Share of children who have completed primary school in India
India: Share of children who have completed primary school was 96.5% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Share of children who have completed primary school in India, 1981–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, share of children who have completed primary school in India stood at 96.5%. That is the highest value across all 45 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.4% on the previous year and up 6.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who have completed primary school in India peaked at 96.5% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 39.9%, in 1981.
That places India 90th out of 165 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 45 years of available data.
Share of children who have completed primary school in India, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 39.9% | — |
| 1982 | 41.8% | +4.6% |
| 1983 | 43.7% | +4.6% |
| 1984 | 45.5% | +4.2% |
| 1985 | 47.2% | +3.7% |
| 1986 | 48.9% | +3.5% |
| 1987 | 50.6% | +3.5% |
| 1988 | 52.4% | +3.5% |
| 1989 | 54.0% | +3.1% |
| 1990 | 55.6% | +2.9% |
| 1991 | 57.1% | +2.7% |
| 1992 | 58.6% | +2.7% |
| 1993 | 60.1% | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 61.6% | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 63.2% | +2.6% |
| 1996 | 64.7% | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 66.4% | +2.5% |
| 1998 | 68.0% | +2.5% |
| 1999 | 69.6% | +2.4% |
| 2000 | 71.3% | +2.4% |
| 2001 | 73.0% | +2.3% |
| 2002 | 74.6% | +2.3% |
| 2003 | 76.3% | +2.3% |
| 2004 | 77.9% | +2.1% |
| 2005 | 79.5% | +2.0% |
| 2006 | 80.9% | +1.8% |
| 2007 | 82.4% | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 83.7% | +1.6% |
| 2009 | 85.0% | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 86.2% | +1.4% |
| 2011 | 87.2% | +1.3% |
| 2012 | 88.2% | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 89.2% | +1.1% |
| 2014 | 90.0% | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 90.8% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 91.5% | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 92.3% | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 93.0% | +0.8% |
| 2019 | 93.7% | +0.7% |
| 2020 | 94.3% | +0.6% |
| 2021 | 94.8% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 95.3% | +0.5% |
| 2023 | 95.7% | +0.5% |
| 2024 | 96.2% | +0.4% |
| 2025 | 96.5% | +0.4% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 96.5% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 86.1%, 1.1× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- India's 96.5% is above the median for South Asia, which is 93.6%, 1.0× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 47.1% | 39.9% | 54.0% | 9 |
| 1990s | 62.5% | 55.6% | 69.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 78.4% | 71.3% | 85.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 90.2% | 86.2% | 93.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 95.5% | 94.3% | 96.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More education data for India
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 7.31 million (2025)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 3.10 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 19.37 million (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 18.52 million (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 133.16 million (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 126.12 million (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -8.85 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0862 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who have completed primary school in India?
- Share of children who have completed primary school in India was 96.5% in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 96.5% in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of children who have completed primary school recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 39.9% in 1981.
- How does India rank for share of children who have completed primary school?
- India ranks 90th out of 165 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of children who have completed primary school rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who have completed primary school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Share of children who are three to five years older than the official age for the last grade of primary education who have successfully completed it. This broader age band is used to include children who started school late or had to resit particular years.