Share of students from abroad in Spain
Spain: Share of students from abroad was 4.65 in 2024. ▲ Rising
Share of students from abroad in Spain, 1999–2024
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for share of students from abroad in Spain is 4.65, measured in 2024. That is the highest value across all 24 years on record.
The figure is up 7.9% on the previous year and up 62.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of students from abroad in Spain peaked at 4.65 in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.818, in 2004.
That places Spain 71st out of 134 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Share of students from abroad in Spain, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1.84 | — |
| 2000 | 2.22 | +20.6% |
| 2001 | 2.18 | -2.1% |
| 2002 | 2.45 | +12.4% |
| 2003 | 2.91 | +19.1% |
| 2004 | 0.818 | -71.9% |
| 2005 | 0.9769 | +19.4% |
| 2006 | 1.02 | +4.2% |
| 2007 | 1.82 | +78.5% |
| 2008 | 2.12 | +16.6% |
| 2009 | 2.69 | +27.2% |
| 2010 | 2.98 | +10.7% |
| 2011 | 3.21 | +7.7% |
| 2012 | 2.84 | -11.7% |
| 2013 | 2.86 | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 2.53 | -11.5% |
| 2017 | 3.23 | +27.6% |
| 2018 | 3.46 | +7.0% |
| 2019 | 3.7 | +7.0% |
| 2020 | 3.83 | +3.7% |
| 2021 | 3.58 | -6.7% |
| 2022 | 3.97 | +11.0% |
| 2023 | 4.31 | +8.5% |
| 2024 | 4.65 | +7.9% |
Spain compared with similar countries
- Spain's 4.65 is below the median for high income countries, which is 10.58, 44% of the median. (60 countries reporting)
- Spain's 4.65 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 9.89, 47% of the median. (51 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Share of students from abroad in Spain 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | -71.9% | 2.91 | 0.818 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 1.84 | 1.84 | 1.84 | 1 |
| 2000s | 1.92 | 0.818 | 2.91 | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.1 | 2.53 | 3.7 | 8 |
| 2020s | 4.07 | 3.58 | 4.65 | 5 |
Countries ranked near Spain
More education data for Spain
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 98.71 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 98.76 (2024)
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 344,203 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 37,817 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 570,954 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 538,977 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.71 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.83 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.08 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of students from abroad in Spain?
- Share of students from abroad in Spain was 4.65 in 2024, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of students from abroad recorded in Spain?
- The highest recorded value was 4.65 in 2024.
- What is the lowest share of students from abroad recorded in Spain?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.818 in 2004.
- How does Spain rank for share of students from abroad?
- Spain ranks 71st out of 134 countries with data for 2024.
- Is share of students from abroad rising or falling in Spain?
- Over the last ten years it is up 62.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Spain data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Share of students from abroad. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).