Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland
Switzerland: Share of children in primary school age who are in school was 99.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
99.9%
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
15th
of 209 countries
All-time high
100.0%
in 1960
All-time low
63.6%
in 1820
Years of data
54
1820–2024
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland, 1820–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026); Lee and Lee (2016) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Switzerland recorded 99.9% 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 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland peaked at 100.0% in 1960 and was at its lowest, 63.6%, in 1820.
Switzerland ranks 15th of 209 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 54 years of available data.
Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 63.6% | — |
| 1825 | 65.1% | +2.4% |
| 1830 | 66.6% | +2.3% |
| 1835 | 69.2% | +3.9% |
| 1840 | 71.8% | +3.8% |
| 1845 | 74.4% | +3.6% |
| 1850 | 77.0% | +3.5% |
| 1855 | 79.6% | +3.4% |
| 1860 | 82.2% | +3.3% |
| 1865 | 84.8% | +3.2% |
| 1870 | 87.4% | +3.1% |
| 1875 | 90.0% | +3.0% |
| 1880 | 92.6% | +2.9% |
| 1885 | 96.4% | +4.1% |
| 1890 | 92.9% | -3.6% |
| 1895 | 90.9% | -2.2% |
| 1900 | 89.0% | -2.0% |
| 1905 | 91.2% | +2.5% |
| 1910 | 86.7% | -5.0% |
| 1915 | 88.3% | +1.9% |
| 1920 | 87.0% | -1.5% |
| 1925 | 85.4% | -1.8% |
| 1930 | 85.9% | +0.5% |
| 1935 | 89.1% | +3.8% |
| 1940 | 86.9% | -2.5% |
| 1945 | 81.3% | -6.4% |
| 1950 | 84.0% | +3.3% |
| 1955 | 87.2% | +3.9% |
| 1960 | 100.0% | +14.7% |
| 1965 | 80.1% | -19.9% |
| 1970 | 78.3% | -2.3% |
| 1975 | 84.7% | +8.2% |
| 1980 | 92.1% | +8.7% |
| 2000 | 99.4% | +7.9% |
| 2001 | 99.3% | -0.0% |
| 2002 | 99.8% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 99.8% | -0.1% |
| 2004 | 99.9% | +0.1% |
| 2009 | 99.6% | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 99.6% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 99.0% | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 98.6% | -0.4% |
| 2013 | 100.0% | +1.3% |
| 2014 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 100.0% | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 99.9% | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 99.9% | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 99.9% | -0.0% |
| 2019 | 99.9% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 99.9% | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 99.8% | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 99.7% | -0.0% |
| 2023 | 100.0% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 99.9% | -0.1% |
Switzerland compared with similar countries
- Switzerland's 99.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 98.2%, 1.0× the median. (74 countries reporting)
- Switzerland's 99.9% 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 | 64.4% | 63.6% | 65.1% | 2 |
| 1830s | 67.9% | 66.6% | 69.2% | 2 |
| 1840s | 73.1% | 71.8% | 74.4% | 2 |
| 1850s | 78.3% | 77.0% | 79.6% | 2 |
| 1860s | 83.5% | 82.2% | 84.8% | 2 |
| 1870s | 88.7% | 87.4% | 90.0% | 2 |
| 1880s | 94.5% | 92.6% | 96.4% | 2 |
| 1890s | 91.9% | 90.9% | 92.9% | 2 |
| 1900s | 90.1% | 89.0% | 91.2% | 2 |
| 1910s | 87.5% | 86.7% | 88.3% | 2 |
| 1920s | 86.2% | 85.4% | 87.0% | 2 |
| 1930s | 87.5% | 85.9% | 89.1% | 2 |
| 1940s | 84.1% | 81.3% | 86.9% | 2 |
| 1950s | 85.6% | 84.0% | 87.2% | 2 |
| 1960s | 90.1% | 80.1% | 100.0% | 2 |
| 1970s | 81.5% | 78.3% | 84.7% | 2 |
| 1980s | 92.1% | 92.1% | 92.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 99.6% | 99.3% | 99.9% | 6 |
| 2010s | 99.7% | 98.6% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 99.8% | 99.7% | 100.0% | 5 |
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 children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland?
- Share of children in primary school age who are in school in Switzerland was 99.9% 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 Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 1960.
- What is the lowest share of children in primary school age who are in school recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 63.6% in 1820.
- How does Switzerland rank for share of children in primary school age who are in school?
- Switzerland ranks 15th out of 209 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of children in primary school age who are in school rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.