IR
Education · Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan · Upper-middle income
Iran: education in numbers
Pre-primary enrolment is 72.5% (2020), 88th of 176 in the world and 5th of 15 in the Middle East & North Africa. Primary enrolment is 102.0% (2023), 75th of 191 in the world and 7th of 19 in the Middle East & North Africa. Primary completion is 97.4% (2023), 60th of 168 in the world and 6th of 19 in the Middle East & North Africa.
Pre-primary enrolment
IranMiddle East, North Africa, A…Upper-middle incomeWorld
Primary enrolment
IranMiddle East, North Africa, A…Upper-middle incomeWorld
12 indicators
Education: Iran in detail
Latest reported value, world rank and rank within Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan; values around 2000, 2010, 2020; group and world columns are World Bank aggregates.
| Indicator | Latest | World rank | In region | ~2000 | ~2010 | ~2020 | 10-year change | Region | Income group | World | Since 2000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolmentPre-primary enrolment, % gross | 72.5%2020 | 88/176 | 5/15 | 18.5% | 40.2% | 72.5% | +32.3 ppsince 2010 | 33.8% | 77.9% | 60.9% | |
| Primary enrolmentPrimary school enrolment, % gross | 102.0%2023 | 75/191 | 7/19 | 97.8% | 98.4% | 104.7% | −9.5 ppsince 2013 | 94.6% | 100.7% | 102.2% | |
| Primary completionPrimary completion rate, % of age group | 97.4%2023 | 60/168 | 6/19 | 88.9% | 96.4% | 96.3% | +3.5 ppsince 2012 | 83.7% | 95.2% | 88.0% | |
| Secondary enrolmentSecondary school enrolment, % gross | 85.1%2023 | 119/176 | 12/17 | 75.0% | 79.0% | 85.2% | +3.6 ppsince 2013 | 65.8% | 96.5% | 77.3% | |
| Lower secondary completionLower secondary completion rate, % of age group | 85.2%2023 | 99/168 | 11/19 | 74.7% | 86.2% | 86.6% | −3.2 ppsince 2012 | 66.7% | 93.0% | 77.9% | |
| Tertiary enrolmentTertiary enrolment, % gross | 58.7%2022 | 65/172 | 4/19 | 18.8% | 42.5% | 55.6% | +4.8 ppsince 2012 | 29.7% | 64.6% | 43.6% | |
| Out-of-school childrenChildren out of school, % of primary school age | 0.1%2023 | 171/178 | 16/17 | 16.7% | 5.5% | 1.8% | −2.1 ppsince 2013 | — | 4.0% | — | |
| Adult literacyAdult literacy rate, % of people 15+ | 88.9%2023 | 85/141 | 12/18 | 77.0%2002 | 83.7% | 87.9% | +4.3 ppsince 2013 | 75.6% | 96.2% | 87.7% | |
| Youth literacyYouth literacy rate, % of people 15–24 | 98.7%2023 | 66/148 | 8/19 | · | 97.8% | 98.4% | +1.0 ppsince 2013 | 86.9% | 99.3% | 93.1% | |
| Pupils per teacherPupils per teacher, primary | 28.52017 | 41/173 | 4/20 | 26.1 | 20.52009 | · | +31%since 2007 | 21.3 | 18.4 | 23.4 | |
| Education spendingPublic spending on education, % of GDP | 2.8%2023 | 151/184 | 13/16 | 4.0% | 3.7% | 3.2% | ±0.0 ppsince 2013 | 4.4% | 3.6% | 3.6% | |
| Education, % of budgetEducation spending, % of government expenditure | 18.8%2022 | 27/179 | 2/15 | 20.6% | 19.3% | 22.7% | +1.4 ppsince 2012 | 13.1% | 15.1% | 14.0% |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (CC BY 4.0)“·” — no value reported within two years of that date. World rank counts countries with a recent value.
Better than ten years ago
- Pre-primary enrolment+32.3 pp72.5% in 2020
- Primary completion+3.5 pp97.4% in 2023
- Secondary enrolment+3.6 pp85.1% in 2023
- Tertiary enrolment+4.8 pp58.7% in 2022
Worse than ten years ago
- Lower secondary completion−3.2 pp85.2% in 2023
- Pupils per teacher+31%28.5 in 2017
Only indicators where higher or lower is clearly better are rated (for example, unemployment down is better, life expectancy up is better).
neighbours
Iran and its neighbours
Countries sharing a land border with Iran. Latest values since 2005; the highest in each row is marked.
| Indicator | Iran | Pakistan | Türkiye | Iraq | Afghanistan | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-primary enrolment | 72.5%2020 | 82.6%2019 | 39.7%2020 | 3.8%2011 | 1.1%2011 | 18.3%2021 |
| Primary enrolment | 102.0%2023 | 83.7%2024 | 102.4%2023 | 104.6%2007 | 112.2%2023 | 104.0%2024 |
| Primary completion | 97.4%2023 | 74.1%2024 | 90.6%2023 | 63.6%2007 | 90.3%2023 | 99.4%2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 85.1%2023 | 48.3%2024 | 118.4%2023 | 50.6%2007 | 59.6%2023 | 110.7%2024 |
| Lower secondary completion | 85.2%2023 | 55.8%2024 | 91.8%2023 | 44.9%2007 | 62.1%2023 | 103.5%2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 58.7%2022 | 10.9%2024 | 105.9%2023 | 15.6%2005 | 10.9%2020 | 83.9%2024 |
| Out-of-school children | 0.1%2023 | 17.9%2024 | 0.6%2023 | 10.7%2007 | — | 0.5%2024 |
| Adult literacy | 88.9%2023 | 58.9%2021 | 97.3%2021 | 84.1%2021 | 37.3%2021 | 97.9%2024 |
| Youth literacy | 98.7%2023 | 73.1%2021 | 92.2%2022 | 92.4%2021 | 62.7%2022 | 99.9%2024 |