Chile: Literacy rate, youth total (% of people ages 15-24)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 0.29 percentage points from 99.01% in 2017. Since 1982 it is up 2.65 percentage points from 96.65% in 1982. The World Bank has no value for 29 of the years in between; the chart leaves those gaps open rather than joining across them.

How it compares

In 2022, Chile had the 2nd highest value of the 12 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 Chile in the 2022 ranking

• Philippines — 1st of 12: 99.77%
• Thailand — 3rd of 12: 98.17%
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 4th of 12: 95.19%
• Indonesia — 5th of 12: 93.79%

What this measures

Youth literacy rate is the percentage of people ages 15-24 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 12 values

Literacy rate, youth total (% of people ages 15-24) in nearby economies

• Bolivia — 99.78% (2024)
• Brazil — 99.46% (2024)
• Colombia — 98.96% (2024)
• Dominican Republic — 98.21% (2024)
• Ecuador — 98.99% (2024)
• El Salvador — 98.24% (2024)
• Guatemala — 95.36% (2024)
• Honduras — 95.77% (2024)
• Mexico — 98.92% (2024)
• Panama

More education data for Chile

• Primary school starting age (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Lower secondary school starting age (years) — 12 (2025)
• Secondary education, duration (years) — 6 (2025)
• Primary education, pupils — 1.49 million (2024)
• Secondary education, pupils — 1.63 million (2024)
• School enrollment, preprimary (% gross) — 84.51% (2020)
• School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.97 (2020)
• School enrollment, primary and secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 0.98 (2020)
• School enrollment, secondary (gross), gender parity index (GPI)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Chile's literacy rate, youth total (% of people ages 15-24)?

99.3% in 2022, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1982?

It is up 2.65 percentage points from 96.65% in 1982. The highest value was 99.41% in 2011 and the lowest 96.65% in 1982.

How does Chile rank?

2nd highest of 12 economies with data for 2022.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, 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..

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SE.ADT.1524.LT.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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