School age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland
Switzerland: School age population, primary education, both sexes was 497,318 number in 2020. ▼ Falling
Latest (2020)
497,318 number
Change on year
up 1.0%
World rank
109th
of 206 countries
All-time high
606,954 number
in 1975
All-time low
439,292 number
in 1989
Years of data
51
1970–2020
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland, 1970–2020
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in number.
Analysis
Switzerland recorded 497,318 number for school age population, primary education, both sexes in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% on the previous year and up 3.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland peaked at 606,954 number in 1975 and was at its lowest, 439,292 number, in 1989.
That places Switzerland 109th out of 206 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland, year by year
| Year | number | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 559,285 number | — |
| 1971 | 570,365 number | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 583,227 number | +2.3% |
| 1973 | 594,507 number | +1.9% |
| 1974 | 602,719 number | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 606,954 number | +0.7% |
| 1976 | 606,609 number | -0.1% |
| 1977 | 604,308 number | -0.4% |
| 1978 | 596,595 number | -1.3% |
| 1979 | 583,989 number | -2.1% |
| 1980 | 567,146 number | -2.9% |
| 1981 | 546,538 number | -3.6% |
| 1982 | 526,603 number | -3.6% |
| 1983 | 507,309 number | -3.7% |
| 1984 | 489,828 number | -3.4% |
| 1985 | 474,336 number | -3.2% |
| 1986 | 461,279 number | -2.8% |
| 1987 | 450,854 number | -2.3% |
| 1988 | 443,282 number | -1.7% |
| 1989 | 439,292 number | -0.9% |
| 1990 | 439,488 number | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 444,197 number | +1.1% |
| 1992 | 453,780 number | +2.2% |
| 1993 | 463,891 number | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 472,995 number | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 480,745 number | +1.6% |
| 1996 | 486,865 number | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 491,683 number | +1.0% |
| 1998 | 495,900 number | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 500,198 number | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 504,615 number | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 509,137 number | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 512,698 number | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 514,888 number | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 514,901 number | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 512,400 number | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 506,983 number | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 500,258 number | -1.3% |
| 2008 | 492,860 number | -1.5% |
| 2009 | 485,669 number | -1.5% |
| 2010 | 478,863 number | -1.4% |
| 2011 | 472,716 number | -1.3% |
| 2012 | 468,685 number | -0.9% |
| 2013 | 466,892 number | -0.4% |
| 2014 | 467,593 number | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 470,771 number | +0.7% |
| 2016 | 476,290 number | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 482,634 number | +1.3% |
| 2018 | 487,942 number | +1.1% |
| 2019 | 492,580 number | +1.0% |
| 2020 | 497,318 number | +1.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 590,856 number | 559,285 number | 606,954 number | 10 |
| 1980s | 490,647 number | 439,292 number | 567,146 number | 10 |
| 1990s | 472,974 number | 439,488 number | 500,198 number | 10 |
| 2000s | 505,441 number | 485,669 number | 514,901 number | 10 |
| 2010s | 476,497 number | 466,892 number | 492,580 number | 10 |
| 2020s | 497,318 number | 497,318 number | 497,318 number | 1 |
Countries ranked near Switzerland
- 106 Kyrgyzstan 551,185 number compare
- 107 Palestine 508,539 number compare
- 108 Turkmenistan 503,195 number compare
- 110 United Arab Emirates 496,261 number compare
- 111 Eritrea 494,886 number compare
- 112 Panama 456,278 number compare
More education data for Switzerland
- Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years), annual 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Theoretical duration of secondary education (years), annual growth 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), gaps filled 2,023 tertiary education (2024)
- Start of the academic school year (tertiary education), annual growth 0.0495 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, teachers, gaps filled 58,349 (2024)
- 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 4 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 64.7% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 14.9% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland?
- School age population, primary education, both sexes in Switzerland was 497,318 number in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Switzerland?
- The highest recorded value was 606,954 number in 1975.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, both sexes recorded in Switzerland?
- The lowest recorded value was 439,292 number in 1989.
- How does Switzerland rank for school age population, primary education, both sexes?
- Switzerland ranks 109th out of 206 countries with data for 2020.
- Is school age population, primary education, both sexes rising or falling in Switzerland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Switzerland 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.
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About this data
Population of the age-group theoretically corresponding to primary education as indicated by theoretical entrance age and duration.