Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark
Denmark: Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education was 10 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
10
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
73rd
of 214 countries
All-time high
10
in 2011
All-time low
9
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Denmark recorded 10 for number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark peaked at 10 in 2011 and was at its lowest, 9, in 1998.
Denmark ranks 73rd of 214 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 9 | — |
| 1999 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 9 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 10 | +11.1% |
| 2012 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 10 | +0.0% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 10 is above the median for high income countries, which is 10, 1.0× the median. (76 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 10 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 10, 1.0× the median. (53 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 9 | 9 | 9 | 2 |
| 2000s | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.9 | 9 | 10 | 10 |
| 2020s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
- 73 Andorra 10 compare
- 73 Burkina Faso 10 compare
- 73 Central African Republic 10 compare
- 73 Canada 10 compare
- 73 Switzerland 10 compare
- 73 Côte d'Ivoire 10 compare
- 73 Congo 10 compare
- 73 Cape Verde 10 compare
- 73 Djibouti 10 compare
- 73 Algeria 10 compare
- 73 Spain 10 compare
- 73 France 10 compare
- 73 Gabon 10 compare
- 73 Hungary 10 compare
- 73 Ireland 10 compare
- 73 Iceland 10 compare
- 73 Jordan 10 compare
- 73 Lebanon 10 compare
- 73 Saint Lucia 10 compare
- 73 Liechtenstein 10 compare
- 73 Lithuania 10 compare
- 73 Luxembourg 10 compare
- 73 Maldives 10 compare
- 73 Norway 10 compare
- 73 New Zealand 10 compare
- 73 Oman 10 compare
- 73 Palestine, State of 10 compare
- 73 Romania 10 compare
- 73 San Marino 10 compare
- 73 Slovakia 10 compare
- 73 Chad 10 compare
- 73 Togo 10 compare
More education data for Denmark
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 50,935 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 2,888 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,481 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 88,072 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 522,143 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 432,238 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8558 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0723 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark?
- Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Denmark was 10 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 10 in 2011.
- What is the lowest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 9 in 1998.
- How does Denmark rank for number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education?
- Denmark ranks 73rd out of 214 countries with data for 2025.
- Is number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Denmark data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education guaranteed in legal frameworks. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release