Education Rankings by Country 2025

Education Index

Inequality-adjusted Education Index 2022

Mean Years of Schooling

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Education Index 2022

1.	Iceland	0.960
2.	Germany	0.957
3.	Norway	0.937
4.	United Kingdom	0.936
5.	Denmark	0.933
6.	Finland	0.930
6.	New Zealand	0.930
8.	Switzerland	0.924
9.	Australia	0.923
9.	Sweden	0.923
11.	Netherlands	0.920
12.	Belgium	0.917
13.	Slovenia	0.913
14.	Palau	0.911
15.	United States	0.909
16.	Canada	0.908
17.	Lithuania	0.906
18.	Hong Kong	0.904
18.	Latvia	0.904
18.	United Arab Emirates	0.904
21.	Estonia	0.892
22.	Ireland	0.890
23.	Georgia	0.887
24.	Czech Republic	0.883
25.	Marshall Islands	0.882
25.	Poland	0.882
27.	Greece	0.880
28.	South Korea	0.878
29.	Argentina	0.870
30.	Austria	0.866
30.	Singapore	0.866
32.	Cyprus	0.863
32.	Israel	0.863
34.	Saint Kitts and Nevis	0.860
35.	Japan	0.854
36.	Russia	0.849
37.	Malta	0.848
37.	Spain	0.848
39.	Liechtenstein	0.844
40.	Croatia	0.843
41.	Slovakia	0.842
42.	Montenegro	0.839
43.	Chile	0.837
44.	France	0.834
45.	Luxembourg	0.828
46.	Hungary	0.826
47.	Kazakhstan	0.824
48.	Italy	0.821
49.	Bahrain	0.819
49.	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	0.819
51.	Tonga	0.816
52.	Moldova	0.807
53.	Saudi Arabia	0.799
54.	Belarus	0.796
55.	Turkey	0.793
56.	Grenada	0.791
57.	Barbados	0.788
58.	Portugal	0.787
58.	Uruguay	0.787
60.	Serbia	0.786
61.	South Africa	0.784
62.	Romania	0.783
63.	Trinidad and Tobago	0.782
64.	Antigua and Barbuda	0.781
65.	Armenia	0.777
66.	Bulgaria	0.766
67.	Kyrgyzstan	0.761
68.	Seychelles	0.759
69.	Oman	0.758
70.	Bahamas	0.754
71.	Cuba	0.753
72.	Sri Lanka	0.751
73.	Iran	0.748
74.	Peru	0.744
75.	Bolivia	0.743
76.	Andorra	0.742
77.	Costa Rica	0.741
78.	Albania	0.739
78.	Mauritius	0.739
78.	Ukraine	0.739
81.	Turkmenistan	0.737
82.	Fiji	0.730
82.	Uzbekistan	0.730
84.	Thailand	0.727
85.	Samoa	0.724
86.	Panama	0.723
87.	Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.719
88.	Mongolia	0.716
89.	Malaysia	0.715
90.	Ecuador	0.714
91.	Brazil	0.710
92.	Mexico	0.709
93.	Azerbaijan	0.706
93.	Qatar	0.706
95.	North Macedonia	0.701
96.	Colombia	0.697
96.	Jordan	0.697
96.	Palestine	0.697
99.	Venezuela	0.695
100.	San Marino	0.694
101.	China	0.692
102.	Tuvalu	0.689
103.	Brunei	0.687
104.	Egypt	0.685
105.	Dominica	0.684
105.	Dominican Republic	0.684
107.	Kuwait	0.683
107.	Paraguay	0.683
109.	Tajikistan	0.679
110.	Indonesia	0.676
111.	Tunisia	0.672
112.	Algeria	0.664
112.	Gabon	0.664
114.	Botswana	0.663
115.	Nauru	0.657
116.	Philippines	0.656
117.	Jamaica	0.654
118.	Libya	0.649
119.	Guyana	0.648
120.	Vietnam	0.647
121.	Saint Lucia	0.639
122.	Belize	0.638
123.	Kiribati	0.631
124.	Lebanon	0.623
125.	Republic of the Congo	0.621
126.	Equatorial Guinea	0.613
127.	Morocco	0.609
128.	Eswatini	0.604
129.	Maldives	0.599
129.	Zimbabwe	0.599
131.	Micronesia	0.593
131.	Nicaragua	0.593
133.	Cameroon	0.589
134.	Suriname	0.586
135.	Bangladesh	0.577
136.	Kenya	0.573
137.	El Salvador	0.571
138.	India	0.570
139.	Comoros	0.568
139.	Namibia	0.568
139.	Vanuatu	0.568
142.	Timor Leste	0.567
143.	Iraq	0.566
144.	Lesotho	0.558
145.	Bhutan	0.557
146.	Myanmar	0.553
147.	Sao Tome and Principe	0.549
147.	Zambia	0.549
149.	Togo	0.548
150.	Nigeria	0.545
151.	Ghana	0.536
152.	Angola	0.532
153.	Uganda	0.526
154.	Cape Verde	0.523
155.	Honduras	0.521
156.	DR Congo	0.507
157.	Nepal	0.500
158.	Cambodia	0.496
159.	Haiti	0.495
160.	Malawi	0.493
161.	Guatemala	0.490
162.	Solomon Islands	0.483
163.	Laos	0.480
163.	Rwanda	0.480
165.	Papua New Guinea	0.472
166.	Liberia	0.468
167.	Mozambique	0.427
168.	Tanzania	0.426
169.	Ivory Coast	0.421
170.	Guinea Bissau	0.415
171.	Madagascar	0.409
172.	Gambia	0.400
173.	Syria	0.396
174.	Benin	0.389
175.	Burundi	0.388
176.	Mauritania	0.385
177.	Afghanistan	0.381
178.	Eritrea	0.373
179.	Sierra Leone	0.367
180.	Pakistan	0.366
180.	Sudan	0.366
182.	Guinea	0.363
183.	Ethiopia	0.355
184.	Djibouti	0.352
185.	Senegal	0.349
186.	South Sudan	0.346
187.	Central African Republic	0.336
188.	Yemen	0.313
189.	Chad	0.304
190.	Burkina Faso	0.302
191.	Somalia	0.274
192.	Mali	0.248
193.	Niger	0.243

