Share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States
United States: Share of children enrolled in pre-primary school was 61.2% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States, 2005–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States is 61.2%, measured in 2022.
The figure is up 13.7% on the previous year and down 4.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States peaked at 64.8% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 53.8%, in 2021.
United States ranks 98th of 178 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 11 years of available data.
Share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 64.3% | — |
| 2013 | 64.2% | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 64.8% | +1.0% |
| 2015 | 64.6% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 64.2% | -0.6% |
| 2017 | 64.6% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 64.5% | -0.2% |
| 2019 | 63.9% | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 64.4% | +0.8% |
| 2021 | 53.8% | -16.4% |
| 2022 | 61.2% | +13.7% |
United States compared with similar countries
- United States's 61.2% is below the median for high income countries, which is 87.1%, 70% of the median. (68 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 64.3% | 64.3% | 64.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 64.4% | 63.9% | 64.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 59.8% | 53.8% | 64.4% | 3 |
Countries ranked near United States
More education data for United States
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 1.74 million (2023)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 419,732 (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 4.34 million (2023)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 4.14 million (2023)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 25.35 million (2023)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 23.83 million (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.33 % change on previous year (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0708 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States?
- Share of children enrolled in pre-primary school in United States was 61.2% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children enrolled in pre-primary school recorded in United States?
- The highest recorded value was 64.8% in 2014.
- What is the lowest share of children enrolled in pre-primary school recorded in United States?
- The lowest recorded value was 53.8% in 2021.
- How does United States rank for share of children enrolled in pre-primary school?
- United States ranks 98th out of 178 countries with data for 2022.
- Is share of children enrolled in pre-primary school rising or falling in United States?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this United States 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 enrolled in pre-primary school. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Share of children of pre-primary school age (typically 3–5 years old) who are enrolled in pre-primary education.