Share of the population with at least some formal education in France
France: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 98.9% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of the population with at least some formal education in France, 1870–2020
Source: Barro and Lee (2015); Lee and Lee (2016) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2020, share of the population with at least some formal education in France stood at 98.9%.
The figure is up 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in France peaked at 99.7% in 1930 and was at its lowest, 21.6%, in 1870.
France ranks 29th of 111 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
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 France, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 21.6% | — |
| 1875 | 25.0% | +15.7% |
| 1880 | 37.3% | +49.2% |
| 1885 | 46.7% | +25.2% |
| 1890 | 56.2% | +20.3% |
| 1895 | 64.7% | +15.1% |
| 1900 | 72.1% | +11.4% |
| 1905 | 79.3% | +10.0% |
| 1910 | 85.9% | +8.3% |
| 1915 | 91.5% | +6.5% |
| 1920 | 96.7% | +5.7% |
| 1925 | 99.3% | +2.7% |
| 1930 | 99.7% | +0.4% |
| 1935 | 99.6% | -0.1% |
| 1940 | 99.6% | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 99.6% | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 99.7% | +0.1% |
| 1955 | 99.7% | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 99.7% | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 98.9% | -0.8% |
| 1970 | 98.9% | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 99.0% | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 99.2% | +0.2% |
| 1985 | 95.0% | -4.2% |
| 1990 | 94.1% | -0.9% |
| 1995 | 96.7% | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 98.2% | +1.6% |
| 2005 | 98.8% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 98.8% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 98.8% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 98.9% | +0.1% |
France compared with similar countries
- France's 98.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 99.0%, 100% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- France's 98.9% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 99.0%, 100% of the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of the population with at least some formal education in France 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | +49.2% | 25.0% | 37.3% |
| 1885 | +25.2% | 37.3% | 46.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 23.3% | 21.6% | 25.0% | 2 |
| 1880s | 42.0% | 37.3% | 46.7% | 2 |
| 1890s | 60.5% | 56.2% | 64.7% | 2 |
| 1900s | 75.7% | 72.1% | 79.3% | 2 |
| 1910s | 88.7% | 85.9% | 91.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 98.0% | 96.7% | 99.3% | 2 |
| 1930s | 99.7% | 99.6% | 99.7% | 2 |
| 1940s | 99.6% | 99.6% | 99.6% | 2 |
| 1950s | 99.7% | 99.7% | 99.7% | 2 |
| 1960s | 99.3% | 98.9% | 99.7% | 2 |
| 1970s | 99.0% | 98.9% | 99.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 97.1% | 95.0% | 99.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 95.4% | 94.1% | 96.7% | 2 |
| 2000s | 98.5% | 98.2% | 98.8% | 2 |
| 2010s | 98.8% | 98.8% | 98.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 98.9% | 98.9% | 98.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near France
More education data for France
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 457,956 (2019)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 43,533 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.19 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.14 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 4.13 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0602 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in France?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in France was 98.9% 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 France?
- The highest recorded value was 99.7% in 1930.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in France?
- The lowest recorded value was 21.6% in 1870.
- How does France rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- France ranks 29th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of the population with at least some formal education rising or falling in France?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this France 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.