School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand

SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand: School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes was 16.38 years in 2024. ▲ Rising

Latest (2024)
16.38 years
Change on year
up 0.3%
Rank
15th
of 221 groups
All-time high
16.49 years
in 2019
All-time low
15.16 years
in 2000
Years of data
26
1999–2024

School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand, 1999–2024

0510151999201120241999: 15.2 years2000: 15.2 years2001: 15.3 years2002: 15.5 years2003: 15.7 years2004: 15.7 years2005: 15.9 years2006: 15.9 years2007: 15.9 years2008: 16 years2009: 16.1 years2010: 16.2 years2011: 16.3 years2012: 16.3 years2013: 16.5 years2014: 16.5 years2015: 16.5 years2016: 16.5 years2017: 16.4 years2018: 16.4 years2019: 16.5 years2020: 16.4 years2021: 16.5 years2022: 16.4 years2023: 16.3 years2024: 16.4 years

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.

Analysis

In 2024, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand stood at 16.38 years.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and down 0.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand peaked at 16.49 years in 2019 and was at its lowest, 15.16 years, in 2000.

That places SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand 15th out of 221 groups with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 26 years of available data.

School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand, year by year

Annual values for School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years) in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand, 1999 to 2024.
Year years Change
1999 15.17 years
2000 15.16 years -0.1%
2001 15.33 years +1.1%
2002 15.52 years +1.2%
2003 15.71 years +1.2%
2004 15.71 years +0.0%
2005 15.87 years +1.0%
2006 15.88 years +0.0%
2007 15.92 years +0.3%
2008 16 years +0.5%
2009 16.05 years +0.3%
2010 16.24 years +1.2%
2011 16.3 years +0.4%
2012 16.34 years +0.2%
2013 16.48 years +0.9%
2014 16.46 years -0.1%
2015 16.46 years -0.0%
2016 16.47 years +0.1%
2017 16.43 years -0.3%
2018 16.44 years +0.1%
2019 16.49 years +0.3%
2020 16.43 years -0.4%
2021 16.48 years +0.3%
2022 16.37 years -0.7%
2023 16.33 years -0.2%
2024 16.38 years +0.3%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 15.17 years 15.17 years 15.17 years 1
2000s 15.71 years 15.16 years 16.05 years 10
2010s 16.41 years 16.24 years 16.49 years 10
2020s 16.4 years 16.33 years 16.48 years 5

Countries ranked near SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand

  1. 12 Sweden 18.58 years compare
  2. 13 Norway 18.5 years compare
  3. 14 Netherlands 18.43 years compare
  4. 15 Tonga 18.18 years compare
  5. 16 Iceland 18.13 years compare
  6. 17 Denmark 18.11 years compare
  7. 18 Grenada 17.84 years compare

See the full ranking of 407 places →

More education data for SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand

All data for SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand →

Frequently asked questions

What is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand?
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand was 16.38 years in 2024, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand?
The highest recorded value was 16.49 years in 2019.
What is the lowest school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes recorded in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand?
The lowest recorded value was 15.16 years in 2000.
How does SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand rank for school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes?
SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand ranks 15th out of 221 groups with data for 2024.
Is school life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes rising or falling in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand?
Over the last ten years it is down 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes in SDG: Europe, Northern America, Australia and New Zealand. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 18 September 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/school-life-expectancy-primary-to-tertiary-both-sexes-years-2/sdg-europe-northern-america-australia-and-new-zealand/

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About this data

Indicator
School life expectancy, primary to tertiary, both sexes (years)
Unit
years
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics)
Coverage
407 places, 13,852 data points, 1970–2025
Last refreshed

February 2026 Data Release