School age population, primary education, female (number) (population) in China
China: School age population, primary education, female (number) (population) was 49.00 million in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
49.00 million
Change on year
down 3.3%
World rank
2nd
of 222 countries
All-time high
65.52 million
in 1980
All-time low
40.61 million
in 1970
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, primary education, female in China, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, school age population, primary education, female in China stood at 49.00 million.
The figure is down 3.3% on the previous year and up 8.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, primary education, female in China peaked at 65.52 million in 1980 and was at its lowest, 40.61 million, in 1970.
That places China 2nd out of 222 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, primary education, female (number) (population) in China, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 40.61 million | — |
| 1971 | 45.62 million | +12.4% |
| 1972 | 50.93 million | +11.6% |
| 1973 | 56.46 million | +10.8% |
| 1974 | 62.09 million | +10.0% |
| 1975 | 62.69 million | +1.0% |
| 1976 | 62.37 million | -0.5% |
| 1977 | 63.11 million | +1.2% |
| 1978 | 64.10 million | +1.6% |
| 1979 | 64.68 million | +0.9% |
| 1980 | 65.52 million | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 64.19 million | -2.0% |
| 1982 | 62.24 million | -3.0% |
| 1983 | 58.94 million | -5.3% |
| 1984 | 55.89 million | -5.2% |
| 1985 | 52.52 million | -6.0% |
| 1986 | 49.49 million | -5.8% |
| 1987 | 47.73 million | -3.6% |
| 1988 | 47.28 million | -1.0% |
| 1989 | 47.64 million | +0.8% |
| 1990 | 49.56 million | +4.0% |
| 1991 | 50.28 million | +1.4% |
| 1992 | 51.11 million | +1.7% |
| 1993 | 52.22 million | +2.2% |
| 1994 | 53.80 million | +3.0% |
| 1995 | 55.17 million | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 57.21 million | +3.7% |
| 1997 | 59.03 million | +3.2% |
| 1998 | 60.67 million | +2.8% |
| 1999 | 59.01 million | -2.7% |
| 2000 | 55.98 million | -5.1% |
| 2001 | 53.08 million | -5.2% |
| 2002 | 49.55 million | -6.7% |
| 2003 | 45.44 million | -8.3% |
| 2004 | 51.30 million | +12.9% |
| 2005 | 49.55 million | -3.4% |
| 2006 | 48.07 million | -3.0% |
| 2007 | 47.21 million | -1.8% |
| 2008 | 46.15 million | -2.2% |
| 2009 | 45.33 million | -1.8% |
| 2010 | 44.73 million | -1.3% |
| 2011 | 44.47 million | -0.6% |
| 2012 | 44.42 million | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 44.20 million | -0.5% |
| 2014 | 44.56 million | +0.8% |
| 2015 | 45.26 million | +1.6% |
| 2016 | 46.18 million | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 46.95 million | +1.7% |
| 2018 | 47.62 million | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 48.83 million | +2.5% |
| 2020 | 49.45 million | +1.3% |
| 2021 | 50.07 million | +1.3% |
| 2022 | 49.96 million | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 50.30 million | +0.7% |
| 2024 | 50.68 million | +0.7% |
| 2025 | 49.00 million | -3.3% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 49.00 million is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 244,996, 200.0× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- China's 49.00 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 114,738, 427.1× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 57.27 million | 40.61 million | 64.68 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 55.14 million | 47.28 million | 65.52 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 54.81 million | 49.56 million | 60.67 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 49.17 million | 45.33 million | 55.98 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 45.72 million | 44.20 million | 48.83 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 49.91 million | 49.00 million | 50.68 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near China
More education data for China
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.41 million (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 7,020 (2021)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 21.58 million (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 19.36 million (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 97.98 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 108.57 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 0.9587 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0771 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, primary education, female in China?
- School age population, primary education, female in China was 49.00 million in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, primary education, female recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 65.52 million in 1980.
- What is the lowest school age population, primary education, female recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 40.61 million in 1970.
- How does China rank for school age population, primary education, female?
- China ranks 2nd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, primary education, female rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School age population, primary education, female (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release