Share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh
Bangladesh: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 78.1% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh, 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 Bangladesh is 78.1%, measured in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
That represents a change of up 12.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh peaked at 78.1% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.2%, in 1870.
That places Bangladesh 95th out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 0.2% | — |
| 1875 | 0.3% | +50.0% |
| 1880 | 0.4% | +33.3% |
| 1885 | 0.5% | +25.0% |
| 1890 | 0.6% | +20.0% |
| 1895 | 0.8% | +33.3% |
| 1900 | 1.1% | +37.5% |
| 1905 | 4.6% | +318.2% |
| 1910 | 7.9% | +71.7% |
| 1915 | 10.3% | +30.4% |
| 1920 | 10.6% | +2.9% |
| 1925 | 12.5% | +17.9% |
| 1930 | 14.5% | +16.0% |
| 1935 | 16.3% | +12.4% |
| 1940 | 18.3% | +12.3% |
| 1945 | 20.2% | +10.4% |
| 1950 | 21.8% | +7.9% |
| 1955 | 22.0% | +0.9% |
| 1960 | 22.9% | +4.1% |
| 1965 | 22.5% | -1.7% |
| 1970 | 22.2% | -1.3% |
| 1975 | 23.3% | +5.0% |
| 1980 | 33.9% | +45.5% |
| 1985 | 41.3% | +21.8% |
| 1990 | 44.7% | +8.2% |
| 1995 | 49.5% | +10.7% |
| 2000 | 57.4% | +16.0% |
| 2005 | 62.4% | +8.7% |
| 2010 | 69.6% | +11.5% |
| 2015 | 74.1% | +6.5% |
| 2020 | 78.1% | +5.4% |
Bangladesh compared with similar countries
- Bangladesh's 78.1% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 85.2%, 92% of the median. (25 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1905 | +318.2% | 1.1% | 4.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 2 |
| 1880s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 2 |
| 1890s | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.8% | 2 |
| 1900s | 2.8% | 1.1% | 4.6% | 2 |
| 1910s | 9.1% | 7.9% | 10.3% | 2 |
| 1920s | 11.6% | 10.6% | 12.5% | 2 |
| 1930s | 15.4% | 14.5% | 16.3% | 2 |
| 1940s | 19.2% | 18.3% | 20.2% | 2 |
| 1950s | 21.9% | 21.8% | 22.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 22.7% | 22.5% | 22.9% | 2 |
| 1970s | 22.8% | 22.2% | 23.3% | 2 |
| 1980s | 37.6% | 33.9% | 41.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 47.1% | 44.7% | 49.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 59.9% | 57.4% | 62.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 71.8% | 69.6% | 74.1% | 2 |
| 2020s | 78.1% | 78.1% | 78.1% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Bangladesh
More education data for Bangladesh
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 571,690 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 387,056 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.73 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.77 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 15.07 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 16.69 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 2.67 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0961 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Bangladesh was 78.1% 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 Bangladesh?
- The highest recorded value was 78.1% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Bangladesh?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.2% in 1870.
- How does Bangladesh rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Bangladesh ranks 95th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Bangladesh?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Bangladesh 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.