Statizoid

Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years) in Spain

Spain: Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years) was 3 years in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
3 years
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
52nd
of 209 countries
All-time high
4 years
in 1970
All-time low
2 years
in 1999
Years of data
51
1970–2020

Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Spain, 1970–2020

01234197019952020

Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in years.

Analysis

Spain recorded 3 years for theoretical duration of upper secondary education in 2020.

That represents a change of up 50.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Spain peaked at 4 years in 1970 and was at its lowest, 2 years, in 1999.

That places Spain 52nd out of 209 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 51 years of available data.

Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years) in Spain, year by year

Year years Change
1970 4 years —
1971 4 years +0.0%
1972 4 years +0.0%
1973 4 years +0.0%
1974 4 years +0.0%
1975 4 years +0.0%
1976 4 years +0.0%
1977 4 years +0.0%
1978 4 years +0.0%
1979 4 years +0.0%
1980 4 years +0.0%
1981 4 years +0.0%
1982 4 years +0.0%
1983 4 years +0.0%
1984 4 years +0.0%
1985 4 years +0.0%
1986 4 years +0.0%
1987 4 years +0.0%
1988 4 years +0.0%
1989 4 years +0.0%
1990 4 years +0.0%
1991 4 years +0.0%
1992 4 years +0.0%
1993 4 years +0.0%
1994 4 years +0.0%
1995 4 years +0.0%
1996 4 years +0.0%
1997 4 years +0.0%
1998 4 years +0.0%
1999 2 years -50.0%
2000 2 years +0.0%
2001 2 years +0.0%
2002 2 years +0.0%
2003 2 years +0.0%
2004 2 years +0.0%
2005 2 years +0.0%
2006 2 years +0.0%
2007 2 years +0.0%
2008 2 years +0.0%
2009 2 years +0.0%
2010 2 years +0.0%
2011 2 years +0.0%
2012 2 years +0.0%
2013 3 years +50.0%
2014 3 years +0.0%
2015 3 years +0.0%
2016 3 years +0.0%
2017 3 years +0.0%
2018 3 years +0.0%
2019 3 years +0.0%
2020 3 years +0.0%

Spain compared with similar countries

  • Spain's 3 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 3 years, 1.0× the median. (79 countries reporting)
  • Spain's 3 years is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 3 years, 1.0× the median. (53 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 4 years 4 years 4 years 10
1980s 4 years 4 years 4 years 10
1990s 3.8 years 2 years 4 years 10
2000s 2 years 2 years 2 years 10
2010s 2.7 years 2 years 3 years 10
2020s 3 years 3 years 3 years 1

