Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada
Canada: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 95.0% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada, 1820–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2023, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada stood at 95.0%.
That represents a change of up 0.3% on the previous year and down 4.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada peaked at 100.0% in 1925 and was at its lowest, 56.8%, in 1820.
That places Canada 125th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 46 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 56.8% | — |
| 1825 | 59.5% | +4.8% |
| 1830 | 62.2% | +4.5% |
| 1835 | 64.8% | +4.2% |
| 1840 | 67.3% | +3.9% |
| 1845 | 69.7% | +3.6% |
| 1850 | 72.0% | +3.3% |
| 1855 | 74.2% | +3.1% |
| 1860 | 76.3% | +2.8% |
| 1865 | 78.3% | +2.6% |
| 1870 | 81.9% | +4.5% |
| 1875 | 84.6% | +3.3% |
| 1880 | 83.6% | -1.1% |
| 1885 | 87.3% | +4.4% |
| 1890 | 90.5% | +3.7% |
| 1895 | 92.4% | +2.1% |
| 1900 | 95.8% | +3.7% |
| 1905 | 90.4% | -5.7% |
| 1910 | 92.4% | +2.2% |
| 1915 | 88.2% | -4.5% |
| 1920 | 98.4% | +11.6% |
| 1925 | 100.0% | +1.7% |
| 1930 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 99.0% | -1.0% |
| 1945 | 90.0% | -9.0% |
| 1950 | 93.0% | +3.4% |
| 1955 | 96.3% | +3.5% |
| 1960 | 73.0% | -24.2% |
| 1965 | 69.0% | -5.5% |
| 1970 | 92.0% | +33.3% |
| 1975 | 90.6% | -1.5% |
| 1980 | 93.8% | +3.5% |
| 2000 | 99.4% | +6.0% |
| 2012 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 99.7% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 98.5% | -1.2% |
| 2017 | 98.6% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 98.7% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 97.2% | -1.5% |
| 2020 | 96.9% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 95.2% | -1.7% |
| 2022 | 94.7% | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 95.0% | +0.3% |
Canada compared with similar countries
- Canada's 95.0% is below the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 97% of the median. (74 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | +33.3% | 69.0% | 92.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 58.2% | 56.8% | 59.5% | 2 |
| 1830s | 63.5% | 62.2% | 64.8% | 2 |
| 1840s | 68.5% | 67.3% | 69.7% | 2 |
| 1850s | 73.1% | 72.0% | 74.2% | 2 |
| 1860s | 77.3% | 76.3% | 78.3% | 2 |
| 1870s | 83.2% | 81.9% | 84.6% | 2 |
| 1880s | 85.5% | 83.6% | 87.3% | 2 |
| 1890s | 91.5% | 90.5% | 92.4% | 2 |
| 1900s | 93.1% | 90.4% | 95.8% | 2 |
| 1910s | 90.3% | 88.2% | 92.4% | 2 |
| 1920s | 99.2% | 98.4% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1940s | 94.5% | 90.0% | 99.0% | 2 |
| 1950s | 94.7% | 93.0% | 96.3% | 2 |
| 1960s | 71.0% | 69.0% | 73.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 91.3% | 90.6% | 92.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 93.8% | 93.8% | 93.8% | 1 |
| 2000s | 99.4% | 99.4% | 99.4% | 1 |
| 2010s | 98.9% | 97.2% | 99.7% | 8 |
| 2020s | 95.5% | 94.7% | 96.9% | 4 |
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 children in primary school age who are in school in Canada?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Canada was 95.0% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1925.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 56.8% in 1820.
- How does Canada rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Canada ranks 125th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children in primary school age who are in school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.