Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran
Iran: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 99.9% in 2023. ◆ Volatile
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran, 1820–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran is 99.9%, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 64 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 2.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran peaked at 99.9% in 2023 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1820.
That places Iran 9th out of 209 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 0.0% | — |
| 1825 | 0.0% | — |
| 1830 | 0.0% | — |
| 1835 | 0.0% | — |
| 1840 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1845 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1850 | 0.0% | +0.0% |
| 1855 | 0.0% | +100.0% |
| 1860 | 0.0% | +50.0% |
| 1865 | 0.0% | +33.3% |
| 1870 | 0.1% | +25.0% |
| 1875 | 0.1% | +40.0% |
| 1880 | 0.1% | +42.9% |
| 1885 | 0.1% | +40.0% |
| 1890 | 0.2% | +35.7% |
| 1895 | 0.3% | +36.8% |
| 1900 | 0.4% | +38.5% |
| 1905 | 0.5% | +38.9% |
| 1910 | 0.7% | +36.0% |
| 1915 | 0.9% | +38.2% |
| 1920 | 1.3% | +38.3% |
| 1925 | 2.6% | +102.3% |
| 1930 | 5.8% | +119.0% |
| 1935 | 7.8% | +36.1% |
| 1940 | 12.5% | +59.4% |
| 1945 | 12.5% | +0.0% |
| 1950 | 24.2% | +93.5% |
| 1955 | 26.2% | +8.3% |
| 1960 | 34.0% | +29.8% |
| 1965 | 38.3% | +12.8% |
| 1970 | 60.0% | +56.5% |
| 1971 | 57.2% | -4.7% |
| 1975 | 77.6% | +35.8% |
| 1980 | 73.7% | -5.0% |
| 1984 | 83.1% | +12.8% |
| 1985 | 83.0% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 83.2% | +0.2% |
| 1987 | 82.9% | -0.3% |
| 1988 | 83.8% | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 83.8% | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 89.4% | +6.7% |
| 1992 | 92.1% | +3.0% |
| 1997 | 89.6% | -2.7% |
| 1999 | 83.0% | -7.4% |
| 2000 | 83.3% | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 97.2% | +16.7% |
| 2003 | 97.6% | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 98.3% | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 99.1% | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 98.9% | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 94.6% | -4.3% |
| 2009 | 95.3% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 94.5% | -0.9% |
| 2011 | 95.2% | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 95.8% | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 97.8% | +2.1% |
| 2014 | 96.0% | -1.8% |
| 2015 | 96.2% | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 96.5% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 97.4% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 98.4% | +1.1% |
| 2020 | 98.2% | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 99.7% | +1.5% |
| 2023 | 99.9% | +0.2% |
Iran compared with similar countries
- Iran's 99.9% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 96.0%, 1.0× the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Iran's 99.9% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 95.4%, 1.0× the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 | +119.0% | 2.6% | 5.8% |
| 1925 | +102.3% | 1.3% | 2.6% |
| 1855 | +100.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| 1950 | +93.5% | 12.5% | 24.2% |
| 1940 | +59.4% | 7.8% | 12.5% |
| 1970 | +56.5% | 38.3% | 60.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1830s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1840s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1850s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1860s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1870s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1880s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 2 |
| 1890s | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.3% | 2 |
| 1900s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 2 |
| 1910s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.9% | 2 |
| 1920s | 2.0% | 1.3% | 2.6% | 2 |
| 1930s | 6.8% | 5.8% | 7.8% | 2 |
| 1940s | 12.5% | 12.5% | 12.5% | 2 |
| 1950s | 25.2% | 24.2% | 26.2% | 2 |
| 1960s | 36.2% | 34.0% | 38.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 64.9% | 57.2% | 77.6% | 3 |
| 1980s | 81.9% | 73.7% | 83.8% | 7 |
| 1990s | 88.5% | 83.0% | 92.1% | 4 |
| 2000s | 95.5% | 83.3% | 99.1% | 8 |
| 2010s | 96.4% | 94.5% | 98.4% | 9 |
| 2020s | 99.2% | 98.2% | 99.9% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Iran
More education data for Iran
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 406,399 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 108,066 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 519,698 (2020)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 505,053 (2020)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.62 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 9.09 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 3.31 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1003 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Iran was 99.9% 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 Iran?
- The highest recorded value was 99.9% in 2023.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Iran?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1820.
- How does Iran rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Iran ranks 9th out of 209 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Iran?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Iran 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.