School age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal
Nepal: School age population, primary education, both sexes was 2.77 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
2.77 million
Change on year
down 1.8%
World rank
54th
of 222 countries
All-time high
3.57 million
in 2003
All-time low
1.55 million
in 1970
Years of data
47
1970–2025
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal stood at 2.77 million.
That represents a change of down 1.8% on the previous year and down 8.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal peaked at 3.57 million in 2003 and was at its lowest, 1.55 million, in 1970.
Nepal ranks 54th of 222 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 47 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.55 million | — |
| 1971 | 1.59 million | +2.6% |
| 1981 | 2.03 million | +27.9% |
| 1982 | 2.08 million | +2.4% |
| 1983 | 2.13 million | +2.5% |
| 1984 | 2.18 million | +2.5% |
| 1985 | 2.25 million | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 2.30 million | +2.6% |
| 1987 | 2.36 million | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 2.42 million | +2.5% |
| 1989 | 2.49 million | +2.6% |
| 1990 | 2.55 million | +2.7% |
| 1991 | 2.62 million | +2.7% |
| 1992 | 2.70 million | +2.8% |
| 1993 | 2.77 million | +2.7% |
| 1994 | 2.84 million | +2.6% |
| 1995 | 2.91 million | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 2.98 million | +2.4% |
| 1997 | 3.06 million | +2.5% |
| 1998 | 3.13 million | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 3.22 million | +2.6% |
| 2000 | 3.31 million | +2.8% |
| 2001 | 3.40 million | +2.7% |
| 2002 | 3.48 million | +2.5% |
| 2003 | 3.57 million | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 3.57 million | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 3.55 million | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 3.51 million | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 3.47 million | -1.2% |
| 2008 | 3.43 million | -1.1% |
| 2009 | 3.38 million | -1.3% |
| 2010 | 3.33 million | -1.5% |
| 2011 | 3.27 million | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 3.20 million | -2.0% |
| 2013 | 3.14 million | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 3.08 million | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 3.02 million | -1.9% |
| 2016 | 2.97 million | -1.6% |
| 2017 | 2.93 million | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 2.91 million | -0.9% |
| 2019 | 2.89 million | -0.6% |
| 2020 | 2.89 million | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 2.88 million | -0.3% |
| 2022 | 2.87 million | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 2.85 million | -0.8% |
| 2024 | 2.82 million | -1.0% |
| 2025 | 2.77 million | -1.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.57 million | 1.55 million | 1.59 million | 2 |
| 1980s | 2.25 million | 2.03 million | 2.49 million | 9 |
| 1990s | 2.88 million | 2.55 million | 3.22 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.47 million | 3.31 million | 3.57 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.07 million | 2.89 million | 3.33 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.85 million | 2.77 million | 2.89 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
More education data for Nepal
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 157,456 (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Duration of pre primary education 2 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 65.3% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 28.1% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 10 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 5 years (2025)
- Primary secondary enrollment completion rates, gaps filled 128.56 (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 128.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal?
- School age population, primary education, both sexes in Nepal was 2.77 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 3.57 million in 2003.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.55 million in 1970.
- How does Nepal rank for school age population, primary education, both sexes?
- Nepal ranks 54th out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, primary education, both sexes rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal 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 — 47 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release