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The Importance of Education and the Education Index
Top Countries for Education
FAQs
Source

The Importance of Education and the Education Index

A strong education system is a cornerstone of economic prosperity and social progress, making national education rankings a critical indicator of a country’s global competitiveness. For this ranking, we use data from the 2023-2024 United Nations Human Development Report–specifically its Education Index–to provide an overview of academic performance around the world.

What is the Education Index?

The Education Index is a key indicator published by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) as part of its broader Human Development Index (HDI). It ranks countries based on education attainment, using two equally weighted factors: average years of schooling among adults (representing current educational achievement) and expected years of schooling for current students (representing future potential).

How to interpret the index:
Scores range from 0 (lowest) to 1 (highest) and indicate the quality of the country’s education system.

Above 0.9: Exceptional education systems
0.8–0.9: Very good performance
0.7–0.8: Good educational development
0.5–0.7: Moderate development
Below 0.5: Significant education challenges

Countries with higher Education Index scores are better positioned to leverage their human capital to drive sustainable economic growth, foster innovation, and promote social stability for years to come.

Education Rankings by Country

Region ↕	Education Index 2022↕	Inequality-adjusted Education Index 2022↕	Years of Schooling 2022↕
Iceland	0.960	0.938	13.8
Germany	0.957	0.921	14.3
Norway	0.937	0.914	13.1
United Kingdom	0.936	0.906	13.4
Denmark	0.933	0.908	13.0
Finland	0.930	0.911	12.9
New Zealand	0.930	0.894	12.9
Switzerland	0.924	0.906	13.9
Australia	0.923	0.88	12.7
Sweden	0.923	0.891	12.7
Netherlands	0.920	0.877	12.6
Belgium	0.917	0.865	12.5
Slovenia	0.913	0.895	12.9
Palau	0.911	0.885	13.0
United States	0.909	0.885	13.6
Canada	0.908	0.885	13.9
Lithuania	0.906	0.879	13.5
Hong Kong	0.904	0.829	12.3
Latvia	0.904	0.888	13.3
United Arab Emirates	0.904	0.815	12.8
Estonia	0.892	0.877	13.5
Ireland	0.890	0.862	11.7
Georgia	0.887	0.864	12.7
Czech Republic	0.883	0.874	12.9
Marshall Islands	0.882	0.84	12.8
Poland	0.882	0.845	13.2
Greece	0.880	0.789	11.4
South Korea	0.878	0.801	12.6
Austria	0.866	0.842	12.3
Singapore	0.866	0.785	11.9
Cyprus	0.863	0.791	12.4
Israel	0.863	0.811	13.4
Saint Kitts and Nevis	0.860		10.8
Japan	0.854	0.813	12.7
Malta	0.848	0.804	12.2
Spain	0.848	0.721	10.6
Liechtenstein	0.844		12.4
Croatia	0.843	0.81	12.3
Slovakia	0.842	0.827	13.0
Montenegro	0.839	0.774	12.6
Chile	0.837	0.776	11.1
France	0.834	0.769	11.7
Luxembourg	0.828	0.759	13.0
Hungary	0.826	0.805	12.2
Kazakhstan	0.824	0.8	12.4
Italy	0.821	0.739	10.7
Bahrain	0.819	0.749	11.0
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	0.819	0.768	11.0
Tonga	0.816	0.78	10.9
Moldova	0.807	0.787	11.8
Saudi Arabia	0.799	0.698	11.3
Belarus	0.796	0.774	12.2
Turkey	0.793	0.7	8.8
Grenada	0.791		9.9
Barbados	0.788	0.745	9.9
Portugal	0.787	0.688	9.6
Uruguay	0.787	0.726	9.1
Serbia	0.786	0.737	11.5
South Africa	0.784	0.648	11.6
Romania	0.783	0.74	11.4
Trinidad and Tobago	0.782	0.707	11.7
