Youth/adult literacy rate (%) by country
Countries reporting
68
Highest
100.0%
Uzbekistan
Lowest
50.3%
Mali
Median
98.7%
Years covered
25
2000–2024
Data points
1,038
What the numbers show
Youth/adult literacy rate (%) is currently reported for 68 countries. The highest value is 100.0% in Uzbekistan; the lowest is 50.3% in Mali.
The median across all reporting countries is 98.7%, and the mean is 93.1%.
The gap between the highest and lowest reporting country is a factor of about 2.
Over the past decade 50 countries rose and 16 fell. The largest increase was in Burundi (up 42.9%), and the largest decrease in Democratic Republic of the Congo (down 6.8%).
Youth/adult literacy rate (%): full country ranking
| # | Country | Latest | Year | 10-year change | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Uzbekistan | 100.0% | 2022 | unchanged | flat |
| 2 | Turkey | 100.0% | 2021 | up 1.3% | flat |
| 2 | Türkiye | 100.0% | 2021 | up 1.3% | flat |
| 4 | Saudi Arabia | 99.9% | 2024 | up 0.7% | flat |
| 4 | Singapore | 99.9% | 2021 | unchanged | flat |
| 4 | Armenia | 99.9% | 2023 | up 0.0% | flat |
| 7 | Azerbaijan | 99.9% | 2023 | down 0.1% | flat |
| 8 | Bolivia (Plurinational State of) | 99.8% | 2024 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 8 | Indonesia | 99.8% | 2020 | up 1.2% | flat |
| 10 | Serbia | 99.7% | 2022 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 11 | Spain | 99.7% | 2021 | up 0.0% | flat |
| 12 | Tonga | 99.7% | 2023 | up 0.3% | flat |
| 13 | Georgia | 99.7% | 2024 | down 0.0% | flat |
| 13 | Oman | 99.7% | 2022 | up 2.0% | rising |
| 15 | United Arab Emirates | 99.6% | 2024 | up 1.3% | flat |
| 16 | Peru | 99.5% | 2024 | up 0.5% | flat |
| 17 | Brazil | 99.5% | 2024 | up 0.6% | flat |
| 18 | State of Palestine | 99.4% | 2022 | up 0.1% | flat |
| 19 | Mongolia | 99.3% | 2024 | up 0.9% | flat |
| 20 | Kuwait | 99.3% | 2020 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 21 | Philippines | 99.2% | 2020 | up 1.4% | flat |
| 22 | Albania | 99.1% | 2023 | down 0.2% | flat |
| 23 | Viet Nam | 99.0% | 2022 | up 2.0% | flat |
| 23 | Vietnam | 99.0% | 2022 | up 2.0% | flat |
| 25 | Uruguay | 99.0% | 2024 | up 0.2% | flat |
| 26 | Chile | 99.0% | 2017 | down 0.4% | flat |
| 27 | Ecuador | 99.0% | 2024 | down 0.1% | flat |
| 28 | Colombia | 99.0% | 2024 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 29 | Mexico | 98.9% | 2024 | down 0.1% | flat |
| 30 | Sri Lanka | 98.9% | 2024 | up 0.2% | flat |
| 31 | Malaysia | 98.8% | 2022 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 32 | Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) | 98.8% | 2016 | up 0.4% | flat |
| 33 | Maldives | 98.7% | 2019 | down 0.6% | flat |
| 34 | Qatar | 98.7% | 2014 | up 2.9% | flat |
| 35 | Jordan | 98.7% | 2024 | down 0.4% | flat |
| 36 | Paraguay | 98.6% | 2024 | down 0.1% | flat |
| 37 | El Salvador | 98.2% | 2024 | up 1.0% | flat |
| 38 | Dominican Republic | 98.2% | 2024 | up 0.5% | flat |
| 39 | Thailand | 98.2% | 2022 | down 0.1% | flat |
| 40 | Tunisia | 98.2% | 2023 | up 1.3% | flat |
| 41 | Iran (Islamic Republic of) | 98.1% | 2016 | up 1.5% | flat |
| 42 | Suriname | 97.7% | 2018 | down 1.7% | flat |
| 43 | South Africa | 97.2% | 2024 | down 1.7% | flat |
| 44 | India | 97.0% | 2023 | up 12.7% | rising |
| 45 | Lesotho | 96.5% | 2024 | down 1.8% | rising |
| 46 | Honduras | 95.8% | 2024 | up 0.1% | rising |
| 47 | Guatemala | 95.4% | 2024 | up 1.1% | rising |
| 48 | Iraq | 93.5% | 2017 | up 12.0% | rising |
| 49 | Bangladesh | 93.5% | 2022 | up 20.1% | rising |
| 50 | Cambodia | 91.8% | 2021 | up 5.4% | rising |
| 51 | Laos | 90.4% | 2023 | down 2.2% | rising |
| 51 | Lao People's Democratic Republic | 90.4% | 2023 | down 2.2% | rising |
| 53 | Togo | 90.4% | 2022 | up 13.1% | rising |
| 54 | Rwanda | 90.0% | 2022 | up 9.3% | rising |
| 55 | Morocco | 89.1% | 2014 | up 26.5% | rising |
| 56 | Burundi | 88.2% | 2017 | up 42.9% | rising |
| 57 | Egypt | 88.2% | 2017 | up 3.9% | rising |
| 58 | Uganda | 85.2% | 2024 | up 6.0% | rising |
| 59 | Ethiopia | 84.7% | 2022 | up 18.0% | rising |
| 60 | Nigeria | 81.4% | 2024 | up 11.5% | rising |
| 61 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 77.9% | 2023 | down 6.8% | rising |
| 62 | Pakistan | 73.1% | 2021 | up 3.3% | rising |
| 63 | Benin | 71.2% | 2022 | up 14.6% | rising |
| 64 | Mozambique | 70.1% | 2020 | up 4.4% | rising |
| 65 | Senegal | 67.5% | 2023 | up 18.5% | rising |
| 66 | Burkina Faso | 62.8% | 2022 | up 25.4% | rising |
| 67 | Niger | 53.9% | 2022 | up 35.5% | rising |
| 68 | Mali | 50.3% | 2024 | up 1.9% | rising |
Regions and income groups
Aggregates are excluded from the country ranking above so that a region can never outrank a country.
- Central Asia 99.9%
- Europe and Northern America 99.7%
- Eastern Asia 99.7%
- Northern America 99.6%
- Eastern and South-Eastern Asia 99.4%
- South-eastern Asia 99.0%
- Latin America and the Caribbean 98.7%
- Western Asia 95.0%
- Central and Southern Asia 93.7%
- Southern Asia 93.5%
- World 93.1%
- Northern Africa and Western Asia 92.7%
- Northern Africa 90.2%
- Small Island Developing States (SIDS) 87.8%
- Least Developed Countries (LDCs) 80.4%
- Sub-Saharan Africa 79.2%
- Landlocked developing countries (LLDCs) 77.3%
- Oceania (exc. Australia and New Zealand) 73.1%