Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway
Norway: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 98.6% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
98.6%
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
57th
of 209 countries
All-time high
100.0%
in 1925
All-time low
48.5%
in 1820
Years of data
57
1820–2024
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway, 1820–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Norway recorded 98.6% for share of children in primary school age who are in school in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and down 1.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway peaked at 100.0% in 1925 and was at its lowest, 48.5%, in 1820.
Norway ranks 57th of 209 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 57 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 48.5% | — |
| 1825 | 51.3% | +5.7% |
| 1830 | 54.1% | +5.4% |
| 1835 | 56.8% | +5.1% |
| 1840 | 59.5% | +4.8% |
| 1845 | 62.2% | +4.5% |
| 1850 | 64.8% | +4.2% |
| 1855 | 67.3% | +3.9% |
| 1860 | 69.7% | +3.6% |
| 1865 | 72.0% | +3.3% |
| 1870 | 74.2% | +3.1% |
| 1875 | 76.3% | +2.8% |
| 1880 | 78.3% | +2.6% |
| 1885 | 80.2% | +2.4% |
| 1890 | 91.5% | +14.0% |
| 1895 | 97.8% | +6.9% |
| 1900 | 96.0% | -1.8% |
| 1905 | 98.2% | +2.2% |
| 1910 | 98.2% | +0.1% |
| 1915 | 99.5% | +1.3% |
| 1920 | 99.3% | -0.2% |
| 1925 | 100.0% | +0.7% |
| 1930 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1935 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1945 | 99.0% | -1.0% |
| 1950 | 100.0% | +1.0% |
| 1955 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 87.7% | -12.3% |
| 1965 | 100.0% | +14.0% |
| 1970 | 89.0% | -11.0% |
| 1975 | 100.0% | +12.4% |
| 1980 | 98.0% | -2.0% |
| 2001 | 99.5% | +1.5% |
| 2002 | 99.5% | -0.0% |
| 2003 | 99.4% | -0.0% |
| 2004 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2005 | 99.4% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 99.5% | +0.1% |
| 2007 | 99.7% | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 99.8% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 99.8% | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 99.7% | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 99.8% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 99.7% | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 99.7% | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 99.6% | -0.2% |
| 2015 | 99.5% | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 99.3% | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 99.3% | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 99.2% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 99.2% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 99.0% | -0.2% |
| 2021 | 99.1% | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 99.0% | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 98.7% | -0.4% |
| 2024 | 98.6% | -0.1% |
Norway compared with similar countries
- Norway's 98.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 1.0× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Norway's 98.6% 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 | 49.9% | 48.5% | 51.3% | 2 |
| 1830s | 55.4% | 54.1% | 56.8% | 2 |
| 1840s | 60.9% | 59.5% | 62.2% | 2 |
| 1850s | 66.0% | 64.8% | 67.3% | 2 |
| 1860s | 70.9% | 69.7% | 72.0% | 2 |
| 1870s | 75.3% | 74.2% | 76.3% | 2 |
| 1880s | 79.3% | 78.3% | 80.2% | 2 |
| 1890s | 94.6% | 91.5% | 97.8% | 2 |
| 1900s | 97.1% | 96.0% | 98.2% | 2 |
| 1910s | 98.9% | 98.2% | 99.5% | 2 |
| 1920s | 99.7% | 99.3% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1940s | 99.5% | 99.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1950s | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1960s | 93.9% | 87.7% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 94.5% | 89.0% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1980s | 98.0% | 98.0% | 98.0% | 1 |
| 2000s | 99.6% | 99.4% | 99.8% | 9 |
| 2010s | 99.5% | 99.2% | 99.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 98.9% | 98.6% | 99.1% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Norway
More education data for Norway
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 59,473 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (1993)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 85,282 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 80,636 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 469,508 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 434,422 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -0.7841 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.078 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Norway was 98.6% 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 Norway?
- 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 Norway?
- The lowest recorded value was 48.5% in 1820.
- How does Norway rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Norway ranks 57th out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Norway?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Norway 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
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About this data
Share of children of primary school age (typically 6–11 years) who are enrolled in primary education.