Share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia
Australia: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 99.1% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Latest (2020)
99.1%
World rank
22nd
of 111 countries
All-time high
99.5%
in 2010
All-time low
49.1%
in 1870
Years of data
31
1870–2020
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia is 99.1%, measured in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia peaked at 99.5% in 2010 and was at its lowest, 49.1%, in 1870.
Australia ranks 22nd of 111 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 31 years of available data.
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 49.1% | — |
| 1875 | 53.7% | +9.4% |
| 1880 | 58.2% | +8.4% |
| 1885 | 63.8% | +9.6% |
| 1890 | 70.2% | +10.0% |
| 1895 | 75.2% | +7.1% |
| 1900 | 75.1% | -0.1% |
| 1905 | 77.7% | +3.5% |
| 1910 | 82.3% | +5.9% |
| 1915 | 85.7% | +4.1% |
| 1920 | 88.7% | +3.5% |
| 1925 | 90.7% | +2.3% |
| 1930 | 92.9% | +2.4% |
| 1935 | 94.9% | +2.2% |
| 1940 | 96.3% | +1.5% |
| 1945 | 97.7% | +1.5% |
| 1950 | 98.8% | +1.1% |
| 1955 | 99.0% | +0.2% |
| 1960 | 99.2% | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 99.3% | +0.1% |
| 1970 | 99.4% | +0.1% |
| 1975 | 99.0% | -0.4% |
| 1980 | 99.3% | +0.3% |
| 1985 | 99.0% | -0.3% |
| 1990 | 99.1% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 98.9% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 99.2% | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 99.4% | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 99.3% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 99.1% | -0.2% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 99.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 99.0%, 1.0× the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Australia's 99.1% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 98.3%, 1.0× the median. (13 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 51.4% | 49.1% | 53.7% | 2 |
| 1880s | 61.0% | 58.2% | 63.8% | 2 |
| 1890s | 72.7% | 70.2% | 75.2% | 2 |
| 1900s | 76.4% | 75.1% | 77.7% | 2 |
| 1910s | 84.0% | 82.3% | 85.7% | 2 |
| 1920s | 89.7% | 88.7% | 90.7% | 2 |
| 1930s | 93.9% | 92.9% | 94.9% | 2 |
| 1940s | 97.0% | 96.3% | 97.7% | 2 |
| 1950s | 98.9% | 98.8% | 99.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 99.2% | 99.2% | 99.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 99.2% | 99.0% | 99.4% | 2 |
| 1980s | 99.2% | 99.0% | 99.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 99.0% | 98.9% | 99.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 99.3% | 99.2% | 99.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 99.4% | 99.3% | 99.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 99.1% | 99.1% | 99.1% | 1 |
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 share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Australia was 99.1% in 2020, according to Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 99.5% in 2010.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 49.1% in 1870.
- How does Australia rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Australia ranks 22nd out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population with at least some formal education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Based on the population aged 15 years and older.