Brazil: Primary education, pupils

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Brazil's primary education, pupils fell 0.1% on 2023 (from 15.13 million to 15.11 million).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1985 to 2023), the average change was −0.5% and a typical year strayed about 3.2% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.1 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 10.3% in 1990 and the biggest yearly fall was 6.4% in 1991. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 147,618 a year. A straight line explains 94% 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.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 14.44 million for 2027. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2022 to 2024 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 39,228, against 81,489 for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2024, Brazil had the 6th highest value of the 119 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Brazil in the 2024 ranking

• Bangladesh — 3rd of 119: 16.69 million
• Ethiopia — 4th of 119: 15.93 million
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 5th of 119: 15.4 million
• Philippines — 7th of 119: 13.06 million
• Tanzania — 8th of 119: 11.39 million
• Viet Nam — 9th of 119: 8.88 million

What this measures

Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a sum.

All 50 values

Primary education, pupils in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 8,720 (2023)
• Argentina — 4.58 million (2023)
• Aruba — 7,719 (2024)
• Bahamas, The — 26,817 (2024)
• Barbados — 16,314 (2024)
• Belize — 44,757 (2024)
• Bolivia — 1.38 million (2024)
• British Virgin Islands — 1,626 (2024)
• Cayman Islands — 4,334 (2024)
• Chile — 1.49 million (2024)
• Colombia — 4.14 million (2022)
• Costa Rica

More education data for Brazil

• 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)
• Pupil-teacher ratio, tertiary — 19.24 (2017)
• Tertiary education, academic staff (% female) — 46.97% (2024)
• Secondary education, general pupils — 22.16 million (2017)
• Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary, population 25+, female (%) (cumulative) — 24.48% (2024)
• Educational attainment, at least completed short-cycle tertiary, population 25+, male (%) (cumulative)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Brazil's primary education, pupils?

15.11 million in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is up 17.92% from 12.81 million in 1970 (0.31% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 20.94 million in 1999 and the lowest 12.81 million in 1970.

How does Brazil rank?

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.PRM.ENRL, 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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