Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark
Denmark: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 99.1% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
99.1%
Change on year
down 0.0%
World rank
45th
of 209 countries
All-time high
100.0%
in 1880
All-time low
84.9%
in 1820
Years of data
56
1820–2024
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark, 1820–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2024, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark stood at 99.1%.
That represents a change of down 0.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark peaked at 100.0% in 1880 and was at its lowest, 84.9%, in 1820.
Denmark ranks 45th of 209 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 84.9% | — |
| 1825 | 86.3% | +1.7% |
| 1830 | 87.7% | +1.5% |
| 1835 | 88.9% | +1.4% |
| 1840 | 90.0% | +1.3% |
| 1845 | 91.0% | +1.1% |
| 1850 | 92.0% | +1.0% |
| 1855 | 92.8% | +0.9% |
| 1860 | 93.6% | +0.8% |
| 1865 | 94.3% | +0.8% |
| 1870 | 95.0% | +0.7% |
| 1875 | 97.5% | +2.6% |
| 1880 | 100.0% | +2.6% |
| 1885 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1890 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1895 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1900 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1905 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1910 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1915 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1920 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1925 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1930 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1955 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 98.0% | -2.0% |
| 1970 | 96.0% | -2.0% |
| 1975 | 100.0% | +4.2% |
| 1980 | 96.0% | -4.0% |
| 2001 | 99.7% | +3.9% |
| 2002 | 100.0% | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 97.5% | -2.5% |
| 2005 | 98.0% | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 98.9% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 99.5% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2009 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 99.6% | +0.1% |
| 2013 | 99.5% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2015 | 99.4% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 99.3% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 99.4% | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 99.6% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 99.6% | -0.0% |
| 2020 | 99.6% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 99.5% | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 99.2% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 99.1% | -0.0% |
Denmark compared with similar countries
- Denmark's 99.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 1.0× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Denmark's 99.1% is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 98.6%, 1.0× the median. (51 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 85.6% | 84.9% | 86.3% | 2 |
| 1830s | 88.3% | 87.7% | 88.9% | 2 |
| 1840s | 90.5% | 90.0% | 91.0% | 2 |
| 1850s | 92.4% | 92.0% | 92.8% | 2 |
| 1860s | 94.0% | 93.6% | 94.3% | 2 |
| 1870s | 96.2% | 95.0% | 97.5% | 2 |
| 1880s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1890s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1900s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1910s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1920s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1940s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1950s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 99.0% | 98.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 98.0% | 96.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 96.0% | 96.0% | 96.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 99.1% | 97.5% | 100.0% | 8 |
| 2010s | 99.5% | 99.3% | 99.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 99.4% | 99.1% | 99.6% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Denmark
More education data for Denmark
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 50,935 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 2,888 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 94,481 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 88,072 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 522,143 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 432,238 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.8558 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0723 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Denmark was 99.1% in 2024, 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 Denmark?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1880.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Denmark?
- The lowest recorded value was 84.9% in 1820.
- How does Denmark rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Denmark ranks 45th out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Denmark?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Denmark 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.