Bangladesh's literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) was 79% in 2022, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 21.14 percentage points from 57.86% in 2012.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 79% | 2022 |
| Five years earlier | 72.89% | 2017 |
| Ten years earlier | 57.86% | 2012 |
| Highest | 79% | 2022 |
| Lowest | 29.23% | 1981 |
| Average since 2013 | 71.18% | 2013–2022 |
| First recorded | 29.23% | 1981 |
What the numbers say
In 2022, Bangladesh's literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) rose 2.64 percentage points on 2021 (from 76.36% to 79%).
Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2012 to 2021), the average change was +1.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.54 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 7.62 percentage points in 2016 and the biggest yearly fall was 0.91 percentage points in 2012. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2013 to 2022 the straight-line trend is upward, about 1.97 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 86% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
See how every economy compares in the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | 79% | 2022 |
| World | 87.74% | 2024 |
| South Asia | 78.23% | 2024 |
| Lower middle income | 78.28% | 2024 |
Closest to Bangladesh in the 2022 ranking
- Thailand — 1st of 3: 91.1%
- Egypt, Arab Rep. — 2nd of 3: 79.45%
What this measures
Adult literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15 and above who can both read and write with understanding a short simple statement about their everyday life.
Limitations: In practice, literacy is difficult to measure. Estimating literacy rates requires census or survey measurements under controlled conditions. Many countries report the number of literate people from self-reported data. Some use educational attainment data as a proxy but apply different lengths of school attendance or levels of completion. And there is a trend among recent national and international surveys toward using a direct reading test of literacy skills. Because definitions and methods of data collection differ across countries, data should be used cautiously.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 15 values
| Year | Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 79 |
| 2021 | 76.36 |
| 2020 | 74.91 |
| 2019 | 74.68 |
| 2018 | 73.91 |
| 2017 | 72.89 |
| 2016 | 72.76 |
| 2015 | 65.14 |
| 2014 | 61.09 |
| 2013 | 61.02 |
| 2012 |
Literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) in nearby economies
More education data for Bangladesh
- Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
- Primary education, duration (years) — 5 (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 11 (2025)
- Secondary education, duration (years) — 7 (2025)
- School enrollment, tertiary (% gross) — 23.73% (2024)
- School enrollment, tertiary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.77 (2024)
- School enrollment, tertiary, female (% gross) — 20.79% (2024)
- School enrollment, tertiary, male (% gross) — 26.95% (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils — 15.07 million (2024)
- School enrollment, secondary (% gross)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is Bangladesh's literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above)?
- 79% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1981?
- It is up 49.77 percentage points from 29.23% in 1981. The highest value was 79% in 2022 and the lowest 29.23% in 1981.
- Is the latest change in literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) unusual for Bangladesh?
- In 2022, Bangladesh's literacy rate, adult total (% of people ages 15 and above) rose 2.64 percentage points on 2021 (from 76.36% to 79%). Across the 10 yearly changes before that (2012 to 2021), the average change was +1.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.54 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.3 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.ADT.LITR.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), uri: https://databrowser.uis.unesco.org/resources, note: The data are obtained through the UIS API. Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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