Antigua and Barbuda	0.781		10.5
Armenia	0.777	0.755	11.3
Bulgaria	0.766	0.721	11.4
Kyrgyzstan	0.761	0.734	12.0
Seychelles	0.759	0.709	11.2
Oman	0.758	0.724	11.9
Cuba	0.753	0.685	10.5
Sri Lanka	0.751	0.663	11.2
Iran	0.748	0.472	10.7
Peru	0.744	0.593	10.0
Bolivia	0.743	0.633	9.8
Andorra	0.742	0.701	11.6
Albania	0.739	0.649	10.1
Mauritius	0.739	0.579	10.0
Ukraine	0.739	0.714	11.1
Turkmenistan	0.737	0.717	11.1
Fiji	0.730	0.667	10.4
Uzbekistan	0.730	0.717	11.9
Thailand	0.727	0.611	8.8
Samoa	0.724	0.673	11.4
Panama	0.723	0.65	10.7
Bosnia and Herzegovina	0.719	0.641	10.5
Mongolia	0.716	0.632	9.4
Malaysia	0.715	0.636	10.7
Ecuador	0.714	0.628	9.0
Brazil	0.710	0.61	8.3
Mexico	0.709	0.604	9.2
Azerbaijan	0.706	0.68	10.6
Qatar	0.706	0.627	10.1
North Macedonia	0.701	0.643	10.2
Colombia	0.697	0.577	8.9
Jordan	0.697	0.591	10.4
Palestine	0.697	0.626	9.9
Venezuela	0.695	0.636	9.6
San Marino	0.694	0.657	10.5
China	0.692	0.622	8.1
Tuvalu	0.689	0.628	10.6
Brunei	0.687	0.585	9.2
Egypt	0.685	0.433	9.8
Dominica	0.684		9.2
Dominican Republic	0.684	0.582	9.2
Kuwait	0.683	0.533	7.4
Paraguay	0.683	0.597	8.9
Tajikistan	0.679	0.637	11.3
Indonesia	0.676	0.569	8.6
Algeria	0.664	0.442	7.0
Gabon	0.664	0.527	9.6
Botswana	0.663	0.51	10.4
Nauru	0.657		9.2
Philippines	0.656	0.575	9.0
Jamaica	0.654	0.613	9.2
Guyana	0.648	0.582	8.6
Vietnam	0.647	0.546	8.5
Saint Lucia	0.639	0.478	8.6
Belize	0.638	0.545	8.8
Kiribati	0.631	0.571	9.1
Lebanon	0.623		8.6
Republic of the Congo	0.621	0.49	8.3
Equatorial Guinea	0.613		8.3
Morocco	0.609	0.353	6.1
Eswatini	0.604	0.46	5.7
Maldives	0.599	0.422	7.8
Zimbabwe	0.599	0.512	8.8
Micronesia	0.593		7.3
Nicaragua	0.593	0.439	7.3
Cameroon	0.589	0.403	6.5
Suriname	0.586	0.477	8.4
Bangladesh	0.577	0.362	7.4
Kenya	0.573	0.46	7.7
El Salvador	0.571	0.44	7.2
India	0.570	0.359	6.6
Comoros	0.568	0.298	6.2
Namibia	0.568	0.426	7.2
Vanuatu	0.568		7.2
Timor Leste	0.567	0.313	6.0
Iraq	0.566	0.398	6.8
Lesotho	0.558	0.45	7.5
Bhutan	0.557	0.289	5.8
Myanmar	0.553	0.404	6.5
Sao Tome and Principe	0.549	0.446	5.9
Zambia	0.549	0.437	7.3
Togo	0.548	0.34	5.6
Nigeria	0.545	0.339	7.6
Ghana	0.536	0.348	6.4
Uganda	0.526	0.38	6.2
Cape Verde	0.523	0.38	6.1
Honduras	0.521	0.408	7.3
DR Congo	0.507	0.371	7.2
Nepal	0.500	0.301	4.5
Cambodia	0.496	0.355	5.2
Malawi	0.493	0.356	5.2
Guatemala	0.490	0.317	5.7
Solomon Islands	0.483		5.9
Laos	0.480	0.331	5.9
Rwanda	0.480	0.348	4.9
Papua New Guinea	0.472	0.305	4.9
Liberia	0.468	0.271	5.3
Mozambique	0.427	0.263	3.9
Tanzania	0.426	0.312	5.6
Ivory Coast	0.421	0.227	4.2
Guinea Bissau	0.415	0.24	3.7
Madagascar	0.409	0.293	4.6
Gambia	0.400	0.212	4.5
Syria	0.396		5.7
Benin	0.389	0.22	3.1
Burundi	0.388	0.234	3.3
Mauritania	0.385	0.214	4.8
Afghanistan	0.381	0.195	2.5
Eritrea	0.373		5.1
Sierra Leone	0.367	0.193	3.5
Pakistan	0.366	0.207	4.4
Sudan	0.366	0.21	3.9
Guinea	0.363	0.181	2.4
Ethiopia	0.355	0.204	2.4
Djibouti	0.352	0.191	3.9
Senegal	0.349	0.185	2.9
South Sudan	0.346	0.21	5.7
Central African Republic	0.336	0.217	4.0
Yemen	0.313	0.168	2.8
Chad	0.304	0.173	2.3
Burkina Faso	0.302	0.163	2.3
Somalia	0.274		1.9
Mali	0.248	0.147	1.6
Argentina	0.870	0.825	11.1
Russia	0.849	0.831	12.4
Bahamas	0.754	0.703	12.7
Costa Rica	0.741	0.658	8.8
Tunisia	0.672	0.465	8.0
Libya	0.649		7.8
Angola	0.532	0.351	5.8
Haiti	0.495	0.311	5.6
Niger	0.243	0.159	1.3

