Productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia
Australia: Productivity vs. educational attainment was 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
Change on year
down 0.5%
World rank
13th
of 130 countries
All-time high
77.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
in 2022
All-time low
17.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour
in 1952
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia, 1950–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in international-$ in 2021 prices per hour.
Analysis
Australia recorded 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour for productivity vs. educational attainment in 2023.
That represents a change of down 0.5% on the previous year and up 10.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia peaked at 77.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2022 and was at its lowest, 17.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, in 1952.
That places Australia 13th out of 130 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia, year by year
| Year | international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 18.43 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | — |
| 1951 | 17.52 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -4.9% |
| 1952 | 17.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -2.1% |
| 1953 | 19.14 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +11.6% |
| 1954 | 20.3 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +6.1% |
| 1955 | 21.05 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.7% |
| 1956 | 21.12 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.3% |
| 1957 | 21.2 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.3% |
| 1958 | 22.86 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +7.9% |
| 1959 | 24.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +6.2% |
| 1960 | 24.14 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.6% |
| 1961 | 24.85 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.0% |
| 1962 | 25.64 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.2% |
| 1963 | 26.75 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.3% |
| 1964 | 27.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.5% |
| 1965 | 26.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -1.4% |
| 1966 | 27.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.3% |
| 1967 | 28.11 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.6% |
| 1968 | 29.56 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +5.2% |
| 1969 | 31.01 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.9% |
| 1970 | 31.11 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.3% |
| 1971 | 31.6 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.6% |
| 1972 | 32.33 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.3% |
| 1973 | 33.08 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.3% |
| 1974 | 31.12 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -5.9% |
| 1975 | 32.07 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.0% |
| 1976 | 32.87 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.5% |
| 1977 | 33.14 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 34.54 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.2% |
| 1979 | 35.08 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 35.26 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.5% |
| 1981 | 36.6 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.8% |
| 1982 | 36.19 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -1.1% |
| 1983 | 39.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +8.6% |
| 1984 | 39.01 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.7% |
| 1985 | 38.94 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.2% |
| 1986 | 38.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -1.7% |
| 1987 | 40.54 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +5.9% |
| 1988 | 41.34 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 40.84 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -1.2% |
| 1990 | 40.51 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.8% |
| 1991 | 41.76 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.1% |
| 1992 | 43.75 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.8% |
| 1993 | 44.71 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 45.21 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.1% |
| 1995 | 45.96 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.6% |
| 1996 | 47.47 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.3% |
| 1997 | 49.62 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.5% |
| 1998 | 50.73 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 52.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.6% |
| 2000 | 52.59 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.1% |
| 2001 | 53.98 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.6% |
| 2002 | 55.34 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.5% |
| 2003 | 56.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.2% |
| 2004 | 57.61 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 59.97 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.1% |
| 2006 | 59.91 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 59.75 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.3% |
| 2008 | 60.98 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.1% |
| 2009 | 60.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.7% |
| 2010 | 66.43 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +9.7% |
| 2011 | 68.34 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.9% |
| 2012 | 67.27 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 69.43 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +3.2% |
| 2014 | 69.18 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.4% |
| 2015 | 64.94 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -6.1% |
| 2016 | 68.32 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +5.2% |
| 2017 | 69.41 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 70.92 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.2% |
| 2019 | 71.47 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 74.89 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +4.8% |
| 2021 | 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +2.5% |
| 2022 | 77.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | -0.5% |
Australia compared with similar countries
- Australia's 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour is above the median for high income countries, which is 51.52 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, 1.5× the median. (51 countries reporting)
- Australia's 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 24.39 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour, 3.1× the median. (14 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 20.31 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 17.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 24.29 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1960s | 27.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 24.14 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 31.01 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1970s | 32.69 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 31.11 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 35.08 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1980s | 38.63 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 35.26 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 41.34 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 1990s | 46.23 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 40.51 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 52.55 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2000s | 57.72 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 52.59 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 60.98 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2010s | 68.57 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 64.94 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 71.47 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 10 |
| 2020s | 76.41 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 74.89 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 77.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour | 4 |
Countries ranked near Australia
- 10 Germany 82.5 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 11 Sweden 80.74 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 12 France 77.67 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 14 Iceland 75.65 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 15 Finland 69.63 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
- 16 Qatar 69.42 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour compare
More education data for Australia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 104,110 (1992)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 316,638 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 292,593 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.65 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.27 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.4362 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0835 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia?
- Productivity vs. educational attainment in Australia was 76.78 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest productivity vs. educational attainment recorded in Australia?
- The highest recorded value was 77.17 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 2022.
- What is the lowest productivity vs. educational attainment recorded in Australia?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.15 international-$ in 2021 prices per hour in 1952.
- How does Australia rank for productivity vs. educational attainment?
- Australia ranks 13th out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
- Is productivity vs. educational attainment rising or falling in Australia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 10.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Australia data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Productivity vs. educational attainment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Productivity is calculated as GDP divided by the total number of hours worked in the economy. This data is adjusted for inflation and differences in living costs between countries.