Search for specific education indicators by country, theme or level of education and compare the results using interactive charts and tables.

Base Theme

PISA 2022 Results (Volume I): The State of Learning and Equity in Education
PISA 2022 Results (Volume II): Learning During - and From - Disruption
PISA 2022 Results (Volume III): Creative Minds, Creative Schools
PISA 2022 Results (Volume V): Learning Strategies and Attitudes for Life
PISA 2018 Results (Volume IV): Are Students Smart About Money?
PISA 2018 Results (Volume VI): Are Students Ready to Thrive in an Interconnected World?
PISA 2018: Are Students Ready To Take On Environmental Challenges?
Education at a Glance 2024 (EAG 2024): Highlights
EAG 2024, Chapter A: The output of educational institutions and the impact of learning
EAG 2024, Chapter B: Access to education, participation and progression
EAG 2024, Chapter C: Financial resources invested in education
EAG 2024, Chapter D: Teachers, learning environment and organisation of schools
Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC)
TALIS 2018: Highlight indicators
TALIS 2018 (Volume I): Teachers and School Leaders as Lifelong Learners
TALIS 2018 (Volume II): Teachers and School Leaders as Valued Professionals
TALIS 2018 (results for primary and upper secondary)
TALIS 2018: Starting Strong Survey
Skills
Low performers
Computers, education & skills
Collaborative Problem Solving
Access & participation
Student mobility
Education attainment
Education system & governance
Financing education
Learning environment
Students' well-being
Equity
Gender
Digital divide
Special needs
Socio-economic status
Migrant background
Economic & social outcomes
Teachers & educators
Education leadership
Evaluation & quality assurance
Future of education and skills
Research & innovation
Early childhood education & care
Vocational education & training (VET)
Tertiary education
Impact of COVID-19 in education
Financing education
  • OECD countries spend on average USD 12 647 per student per year on primary through tertiary educational institutions: USD 10 658 per primary student, USD 11 942 per student at secondary level and USD 18 105 per tertiary student.
  • Across OECD countries, expenditure per student averages around USD 10 700 at the primary level, USD 11 900 at secondary and USD 18 100 at tertiary level. This reflects the fact that higher levels of education often require teachers to have more advanced qualifications and specialised knowledge which are usually accompanied by higher salaries.
  • Public funding accounts for 86.5% of all spending on primary to tertiary educational institutions, on average across OECD countries.
  • In 2020, on average across OECD countries, 84% of the funding for primary to tertiary educational institutions came directly from government sources, 15% from private sources and 1% from non-domestic (international) sources.
  • OECD countries spent an average of 4.4% of GDP on educational institutions from primary to tertiary education in 2020 (including undistributed programmes by level of education). Six countries with available data (Iceland, Finland, Norway,Belgium, Sweden and Denmark) spent 5% or more.
  • Total public spending on primary to tertiary education decreased slightly across OECD countries between 2005 and 2019, falling below 11% of total government expenditure. Over this period, the share of total government expenditure on primary to tertiary education within total government expenditure decreased by 0.7 percentage points on average across OECD countries, and in more than 70% of countries with available data for both 2005 and 2016.
  • Of primary to tertiary levels of education, tertiary institutions obtain the largest proportion of funds - 30% - from private sources.
  • The share of private funding in tertiary education has increased over the past decade. About two thirds of private funding at tertiary level comes from private sources, with household expenditure (through tuition fees) being the biggest source.
  • Higher education levels tend to have higher teachers' salary costs per student. On average across OECD countries, they rise from USD 3 614 per student in primary education to USD 4 424 in lower secondary education. This is mostly due to a combination of higher teachers' salaries and instruction time, and shorter teaching hours.
  • Browser View

    Select OECD Countries

    Australia
    Austria
    Belgium
    Belgium (Flanders)
    Belgium (French)
    Belgium (excl. Flemish)
    Canada
    Alberta (Canada)
    Canadian provinces
    Chile
    Colombia
    Costa Rica
    Czechia
    Denmark
    Estonia
    Finland
    France
    Germany
    Greece
    Hungary
    Iceland
    Ireland
    Israel
    Italy
    Japan
    Korea
    Latvia
    Lithuania
    Luxembourg
    Mexico
    Netherlands
    New Zealand
    Norway
    Poland
    Portugal
    Slovak Republic
    Slovenia
    Spain
    Sweden
    Switzerland
    Türkiye
    United Kingdom
    England (UK)
    Northern Ireland (UK)
    United States
    OECD average

    Non-OECD Countries

    G20 average
    TALIS average
    TALIS avg. primary education
    TALIS avg. upper secondary education
    Albania
    Algeria
    Argentina
    Buenos Aires (Argentina)
    Baku (Azerbaijan)
    Bosnia and Herzegovina
    Brazil
    Brunei Darussalam
    Bulgaria
    Cambodia
    China
    B-S-J-Z (China)
    Hong Kong (China)
    Macao (China)
    Shanghai (China)
    Chinese Taipei
    Croatia
    Dominican Republic
    Ecuador
    Egypt
    El Salvador
    Georgia
    Guatemala
    India
    Indonesia
    Jamaica
    Jordan
    Kazakhstan
    Kyrgyz Republic
    Kosovo
    Lebanon
    North Macedonia
    Malaysia
    Malta
    Moldova
    Mongolia
    Montenegro
    Morocco
    Palestinian Authority
    Panama
    Paraguay
    Peru
    Philippines
    Qatar
    Romania
    Saudi Arabia
    Serbia
    Singapore
    South Africa
    Tajikistan
    Thailand
    Trinidad and Tobago
    Tunisia
    United Arab Emirates
    Abu Dhabi (UAE)
    Ukraine
    Uruguay
    Uzbekistan
    Viet Nam
    The data table will display up to four selected countries (unselect the OECD average to have one more).
    Click the arrows for more indicators:
    Click the arrows for more indicators:
    Click the arrows for more indicators:
    Click the arrows for more indicators:
    Country Profile quick links
    Note: These values should be interpreted with care since they are influenced by countries' specific contexts and trade-offs. In education, there is often no simple most- or least-efficient model. For instance, the share of private expenditure in education must be read against other measures designed to mitigate inequities, such as loans and grants; longer learning time is an opportunity to convey more and better content to students, but may hinder investments in other important areas. If you want further information on the nature of different variables, please take the time to read the analysis and contextual information, available at the website for each publication.
    The OECD average includes only OECD countries which are listed here: http://www.oecd.org/about/membersandpartners/

    Reference years displayed in the Education GPS correspond to the most common year of reference among countries for which data is available on each variable. Data for the latest available year is preferred and some countries may have provided data refering to a more recent or late year. To know more about possible exceptions on data please click on the "Download Indicator" link on each variable. When a year of reference corresponds to a school year encompassing two years, the reference reads as follows: 2018 for school year 2017/2018.

    *TALIS averages are based on all countries participating in the TALIS survey, including partner countries and economies. This explains the difference between the OECD average and the TALIS average. Data from the TALIS survey and Education at a Glance (EAG) may differ. See Annex E of the TALIS technical report and Annex 3 of EAG 2021 for more details about the data collections.

    B-S-J-Z (China) refers to the four PISA-participating provinces/municipalities of the People's Republic of China: Beijing, Shanghai, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

    For additional notes, please refer to annexes in the list of links below the introductory text.