Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia
Australia: Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary was 1.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.9%
Change on year
down 4.6%
World rank
153rd
of 171 countries
All-time high
2.0%
in 2023
All-time low
0.3%
in 2015
Years of data
8
2015–2024
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia, 2015–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Australia recorded 1.9% for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in 2024.
The figure is down 4.6% on the previous year and up 591.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia peaked at 2.0% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2015.
That places Australia 153rd out of 171 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 0.3% | — |
| 2018 | 1.4% | +412.6% |
| 2019 | 1.1% | -26.1% |
| 2020 | 1.5% | +39.0% |
| 2021 | 1.7% | +11.3% |
| 2022 | 2.0% | +22.5% |
| 2023 | 2.0% | +0.9% |
| 2024 | 1.9% | -4.6% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 1.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 3.6%, 54% of the median. (65 countries reporting)
- Australia's 1.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9.5%, 20% of the median. (26 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 0.9% | 0.3% | 1.4% | 3 |
| 2020s | 1.8% | 1.5% | 2.0% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Australia
More education data for Australia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 104,110 (1992)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 316,638 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 292,593 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.65 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.4362 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0835 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia?
- Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary in Australia was 1.9% in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 2.0% in 2023.
- What is the lowest out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2015.
- How does Australia rank for out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary?
- Australia ranks 153rd out of 171 countries with data for 2024.
- Is out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 591.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Out-of-school rate for children, adolescents and youth of primary, lower secondary and upper secondary school age, male (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 8 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release