School age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada
Canada: School age population, primary education, both sexes was 2.64 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada, 2000–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada is 2.64 million, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 26 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 14.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada peaked at 2.64 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 2.19 million, in 2011.
That places Canada 57th out of 222 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2.47 million | — |
| 2001 | 2.48 million | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 2.47 million | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 2.45 million | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 2.40 million | -1.8% |
| 2005 | 2.35 million | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 2.31 million | -1.8% |
| 2007 | 2.27 million | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 2.23 million | -1.8% |
| 2009 | 2.20 million | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 2.19 million | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 2.19 million | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 2.19 million | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 2.22 million | +1.2% |
| 2014 | 2.26 million | +1.8% |
| 2015 | 2.31 million | +2.1% |
| 2016 | 2.35 million | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 2.40 million | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 2.44 million | +1.8% |
| 2019 | 2.48 million | +1.5% |
| 2020 | 2.51 million | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 2.51 million | +0.1% |
| 2022 | 2.52 million | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 2.56 million | +1.5% |
| 2024 | 2.61 million | +2.1% |
| 2025 | 2.64 million | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.36 million | 2.20 million | 2.48 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.30 million | 2.19 million | 2.48 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.56 million | 2.51 million | 2.64 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Canada
More education data for Canada
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 141,045 (2000)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 64.8% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 15.0% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 95.01 (2023)
- School enrollment, primary 95.0% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada?
- School age population, primary education, both sexes in Canada was 2.64 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Canada?
- The highest recorded value was 2.64 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Canada?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.19 million in 2011.
- How does Canada rank for school age population, primary education, both sexes?
- Canada ranks 57th out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, primary education, both sexes rising or falling in Canada?
- Over the last ten years it is up 14.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Canada data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, primary education, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release