Countries ranked near Spain

  1. 52 Afghanistan 3 years compare
  2. 52 Albania 3 years compare
  3. 52 Algeria 3 years compare
  4. 52 Angola 3 years compare
  5. 52 Argentina 3 years compare
  6. 52 Armenia 3 years compare
  7. 52 Aruba 3 years compare
  8. 52 Azerbaijan 3 years compare
  9. 52 Bahamas 3 years compare
  10. 52 Bahrain 3 years compare
  11. 52 Benin 3 years compare
  12. 52 Brazil 3 years compare
  13. 52 Burkina Faso 3 years compare
  14. 52 Burundi 3 years compare
  15. 52 Cape Verde 3 years compare
  16. 52 Cambodia 3 years compare
  17. 52 Cameroon 3 years compare
  18. 52 Canada 3 years compare
  19. 52 Cayman Islands 3 years compare
  20. 52 Central African Republic 3 years compare
  21. 52 Chad 3 years compare
  22. 52 China 3 years compare
  23. 52 Comoros 3 years compare
  24. 52 Congo 3 years compare
  25. 52 Cote d'Ivoire 3 years compare
  26. 52 Cuba 3 years compare
  27. 52 Cyprus 3 years compare
  28. 52 Denmark 3 years compare
  29. 52 Djibouti 3 years compare
  30. 52 Ecuador 3 years compare
  31. 52 Egypt 3 years compare
  32. 52 El Salvador 3 years compare
  33. 52 Estonia 3 years compare
  34. 52 Fiji 3 years compare
  35. 52 Finland 3 years compare
  36. 52 France 3 years compare
  37. 52 French Polynesia 3 years compare
  38. 52 Gabon 3 years compare
  39. 52 Gambia 3 years compare
  40. 52 Georgia 3 years compare
  41. 52 Germany 3 years compare
  42. 52 Greece 3 years compare
  43. 52 Guinea 3 years compare
  44. 52 Guinea-Bissau 3 years compare
  45. 52 Hong Kong 3 years compare
  46. 52 Indonesia 3 years compare
  47. 52 Iraq 3 years compare
  48. 52 Israel 3 years compare
  49. 52 Japan 3 years compare
  50. 52 North Korea 3 years compare
  51. 52 South Korea 3 years compare
  52. 52 Kuwait 3 years compare
  53. 52 Laos 3 years compare
  54. 52 Latvia 3 years compare
  55. 52 Lebanon 3 years compare
  56. 52 Liberia 3 years compare
  57. 52 Libya 3 years compare
  58. 52 Liechtenstein 3 years compare
  59. 52 Macao 3 years compare
  60. 52 Madagascar 3 years compare
  61. 52 Malaysia 3 years compare
  62. 52 Mali 3 years compare
  63. 52 Mauritania 3 years compare
  64. 52 Mexico 3 years compare
  65. 52 Monaco 3 years compare
  66. 52 Mongolia 3 years compare
  67. 52 Morocco 3 years compare
  68. 52 Netherlands 3 years compare
  69. 52 New Caledonia 3 years compare
  70. 52 New Zealand 3 years compare
  71. 52 Niger 3 years compare
  72. 52 Nigeria 3 years compare
  73. 52 Norway 3 years compare
  74. 52 Panama 3 years compare
  75. 52 Paraguay 3 years compare
  76. 52 Poland 3 years compare
  77. 52 Portugal 3 years compare
  78. 52 Puerto Rico 3 years compare
  79. 52 Qatar 3 years compare
  80. 52 Rwanda 3 years compare
  81. 52 Sao Tome and Principe 3 years compare
  82. 52 Saudi Arabia 3 years compare
  83. 52 Senegal 3 years compare
  84. 52 Sint Maarten (Dutch part) 3 years compare
  85. 52 South Africa 3 years compare
  86. 52 Sudan 3 years compare
  87. 52 Suriname 3 years compare
  88. 52 Sweden 3 years compare
  89. 52 Syria 3 years compare
  90. 52 Thailand 3 years compare
  91. 52 East Timor 3 years compare
  92. 52 Togo 3 years compare
  93. 52 Tuvalu 3 years compare
  94. 52 United Arab Emirates 3 years compare
  95. 52 United States 3 years compare
  96. 52 Uruguay 3 years compare
  97. 52 Uzbekistan 3 years compare
  98. 52 Vanuatu 3 years compare
  99. 52 Vietnam 3 years compare
  100. 52 United States Virgin Islands 3 years compare
  101. 52 Palestine 3 years compare
  102. 52 Yemen 3 years compare
  103. 52 Zambia 3 years compare

See the full ranking of 209 places →

More education data for Spain

All data for Spain →

Frequently asked questions

What is theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Spain?
Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Spain was 3 years in 2020, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
What is the highest theoretical duration of upper secondary education recorded in Spain?
The highest recorded value was 4 years in 1970.
What is the lowest theoretical duration of upper secondary education recorded in Spain?
The lowest recorded value was 2 years in 1999.
How does Spain rank for theoretical duration of upper secondary education?
Spain ranks 52nd out of 209 countries with data for 2020.
Is theoretical duration of upper secondary education rising or falling in Spain?
Over the last ten years it is up 50.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Spain data come from?
The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Theoretical duration of upper secondary education in Spain. Statizoid, drawing on UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://education.statizoid.com/stat/theoretical-duration-of-upper-secondary-education-years/spain/

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About this data

Indicator
Theoretical duration of upper secondary education (years)
Unit
years
Source
UNESCO Institute for Statistics
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
209 places, 10,366 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Number of grades (years) in upper secondary education.