Literacy in Uruguay
Uruguay: Literacy was 98.91 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
98.91
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
10th
of 89 countries
All-time high
98.96
in 2020
All-time low
93.86
in 1975
Years of data
21
1975–2024
Literacy in Uruguay, 1975–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Uruguay recorded 98.91 for literacy in 2024.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 0.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, literacy in Uruguay peaked at 98.96 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 93.86, in 1975.
That places Uruguay 10th out of 89 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 21 years of available data.
Literacy in Uruguay, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 93.86 | — |
| 1985 | 95.38 | +1.6% |
| 1996 | 96.78 | +1.5% |
| 2006 | 97.79 | +1.0% |
| 2007 | 97.86 | +0.1% |
| 2008 | 98.16 | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 98.26 | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 98.07 | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 98.34 | +0.3% |
| 2012 | 98.4 | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 98.36 | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 98.44 | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 98.52 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 98.56 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 98.62 | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 98.7 | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 98.77 | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 98.96 | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 98.85 | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 98.83 | -0.0% |
| 2024 | 98.91 | +0.1% |
Uruguay compared with similar countries
- Uruguay's 98.91 is above the median for high income countries, which is 97.73, 1.0× the median. (12 countries reporting)
- Uruguay's 98.91 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 94.86, 1.0× the median. (15 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 93.86 | 93.86 | 93.86 | 1 |
| 1980s | 95.38 | 95.38 | 95.38 | 1 |
| 1990s | 96.78 | 96.78 | 96.78 | 1 |
| 2000s | 98.02 | 97.79 | 98.26 | 4 |
| 2010s | 98.48 | 98.07 | 98.77 | 10 |
| 2020s | 98.89 | 98.83 | 98.96 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Uruguay
More education data for Uruguay
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 99.38 (2015)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 99.96 (2023)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 25,390 (2010)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 2,520 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 57,513 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 54,922 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 337,808 (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 287,527 (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.35 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is literacy in Uruguay?
- Literacy in Uruguay was 98.91 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest literacy recorded in Uruguay?
- The highest recorded value was 98.96 in 2020.
- What is the lowest literacy recorded in Uruguay?
- The lowest recorded value was 93.86 in 1975.
- How does Uruguay rank for literacy?
- Uruguay ranks 10th out of 89 countries with data for 2024.
- Is literacy rising or falling in Uruguay?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Uruguay data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Literacy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).