School age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan
Japan: School age population, early childhood education, both sexes was 2.62 million in 2025. ▼ Falling
School age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan, 2001–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
Japan recorded 2.62 million for school age population, early childhood education, both sexes in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.
The figure is down 3.8% on the previous year and down 17.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan peaked at 5.96 million in 2001 and was at its lowest, 2.62 million, in 2025.
That places Japan 35th out of 207 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 25 years of available data.
School age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 5.96 million | — |
| 2002 | 5.94 million | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 5.91 million | -0.5% |
| 2004 | 5.90 million | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 5.87 million | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 5.79 million | -1.4% |
| 2007 | 5.70 million | -1.4% |
| 2008 | 5.59 million | -2.1% |
| 2009 | 5.49 million | -1.7% |
| 2010 | 5.42 million | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 5.39 million | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 5.32 million | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 3.21 million | -39.7% |
| 2014 | 3.19 million | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 3.16 million | -0.8% |
| 2016 | 3.15 million | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 3.11 million | -1.4% |
| 2018 | 3.07 million | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 3.00 million | -2.3% |
| 2020 | 2.95 million | -1.9% |
| 2021 | 2.94 million | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 2.92 million | -0.5% |
| 2023 | 2.83 million | -3.1% |
| 2024 | 2.72 million | -3.8% |
| 2025 | 2.62 million | -3.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 5.79 million | 5.49 million | 5.96 million | 9 |
| 2010s | 3.80 million | 3.00 million | 5.42 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.83 million | 2.62 million | 2.95 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Japan
More education data for Japan
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 627,777 (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (1999)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 1.50 million (1999)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 1.46 million (1999)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.61 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 6.25 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.01 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0502 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan?
- School age population, early childhood education, both sexes in Japan was 2.62 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, early childhood education, both sexes recorded in Japan?
- The highest recorded value was 5.96 million in 2001.
- What is the lowest school age population, early childhood education, both sexes recorded in Japan?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.62 million in 2025.
- How does Japan rank for school age population, early childhood education, both sexes?
- Japan ranks 35th out of 207 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, early childhood education, both sexes rising or falling in Japan?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Japan data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, early childhood education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release