School age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand
New Zealand: School age population, one year before the official primary entry was 31,800 in 2024. ▲ Rising
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand, 2000–2024
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand is 31,800, measured in 2024.
The figure is down 0.7% on the previous year and down 4.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand peaked at 33,110 in 2014 and was at its lowest, 28,370, in 2006.
That places New Zealand 124th out of 222 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 29,760 | — |
| 2001 | 28,750 | -3.4% |
| 2002 | 29,530 | +2.7% |
| 2003 | 28,950 | -2.0% |
| 2004 | 29,860 | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 29,480 | -1.3% |
| 2006 | 28,370 | -3.8% |
| 2007 | 28,970 | +2.1% |
| 2008 | 29,740 | +2.7% |
| 2009 | 29,670 | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 30,290 | +2.1% |
| 2011 | 31,810 | +5.0% |
| 2012 | 32,820 | +3.2% |
| 2013 | 32,930 | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 33,110 | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 32,540 | -1.7% |
| 2016 | 32,460 | -0.2% |
| 2017 | 32,480 | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 32,120 | -1.1% |
| 2019 | 32,370 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 32,450 | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 32,190 | -0.8% |
| 2022 | 31,530 | -2.1% |
| 2023 | 32,030 | +1.6% |
| 2024 | 31,800 | -0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 29,308 | 28,370 | 29,860 | 10 |
| 2010s | 32,293 | 30,290 | 33,110 | 10 |
| 2020s | 32,000 | 31,530 | 32,450 | 5 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More education data for New Zealand
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 36,426 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 12,020 (1992)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 56,552 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 53,804 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 562,417 (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 383,018 (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.15 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0724 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand?
- School age population, one year before the official primary entry in New Zealand was 31,800 in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 33,110 in 2014.
- What is the lowest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 28,370 in 2006.
- How does New Zealand rank for school age population, one year before the official primary entry?
- New Zealand ranks 124th out of 222 countries with data for 2024.
- Is school age population, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this New Zealand data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, one year before the official primary entry age, male (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