Top Countries for Education

The best-ranked education systems share common foundations: substantial public investment, universal access among different socio-economic groups, rigorous teacher qualification standards, and data-based education policies. Nordic countries dominate the ranking, suggesting that their comprehensive approach to education produces exceptional results.

Iceland leads the world education ranking with a near-perfect score of 0.960, demonstrating an excellent balance between present and future educational metrics. Germany (0.957) ranks second, with the highest average years of schooling (14.3) of any country. Norway ranks third with 0.937, followed closely by the United Kingdom with 0.936. Denmark completes the top five with 0.933. Finland and New Zealand share sixth place (0.930). Switzerland ranks 8th (0.924), followed by Australia (0.923), which has the highest expected years of schooling in the world (21.1). Sweden completes the top ten with a score of 0.923, just 0.037 points below Iceland, highlighting the minimal difference between education leaders.

Top 10 countries in education

Iceland - 0.960
Germany - 0.957
Norway - 0.937
United Kingdom - 0.936
Denmark - 0.933
Finland - 0.930
New Zealand - 0.930
Switzerland - 0.924
Australia - 0.923
Sweden - 0.923

Frequently Asked Questions

: Iceland is first in world education rankings with a 0.960 score. The island combines excellence in current educational opportunities with historic levels of schooling and surpasses larger economic powers, including the United States (0.909, 15th place) and Japan (0.854, 35th place).
: The U.S. is 15th with a 0.909 score at the education index ranking. This places the US in the position of Exceptional Education Systems. Despite having world-class universities, it is behind countries with significantly lower GDP per capita, such as Slovenia (0.913).