Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Israel
Israel: Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education was 12 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
12
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
5th
of 214 countries
All-time high
12
in 2009
All-time low
10
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Israel, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Israel recorded 12 for number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in 2025. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Israel peaked at 12 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 10, in 1998.
That places Israel 5th out of 214 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
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 Israel, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 10 | — |
| 1999 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 12 | +20.0% |
| 2010 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 12 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 12 | +0.0% |
Israel compared with similar countries
- Israel's 12 is above the median for high income countries, which is 10, 1.2× the median. (76 countries reporting)
- Israel's 12 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 10, 1.2× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 2 |
| 2000s | 10.2 | 10 | 12 | 10 |
| 2010s | 12 | 12 | 12 | 10 |
| 2020s | 12 | 12 | 12 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Israel
- 5 Anguilla 12 compare
- 5 United Arab Emirates 12 compare
- 5 Argentina 12 compare
- 5 Armenia 12 compare
- 5 Austria 12 compare
- 5 Belgium 12 compare
- 5 Bahamas 12 compare
- 5 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 12 compare
- 5 Brazil 12 compare
- 5 Chile 12 compare
- 5 Cook Islands 12 compare
- 5 Curaçao 12 compare
- 5 Dominica 12 compare
- 5 Dominican Republic 12 compare
- 5 Ecuador 12 compare
- 5 Egypt 12 compare
- 5 Gibraltar 12 compare
- 5 Grenada 12 compare
- 5 Italy 12 compare
- 5 Kenya 12 compare
- 5 Saint Kitts and Nevis 12 compare
- 5 Mexico 12 compare
- 5 Marshall Islands 12 compare
- 5 Mongolia 12 compare
- 5 Montserrat 12 compare
- 5 Mauritius 12 compare
- 5 Netherlands 12 compare
- 5 Naoero 12 compare
- 5 Pakistan 12 compare
- 5 Philippines 12 compare
- 5 Palau 12 compare
- 5 Puerto Rico 12 compare
- 5 Portugal 12 compare
- 5 Paraguay 12 compare
- 5 Qatar 12 compare
- 5 Turkmenistan 12 compare
- 5 Türkiye 12 compare
- 5 Uruguay 12 compare
- 5 United States of America 12 compare
- 5 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 12 compare
- 5 British Virgin Islands 12 compare
More education data for Israel
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 71,062 (2009)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 7,660 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 291,410 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 277,964 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 948,390 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 1.05 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9923 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1048 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Israel?
- Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Israel was 12 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Israel?
- The highest recorded value was 12 in 2009.
- What is the lowest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Israel?
- The lowest recorded value was 10 in 1998.
- How does Israel rank for number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education?
- Israel ranks 5th out of 214 countries with data for 2025.
- Is number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education rising or falling in Israel?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Israel 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