Share of the population with at least some formal education in Canada
Canada: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 99.6% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Canada, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Canada recorded 99.6% for share of the population with at least some formal education in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Canada peaked at 99.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 70.3%, in 1870.
That places Canada 12th out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.
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 Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 70.3% | — |
| 1875 | 72.6% | +3.3% |
| 1880 | 75.1% | +3.4% |
| 1885 | 77.3% | +2.9% |
| 1890 | 79.1% | +2.3% |
| 1895 | 81.3% | +2.8% |
| 1900 | 84.2% | +3.6% |
| 1905 | 85.9% | +2.0% |
| 1910 | 86.6% | +0.8% |
| 1915 | 88.5% | +2.2% |
| 1920 | 90.9% | +2.7% |
| 1925 | 93.1% | +2.4% |
| 1930 | 94.7% | +1.7% |
| 1935 | 96.3% | +1.7% |
| 1940 | 97.1% | +0.8% |
| 1945 | 97.9% | +0.8% |
| 1950 | 98.4% | +0.5% |
| 1955 | 98.7% | +0.3% |
| 1960 | 99.0% | +0.3% |
| 1965 | 99.0% | +0.0% |
| 1970 | 99.4% | +0.4% |
| 1975 | 99.1% | -0.3% |
| 1980 | 99.0% | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 99.4% | +0.4% |
| 1990 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 1995 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2000 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 99.5% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 99.5% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 99.5% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 99.6% | +0.1% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 99.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 99.0%, 1.0× the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 71.4% | 70.3% | 72.6% | 2 |
| 1880s | 76.2% | 75.1% | 77.3% | 2 |
| 1890s | 80.2% | 79.1% | 81.3% | 2 |
| 1900s | 85.1% | 84.2% | 85.9% | 2 |
| 1910s | 87.5% | 86.6% | 88.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 92.0% | 90.9% | 93.1% | 2 |
| 1930s | 95.5% | 94.7% | 96.3% | 2 |
| 1940s | 97.5% | 97.1% | 97.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 98.6% | 98.4% | 98.7% | 2 |
| 1960s | 99.0% | 99.0% | 99.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 99.2% | 99.1% | 99.4% | 2 |
| 1980s | 99.2% | 99.0% | 99.4% | 2 |
| 1990s | 99.5% | 99.4% | 99.5% | 2 |
| 2000s | 99.5% | 99.5% | 99.5% | 2 |
| 2010s | 99.5% | 99.5% | 99.5% | 2 |
| 2020s | 99.6% | 99.6% | 99.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More education data for Canada
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 133,275 (1996)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2011)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 291,075 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 273,465 (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.70 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.43 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.83 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0607 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in Canada?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Canada was 99.6% 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 Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 99.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 70.3% in 1870.
- How does Canada rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Canada ranks 12th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada 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
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About this data
Based on the population aged 15 years and older.