Share of the population with at least some formal education in Switzerland
Switzerland: Share of the population with at least some formal education was 98.9% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Latest (2020)
98.9%
World rank
29th
of 111 countries
All-time high
99.8%
in 1945
All-time low
74.3%
in 1870
Years of data
31
1870–2020
Share of the population with at least some formal education in Switzerland, 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 Switzerland is 98.9%, measured in 2020.
The figure is up 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population with at least some formal education in Switzerland peaked at 99.8% in 1945 and was at its lowest, 74.3%, in 1870.
Switzerland 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 Switzerland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 74.3% | — |
| 1875 | 76.7% | +3.2% |
| 1880 | 79.3% | +3.4% |
| 1885 | 81.9% | +3.3% |
| 1890 | 84.6% | +3.3% |
| 1895 | 87.1% | +3.0% |
| 1900 | 88.7% | +1.8% |
| 1905 | 90.7% | +2.3% |
| 1910 | 92.7% | +2.2% |
| 1915 | 94.0% | +1.4% |
| 1920 | 96.7% | +2.9% |
| 1925 | 97.7% | +1.0% |
| 1930 | 98.3% | +0.6% |
| 1935 | 98.6% | +0.3% |
| 1940 | 99.2% | +0.6% |
| 1945 | 99.8% | +0.6% |
| 1950 | 99.8% | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 99.8% | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 99.8% | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 97.6% | -2.2% |
| 1970 | 95.6% | -2.0% |
| 1975 | 96.0% | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 97.3% | +1.4% |
| 1985 | 93.2% | -4.2% |
| 1990 | 91.6% | -1.7% |
| 1995 | 89.8% | -2.0% |
| 2000 | 88.5% | -1.4% |
| 2005 | 91.0% | +2.8% |
| 2010 | 98.6% | +8.4% |
| 2015 | 98.8% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 98.9% | +0.1% |
Switzerland compared with similar countries
- Switzerland's 98.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 99.0%, 100% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
- Switzerland's 98.9% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 99.0%, 100% of the median. (28 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 75.5% | 74.3% | 76.7% | 2 |
| 1880s | 80.6% | 79.3% | 81.9% | 2 |
| 1890s | 85.8% | 84.6% | 87.1% | 2 |
| 1900s | 89.7% | 88.7% | 90.7% | 2 |
| 1910s | 93.3% | 92.7% | 94.0% | 2 |
| 1920s | 97.2% | 96.7% | 97.7% | 2 |
| 1930s | 98.4% | 98.3% | 98.6% | 2 |
| 1940s | 99.5% | 99.2% | 99.8% | 2 |
| 1950s | 99.8% | 99.8% | 99.8% | 2 |
| 1960s | 98.7% | 97.6% | 99.8% | 2 |
| 1970s | 95.8% | 95.6% | 96.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 95.2% | 93.2% | 97.3% | 2 |
| 1990s | 90.7% | 89.8% | 91.6% | 2 |
| 2000s | 89.8% | 88.5% | 91.0% | 2 |
| 2010s | 98.7% | 98.6% | 98.8% | 2 |
| 2020s | 98.9% | 98.9% | 98.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
More education data for Switzerland
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 68,266 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 5,583 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,990 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 89,549 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 636,381 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 556,945 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.34 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0618 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of the population with at least some formal education in Switzerland?
- Share of the population with at least some formal education in Switzerland 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 Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 99.8% in 1945.
- What is the lowest share of the population with at least some formal education recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 74.3% in 1870.
- How does Switzerland rank for share of the population with at least some formal education?
- Switzerland 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 Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.