India: Lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, India's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) rose 0.71 percentage points on 2024 (from 87.28% to 87.99%).

Across the 12 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was +0.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.3 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations below 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 4.52 percentage points in 2014 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.56 percentage points in 2023. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 9% of the movement over 9 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2025, India had the 9th highest value of the 11 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 India in the 2025 ranking

• Kazakhstan — 5th of 11: 97.45%
• Thailand — 6th of 11: 95.75%
• Kyrgyz Republic — 7th of 11: 93.66%
• Algeria — 9th of 11: 79.03%
• Gambia, The — 10th of 11: 61.3%
• Lao PDR — 11th of 11: 49.28%

What this measures

Lower secondary education completion rate is measured as the gross intake ratio to the last grade of lower secondary education (general and pre-vocational). It is calculated as the number of new entrants in the last grade of lower secondary education, regardless of age, divided by the population at the entrance age for the last grade of lower secondary education.

Limitations: The data do not account for students who drop out during the final year of Lower secondary education. Therefore, this rate serves as a proxy and should be considered an upper estimate of the actual Lower secondary completion rate. There are many reasons why the primary completion rate can exceed 100 percent. The numerator may include late entrants and overage children who have repeated one or more grades of primary education as well as children who entered school early, while the denominator is the number of children at the entrance age for the last grade of primary education.

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

All 20 values

Lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) in nearby economies

• Bangladesh — 73.81% (2024)
• Bhutan — 56.55% (2024)
• Maldives — 94.58% (2024)
• Nepal — 98.25% (2025)
• Sri Lanka — 91.92% (2023)

More education data for India

• 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)
• Primary education, pupils — 126.12 million (2025)
• School enrollment, primary (% gross) — 111.03% (2025)
• School enrollment, primary, female (% gross) — 110.61% (2025)
• School enrollment, primary, male (% gross) — 111.42% (2025)
• School enrollment, primary (gross), gender parity index (GPI) — 1.02 (2021)
• Secondary education, pupils — 133.16 million (2025)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is India's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group)?

87.99% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1987?

It is up 46.03 percentage points from 41.96% in 1987. The highest value was 90.23% in 2021 and the lowest 41.96% in 1987.

How does India rank?

9th highest of 11 economies with data for 2025.

Is the latest change in lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) unusual for India?

In 2025, India's lower secondary completion rate, total (% of relevant age group) rose 0.71 percentage points on 2024 (from 87.28% to 87.99%). Across the 12 yearly changes before that (1988 to 2024), the average change was +0.76 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 2.3 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.0 standard deviations below 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.SEC.CMPT.LO.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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