Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World
World: Pupil-teacher ratio, primary was 23.45 in 2018. ▼ Falling
Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World, 1970–2018
Source: Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
In 2018, pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World stood at 23.45.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.2% on the previous year and down 6.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World peaked at 28.73 in 1977 and was at its lowest, 23.11, in 2015.
World ranks 18th of 43 groups on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 49 years of available data.
Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 28.11 | — |
| 1971 | 28.24 | +0.5% |
| 1972 | 27.84 | -1.4% |
| 1973 | 28.36 | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 28.48 | +0.4% |
| 1975 | 28.62 | +0.5% |
| 1976 | 28.63 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 28.73 | +0.3% |
| 1978 | 28.57 | -0.6% |
| 1979 | 28.6 | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 28.35 | -0.9% |
| 1981 | 28.16 | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 27.8 | -1.3% |
| 1983 | 27.43 | -1.3% |
| 1984 | 27.23 | -0.7% |
| 1985 | 27.14 | -0.3% |
| 1986 | 26.93 | -0.8% |
| 1987 | 26.83 | -0.4% |
| 1988 | 26.68 | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 26.25 | -1.6% |
| 1990 | 26.22 | -0.1% |
| 1991 | 26.16 | -0.2% |
| 1992 | 26.13 | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 26.13 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 26.21 | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 26.3 | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 26.31 | +0.1% |
| 1997 | 26.47 | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 26.61 | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 26.55 | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 26.31 | -0.9% |
| 2001 | 26.02 | -1.1% |
| 2002 | 25.82 | -0.7% |
| 2003 | 25.26 | -2.2% |
| 2004 | 25.39 | +0.5% |
| 2005 | 25.25 | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 25.14 | -0.4% |
| 2007 | 25.05 | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 24.97 | -0.3% |
| 2009 | 24.68 | -1.2% |
| 2010 | 24.31 | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 24.12 | -0.8% |
| 2012 | 24.2 | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 23.55 | -2.7% |
| 2014 | 23.29 | -1.1% |
| 2015 | 23.11 | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 23.44 | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 23.39 | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 23.45 | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 28.42 | 27.84 | 28.73 | 10 |
| 1980s | 27.28 | 26.25 | 28.35 | 10 |
| 1990s | 26.31 | 26.13 | 26.61 | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.39 | 24.68 | 26.31 | 10 |
| 2010s | 23.65 | 23.11 | 24.31 | 9 |
Countries ranked near World
More education data for World
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 651.68 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 780.85 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.43 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0959 units per person (2024)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 34.10 million (2024)
- Population ages 15-64 65.2% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 24.4% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World?
- Pupil-teacher ratio, primary in World was 23.45 in 2018, according to Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest pupil-teacher ratio, primary recorded in World?
- The highest recorded value was 28.73 in 1977.
- What is the lowest pupil-teacher ratio, primary recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was 23.11 in 2015.
- How does World rank for pupil-teacher ratio, primary?
- World ranks 18th out of 43 groups with data for 2018.
- Is pupil-teacher ratio, primary rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this World data come from?
- The figures come from Stat Bulk Data Download Service, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Pupil-teacher ratio, primary. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Primary school pupil-teacher ratio is the average number of pupils per teacher in primary school.