School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in India
India: School life expectancy, primary, both sexes was 5.61 years in 2025. β² Rising
School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in India, 1971β2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
India recorded 5.61 years for school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in 2025.
That represents a change of down 8.0% on the previous year and down 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in India peaked at 6.09 years in 2024 and was at its lowest, 3.92 years, in 1971.
That places India 133rd out of 215 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 52 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 4.09 years | 3.92 years | 4.25 years | 9 |
| 1980s | 4.34 years | 4.12 years | 4.58 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.57 years | 4.5 years | 4.66 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.27 years | 4.83 years | 5.69 years | 7 |
| 2010s | 5.58 years | 5.01 years | 6 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.55 years | 5.11 years | 6.09 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near India
More education data for India
- Duration of pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre primary education 3 (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 68.4% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 24.2% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 11 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 111.0% (2025)
- Primary education, teachers 5.19 million (2025)
- Fertility rate vs mean years of schooling 1.96 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 110.6% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in India?
- School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in India was 5.61 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 6.09 years in 2024.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.92 years in 1971.
- How does India rank for school life expectancy, primary, both sexes?
- India ranks 133rd out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.2%. 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, published as part of School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV Β· JSON β 52 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release