 2010s | 94.1% | 93.7% | 94.4% | 6 |
| 2020s | 94.1% | 93.7% | 94.5% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Peru
More education data for Peru
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 66.9% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 23.6% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 112.8% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 199,824 (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 1.97 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 113.2% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy rates among adults in Peru?
- Literacy rates among adults in Peru was 93.7% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy rates among adults recorded in Peru?
- The highest recorded value was 94.5% in 2020.
- What is the lowest literacy rates among adults recorded in Peru?
- The lowest recorded value was 81.9% in 1981.
- How does Peru rank for literacy rates among adults?
- Peru ranks 41st out of 89 countries with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rates among adults rising or falling in Peru?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Peru 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 rates among adults. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the population aged 15 years and older who can read and write.