Official entrance age to pre-primary education (Official UNESCO) in Tonga
Tonga: Official entrance age to pre-primary education (Official UNESCO) was 4 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
4 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
14th
of 223 countries
All-time high
4 years
in 2012
All-time low
3 years
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
Official entrance age to pre-primary education in Tonga, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
The most recent figure for official entrance age to pre-primary education in Tonga is 4 years, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 56 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, official entrance age to pre-primary education in Tonga peaked at 4 years in 2012 and was at its lowest, 3 years, in 1970.
Tonga ranks 14th of 223 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Official entrance age to pre-primary education (Official UNESCO) in Tonga, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 3 years | — |
| 1971 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1972 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 3 years | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 2013 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 4 years | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 4 years | +0.0% |
Tonga compared with similar countries
- Tonga's 4 years is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 3 years, 1.3× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Tonga's 4 years is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3 years, 1.3× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 3 years | 3 years | 3 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.8 years | 3 years | 4 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 4 years | 4 years | 4 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Tonga
- 14 Aruba 4 years compare
- 14 Benin 4 years compare
- 14 Bermuda 4 years compare
- 14 Bolivia 4 years compare
- 14 Brazil 4 years compare
- 14 Cameroon 4 years compare
- 14 Costa Rica 4 years compare
- 14 Djibouti 4 years compare
- 14 Egypt 4 years compare
- 14 El Salvador 4 years compare
- 14 Equatorial Guinea 4 years compare
- 14 Eritrea 4 years compare
- 14 Ethiopia 4 years compare
- 14 Falkland Islands 4 years compare
- 14 Ghana 4 years compare
- 14 Greece 4 years compare
- 14 Guatemala 4 years compare
- 14 Guinea 4 years compare
- 14 Guyana 4 years compare
- 14 Iraq 4 years compare
- 14 Jordan 4 years compare
- 14 Kuwait 4 years compare
- 14 Libya 4 years compare
- 14 Malaysia 4 years compare
- 14 Maldives 4 years compare
- 14 Mali 4 years compare
- 14 Morocco 4 years compare
- 14 Nauru 4 years compare
- 14 Niger 4 years compare
- 14 Niue 4 years compare
- 14 Oman 4 years compare
- 14 Palestine 4 years compare
- 14 Panama 4 years compare
- 14 Saint Helena 4 years compare
- 14 Seychelles 4 years compare
- 14 Sudan 4 years compare
- 14 Suriname 4 years compare
- 14 Switzerland 4 years compare
- 14 Turks and Caicos Islands 4 years compare
- 14 United Arab Emirates 4 years compare
- 14 Vanuatu 4 years compare
- 14 Western Sahara 4 years compare
- 14 Zimbabwe 4 years compare
More education data for Tonga
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1,086 (2015)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 20 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1,228 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1,164 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 16,132 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 15,644 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -2.92 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1502 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is official entrance age to pre-primary education in Tonga?
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education in Tonga was 4 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest official entrance age to pre-primary education recorded in Tonga?
- The highest recorded value was 4 years in 2012.
- What is the lowest official entrance age to pre-primary education recorded in Tonga?
- The lowest recorded value was 3 years in 1970.
- How does Tonga rank for official entrance age to pre-primary education?
- Tonga ranks 14th out of 223 countries with data for 2025.
- Is official entrance age to pre-primary education rising or falling in Tonga?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Tonga data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Official entrance age to pre-primary education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Official entry age at which children are expected to start pre-primary education according to national legislation or policies.