Mean years of schooling long run in United States
United States: Mean years of schooling long run was 13.32 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Latest (2020)
13.32
World rank
4th
of 111 countries
All-time high
13.32
in 2020
All-time low
4.26
in 1870
Years of data
31
1870–2020
Mean years of schooling long run in United States, 1870–2020
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2020, mean years of schooling long run in United States stood at 13.32. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, mean years of schooling long run in United States peaked at 13.32 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 4.26, in 1870.
United States ranks 4th of 111 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Mean years of schooling long run in United States, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 4.26 | — |
| 1875 | 4.57 | +7.3% |
| 1880 | 4.89 | +7.0% |
| 1885 | 5.17 | +5.7% |
| 1890 | 5.55 | +7.4% |
| 1895 | 5.93 | +6.8% |
| 1900 | 6.38 | +7.6% |
| 1905 | 6.72 | +5.3% |
| 1910 | 6.76 | +0.6% |
| 1915 | 6.97 | +3.1% |
| 1920 | 7.2 | +3.3% |
| 1925 | 7.56 | +5.0% |
| 1930 | 7.9 | +4.5% |
| 1935 | 8.34 | +5.6% |
| 1940 | 8.68 | +4.1% |
| 1945 | 8.93 | +2.9% |
| 1950 | 8.74 | -2.1% |
| 1955 | 9.14 | +4.6% |
| 1960 | 9.63 | +5.4% |
| 1965 | 10.42 | +8.2% |
| 1970 | 11.1 | +6.5% |
| 1975 | 11.73 | +5.7% |
| 1980 | 12.28 | +4.7% |
| 1985 | 12.35 | +0.6% |
| 1990 | 12.55 | +1.6% |
| 1995 | 12.83 | +2.2% |
| 2000 | 13.1 | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 13.01 | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 13.24 | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 13.29 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 13.32 | +0.2% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 13.32 is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.82, 1.1× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 4.42 | 4.26 | 4.57 | 2 |
| 1880s | 5.03 | 4.89 | 5.17 | 2 |
| 1890s | 5.74 | 5.55 | 5.93 | 2 |
| 1900s | 6.55 | 6.38 | 6.72 | 2 |
| 1910s | 6.87 | 6.76 | 6.97 | 2 |
| 1920s | 7.38 | 7.2 | 7.56 | 2 |
| 1930s | 8.12 | 7.9 | 8.34 | 2 |
| 1940s | 8.8 | 8.68 | 8.93 | 2 |
| 1950s | 8.94 | 8.74 | 9.14 | 2 |
| 1960s | 10.03 | 9.63 | 10.42 | 2 |
| 1970s | 11.41 | 11.1 | 11.73 | 2 |
| 1980s | 12.31 | 12.28 | 12.35 | 2 |
| 1990s | 12.69 | 12.55 | 12.83 | 2 |
| 2000s | 13.05 | 13.01 | 13.1 | 2 |
| 2010s | 13.27 | 13.24 | 13.29 | 2 |
| 2020s | 13.32 | 13.32 | 13.32 | 1 |
Countries ranked near United States
More education data for United States
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 96.21 (2022)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 96.02 (2022)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is mean years of schooling long run in United States?
- Mean years of schooling long run in United States was 13.32 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest mean years of schooling long run recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 13.32 in 2020.
- What is the lowest mean years of schooling long run recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.26 in 1870.
- How does United States rank for mean years of schooling long run?
- United States ranks 4th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is mean years of schooling long run rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Mean years of schooling long run. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).