School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) (School both) in Nepal
Nepal: School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) (School both) was 6.39 years in 2025. ▲ Rising
School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Nepal, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.
Analysis
Nepal recorded 6.39 years for school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in 2025.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.0% on the previous year and down 9.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Nepal peaked at 7.49 years in 2011 and was at its lowest, 1.26 years, in 1970.
Nepal ranks 60th of 218 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 44 years of available data.
School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) (School both) in Nepal, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 1.26 years | — |
| 1981 | 3.42 years | +171.4% |
| 1982 | 3.55 years | +3.7% |
| 1983 | 3.88 years | +9.3% |
| 1984 | 4.06 years | +4.6% |
| 1985 | 4.03 years | -0.5% |
| 1986 | 4.03 years | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 4.13 years | +2.5% |
| 1988 | 4.44 years | +7.6% |
| 1989 | 5.08 years | +14.3% |
| 1990 | 5.46 years | +7.5% |
| 1991 | 5.5 years | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 5.63 years | +2.4% |
| 1993 | 5.58 years | -0.8% |
| 1994 | 5.62 years | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 5.6 years | -0.3% |
| 1996 | 5.78 years | +3.1% |
| 1997 | 5.66 years | -2.1% |
| 1999 | 5.82 years | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 6 years | +3.0% |
| 2001 | 5.34 years | -11.0% |
| 2002 | 5.54 years | +3.7% |
| 2003 | 5.6 years | +1.2% |
| 2004 | 5.7 years | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 5.68 years | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 6.42 years | +12.9% |
| 2007 | 6.52 years | +1.5% |
| 2008 | 6.45 years | -1.0% |
| 2009 | 7.07 years | +9.5% |
| 2010 | 7.28 years | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 7.49 years | +2.9% |
| 2012 | 7.37 years | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 7.2 years | -2.3% |
| 2014 | 7.03 years | -2.3% |
| 2015 | 7.06 years | +0.4% |
| 2016 | 7.03 years | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 6.91 years | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 6.77 years | -1.9% |
| 2020 | 6.05 years | -10.6% |
| 2021 | 5.98 years | -1.3% |
| 2022 | 6.05 years | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 6.31 years | +4.3% |
| 2024 | 6.2 years | -1.6% |
| 2025 | 6.39 years | +3.0% |
Nepal compared with similar countries
- Nepal's 6.39 years is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6.02 years, 1.1× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nepal's 6.39 years is above the median for South Asia, which is 5.75 years, 1.1× the median. (6 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where School life expectancy, primary, both sexes (years) (School both) in Nepal changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | +171.4% | 1.26 years | 3.42 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 1.26 years | 1.26 years | 1.26 years | 1 |
| 1980s | 4.07 years | 3.42 years | 5.08 years | 9 |
| 1990s | 5.63 years | 5.46 years | 5.82 years | 9 |
| 2000s | 6.03 years | 5.34 years | 7.07 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 7.13 years | 6.77 years | 7.49 years | 9 |
| 2020s | 6.16 years | 5.98 years | 6.39 years | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nepal
More education data for Nepal
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 124,257 (2025)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 263,796 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 752,326 (2025)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 609,324 (2025)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.67 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.57 million (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate 1.31 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.1204 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Nepal?
- School life expectancy, primary, both sexes in Nepal was 6.39 years in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in Nepal?
- The highest recorded value was 7.49 years in 2011.
- What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary, both sexes recorded in Nepal?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.26 years in 1970.
- How does Nepal rank for school life expectancy, primary, both sexes?
- Nepal ranks 60th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school life expectancy, primary, both sexes rising or falling in Nepal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nepal 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.
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About this data
February 2026 Data Release