Education
Primary education, duration (years)
Primary duration refers to the number of grades (years) in primary school.
World Bank code: SE.PRM.DURS • Data available for 210 countries • Latest year: 2025
In , Ireland led Primary education, duration (years) at 8.00.
The world median across 210 reporting countries was 6.00.
How "Education" indicators are measured
Education indicators come from UNESCO's Institute for Statistics, national ministries, and school censuses. Enrollment rates can exceed 100% when over-age children are still in school (repeating grades), so "net enrollment" — which counts only age-appropriate students — is often the more interpretable metric. Literacy data is updated infrequently in many countries.
Distribution — 2025
- Reporting
- 210 countries
- Median
- 6.00
- Mean
- 5.73
- 25th percentile
- 5.00
- 75th percentile
- 6.00
- Range
- 4.00 – 8.00
World at a Glance — 2025
Every reporting country, grouped by region, shaded by value (quintile).
Lighter = lower value · Darker = higher value. Hover a cell to see the country and value.
Highest Values — 2025
| # | Country | Primary education, duration (years) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ireland Europe & Central Asia | 8.00 |
| 2 | Guam East Asia & Pacific | 8.00 |
| 3 | Norway Europe & Central Asia | 7.00 |
| 4 | Uganda Sub-Saharan Africa | 7.00 |
| 5 | Lesotho Sub-Saharan Africa | 7.00 |
| 6 | St. Lucia Latin America & Caribbean | 7.00 |
| 7 | Zimbabwe Sub-Saharan Africa | 7.00 |
| 8 | Australia East Asia & Pacific | 7.00 |
| 9 | Denmark Europe & Central Asia | 7.00 |
| 10 | Iceland Europe & Central Asia | 7.00 |
Looking for a specific country? Only the top and bottom 10 appear here. See where every country ranks for Primary education, duration (years).
View complete rankings →Biggest Movers — Year over Year
By Income Group — Average
| Income group | Countries | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| High income | 80 | 5.75 |
| Upper middle income | 53 | 5.60 |
| Lower middle income | 50 | 5.76 |
| Low income | 25 | 5.88 |
| Not classified | 2 | 6.00 |
By Region — Average
| Region | Countries | Mean |
|---|---|---|
| East Asia & Pacific | 36 | 5.89 |
| Europe & Central Asia | 53 | 5.09 |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 41 | 6.15 |
| Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan | 23 | 5.57 |
| North America | 3 | 6.00 |
| South Asia | 6 | 5.33 |
| Sub-Saharan Africa | 48 | 6.08 |
Lowest Values — 2025
| # | Country | Primary education, duration (years) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Moldova | 4.00 |
| 2 | Bulgaria | 4.00 |
| 3 | Germany | 4.00 |
| 4 | Oman | 4.00 |
| 5 | Kazakhstan | 4.00 |
| 6 | Serbia | 4.00 |
| 7 | Lithuania | 4.00 |
| 8 | Poland | 4.00 |
| 9 | Turkmenistan | 4.00 |
| 10 | Somalia, Fed. Rep. | 4.00 |
Source: World Bank Open Data (SE.PRM.DURS), CC BY 4.0. Rankings show countries with available data for 2025.