Official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland
Switzerland: Official entrance age to compulsory education was 4 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
4
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
166th
of 200 countries
All-time high
5
in 1998
All-time low
4
in 2015
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland, 1998–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland stood at 4. That is the lowest value across all 28 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland peaked at 5 in 1998 and was at its lowest, 4, in 2015.
Switzerland ranks 166th of 200 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 28 years of available data.
Official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 5 | — |
| 1999 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 4 | -20.0% |
| 2016 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 4 | +0.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 2000s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.5 | 4 | 5 | 10 |
| 2020s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
- 166 Argentina 4 compare
- 166 Aruba 4 compare
- 166 Bolivia, Plurinational State of 4 compare
- 166 Brazil 4 compare
- 166 Bulgaria 4 compare
- 166 Cayman Islands 4 compare
- 166 Costa Rica 4 compare
- 166 Curaçao 4 compare
- 166 Ghana 4 compare
- 166 Gibraltar 4 compare
- 166 Hungary 4 compare
- 166 Luxembourg 4 compare
- 166 Maldives 4 compare
- 166 Mexico 4 compare
- 166 Naoero 4 compare
- 166 Nepal 4 compare
- 166 Panama 4 compare
- 166 Sint Maarten 4 compare
- 166 Tonga 4 compare
- 166 Turks and Caicos Islands 4 compare
- 166 Uruguay 4 compare
More education data for Switzerland
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 58,349 (2024)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 4 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 64.7% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 14.9% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 101.21 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary 101.2% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland?
- Official entrance age to compulsory education in Switzerland was 4 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest official entrance age to compulsory education recorded in Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 5 in 1998.
- What is the lowest official entrance age to compulsory education recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 4 in 2015.
- How does Switzerland rank for official entrance age to compulsory education?
- Switzerland ranks 166th out of 200 countries with data for 2025.
- Is official entrance age to compulsory education rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Switzerland data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Official entrance age to compulsory education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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