Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal frameworks by country
February 2026 Data Release
Countries reporting
104
Highest
4
Bulgaria
Lowest
0
Slovenia
Median
2
Years covered
28
1998–2025
Data points
4,832
What the numbers show
Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal frameworks is currently reported for 104 countries. The highest value is 4 in Bulgaria; the lowest is 0 in Slovenia.
The median across all reporting countries is 2, and the mean is 2.2.
Over the past decade 2 countries rose and 3 fell. The largest increase was in Israel (up 200.0%), and the largest decrease in Tanzania, United Republic of (down 50.0%).
Number of years of free pre-primary education guaranteed in legal: full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bulgaria | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 1 | Kyrgyzstan | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 1 | Latvia | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 1 | Republic of Moldova | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 1 | Mongolia | 4 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 1 | Poland | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 1 | Russian Federation | 4 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 1 | Tajikistan | 4 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 1 | Uzbekistan | 4 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Albania | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Argentina | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Armenia | 3 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Belgium | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Congo | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Colombia | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Comoros | 3 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Cuba | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 10 | Dominican Republic | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Ecuador | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 10 | Spain | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 10 | France | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Guatemala | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 10 | Honduras | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Hungary | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Israel | 3 | 2025 | up 200.0% | volatile |
| 10 | Japan | 3 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Kazakhstan | 3 | 2025 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 10 | Korea | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 10 | Lebanon | 3 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Luxembourg | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Macau, China | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Monaco | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Madagascar | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Mali | 3 | 2025 | down 25.0% | falling |
| 10 | Mauritania | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 10 | Peru | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Paraguay | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Romania | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | falling |
| 10 | El Salvador | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 10 | Syrian Arab Republic | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 10 | Thailand | 3 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 10 | Turkmenistan | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 10 | Türkiye | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 10 | Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of | 3 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 45 | Aruba | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | United Arab Emirates | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Bahamas | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Belize | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Bolivia, Plurinational State of | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Brazil | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | Barbados | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Switzerland | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Chile | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | rising |
| 45 | Costa Rica | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Cayman Islands | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Georgia | 2 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 45 | Ghana | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | Greece | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Grenada | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Iraq | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Libya | 2 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 45 | Maldives | 2 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 45 | Mexico | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Malta | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Netherlands | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Naoero | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | New Zealand | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | Panama | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Portugal | 2 | 2025 | up 100.0% | volatile |
| 45 | Sudan | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | Sint Maarten (Dutch part) | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Turks and Caicos Islands | 2 | 2025 | — | flat |
| 45 | Uruguay | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 45 | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 45 | Cook Islands | 2 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Afghanistan | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Angola | 1 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 77 | Australia | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Austria | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 77 | Bermuda | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Canada | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Cyprus | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 77 | Djibouti | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Algeria | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | falling |
| 77 | Finland | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Gibraltar | 1 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 77 | Jordan | 1 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 77 | Lithuania | 1 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 77 | Marshall Islands | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Nepal | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Philippines | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Puerto Rico | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 77 | Korea, Democratic People's Republic of | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Palestine, State of | 1 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 77 | Slovakia | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 77 | Sweden | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | volatile |
| 77 | Tanzania, United Republic of | 1 | 2025 | down 50.0% | falling |
| 77 | United States of America | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 77 | Niue | 1 | 2025 | unchanged | flat |
| 101 | Burkina Faso | 0 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 101 | Denmark | 0 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 101 | Montenegro | 0 | 2025 | — | volatile |
| 101 | Slovenia | 0 | 2025 | — | volatile |
About this data
February 2026 Data Release